Chaucer's Wife of Bath Prologue: Character Analysis

Introduction: The Wife of Bath Prologue

The Wife of Bath Prologue is perhaps longer than any other portion of The Canterbury Tales, and is therefore worthy of in-depth character analysis. Since the Prologue concentrates its focus primarily on Alisoun, the Wife of Bath, much of the analysis below will focus on Alisoun's character and her relationships with her five husbands — the other primary characters introduced in this lengthy discourse by Chaucer. Alisoun's character helps shape The Canterbury Tales and sets the basis for exploration of many different themes, including women's independence and feminism throughout this bawdy tale.

There are many interpretations of Chaucer's character Alisoun in The Canterbury Tales. This is particularly evident in the Prologue, where Alisoun concerns herself with a lengthy and detailed explanation of her life and marriages. It is through this discourse, however, that one comes to see the character of Alisoun in many different lights.

Alisoun: Character Overview and Feminist Interpretations

The Wife is often considered one of the most developed characters in the entire work. While some have described Alisoun as "fallen" and representative of women's wickedness, others have described her as a feminist aspiring to liberate women during her time. Still others have described the Wife as sensitive and caring, despite her flagrant attempts to prove otherwise. The other characters represented in the Prologue serve primarily to highlight the Wife's own character traits. These ideas and more are explored in greater detail below.

Chaucer's Wife of Bath is not the name of the primary character's actual wife, but rather "the name of an English town" (Gardner, 2005). Nonetheless, for clarity's sake she will be referred to as the "Wife," "Wife of Bath," or "Alisoun" throughout this analysis. Early in the Prologue, Alisoun establishes herself as "an authority on marriage" due in part to her "extensive personal experience with the institution" (Gardner, 2005; Laird, 289; Rigby, 133). The Wife suggests that she is someone who adores marriage at times but despises it at others. This is evidenced by the multiple contradictory statements she makes throughout the Prologue — some in support of marriage and others in clear defiance of the institution.

Alisoun seems throughout the Prologue to take pleasure in material objects and in "arguing with anyone who will listen" (Laird, 290). The Wife of Bath claims extensive experience, having gone through five husbands during her lifetime (Benson, 1986). According to the Wife, "God bade us to be fruitful and multiply," and hence she sees no harm in having had multiple husbands (Gardner, 1). The Wife of Bath considers her gift from God her "sexual power," and she subsequently utilizes this power "as an instrument to control her husbands" (Gardner, 2005).

Chaucer's Wife of Bath supports her claims by quoting scripture, among other things, "carelessly" flinging about references "to buttress her argument" even when her testimonies do not clearly relate to her points (Gardner, 2005). Many would consider the Wife, as she presents herself in the Prologue, a wicked character — one lacking morality and taking pride in her sexual prowess and activities. Others might describe the Wife as a feminist, perhaps even one of "the first feminist characters in literature" (Gardner, 1).

Chaucer's Wife is contradictory at best, describing herself as someone who in some cases opposes marriage, but also as someone who is "sexually voracious" and would use sex to obtain money (Gardner, 2005).

There is much support for the view of Alisoun's "wickedness," as some critics describe it (Knapp, 24). Her wicked ways include her voracious sexual expressiveness and her complete defiance of the authority and traditions of her time (Knapp, 24). However, others see this defiance as more indicative of Alisoun's feminism than her wickedness. The Wife's wanton — or, depending on interpretation, feminist — attitude is expressed when she marries Jankyn, her fifth husband, relatively soon after the death of her fourth: "And to him I gave all the land and property that ever was given to me before that time" (Chaucer, 630–631; Hallissy, 120). This is an expression of Alisoun's bold feminism. She defies contemporary traditions and insists on doing things her own way throughout the Prologue (Knapp, 24). Upon marrying Jankyn, the Wife defies tradition again by endowing him with the riches accumulated through her previous marriages, something that was not customary during the Middle Ages (Hallissy, 120).

The Wife justifies her claims in many ways, suggesting that two of her husbands were bad. Her fourth husband she describes as "a reveler, and had a paramour" (454). She speaks of love only when describing her fifth husband, claiming she genuinely fell in love with him. When discussing her fifth husband in particular, the Wife of Bath begins to show her true colors, revealing a sensitivity about her age, a deeper psychological dimension, and a more sympathetic nature than she initially lets on (Gardner, 2005). A softer side of her character emerges when she discusses him: she suggests that Jankyn was the only husband she truly loved. Jankyn's character is described in greater detail in a later section.

The Wife of Bath is also complex and combative, which is evident when she claims that "church writings breed hostility toward wives" (Chaucer, 690). The Wife suggests that because church writings were crafted by and for men, they are inherently patriarchal and do a disservice to women. There is evidence in the text that Chaucer's Wife also lied frequently; the main character even admits this at one point, claiming "and al was false" (Chaucer, 382; Gardner, 2005). These statements suggest that rather than portray a realistic persona, the Wife would prefer to offer her listeners a kind of performance, exaggerating the details of her life story and leaving people wondering what her true nature really is (Gardner, 2005).

Alisoun's Complexity: Finances, Appearance, and Contradictions

Hallissy (1995) suggests that finances are a vital detail in understanding the character of the Wife of Bath. The Prologue reveals that the Wife has two sources of income: her weaving and her "five husbands at church door" (460; Hallissy, 4). Thus, instead of dressing poorly as one might expect of a widow at that time, the Wife is dressed in showy costumes, perhaps indicative of her flamboyant personality and an expression of "her defiance of behavioral norms for women" (Hallissy, 42).

The central traits of the Wife as described by Hallissy include "assertiveness, rebelliousness and sexuality" (42). These suggest that Alisoun is both "wicked" and a strong feminist — terms that, in medieval times, were almost synonymous with one another.

These ideas are also asserted in the novel, where her temperament is revealed through her appearance, described as "bold and red of hue" (Chaucer, 458; Hallissy, 43). The work also reveals the Wife as knowing "much of wandering by the way" (Chaucer, 467; Hallissy, 42), a reference to her many pilgrimages, suggesting that she is a traveler rather than a homebody. She boldly defies the expectation that widows should "protect their virtue by staying home" (Hallissy, 45).

Chaucer suggests that the Wife knows all about "remedies of love" and "the art of love" (Chaucer, 475; Hallissy, 43), details that reinforce her deeply sexual nature. All of these complexities help define the Wife of Bath as the central character in The Canterbury Tales. While the Prologue does make mention of some minor characters, discussed below, the tale ultimately rests on the Wife's shoulders. She can best be described as alternately complex, bold, assertive, and deeply feminist in nature. There is evidence, however, that Alisoun is also a tender woman capable of genuine love, as her devotion to her fifth husband reveals. This sentiment is far outweighed, however, by her overriding need for authority and power over her husbands — an idea that much of the Prologue expands upon.

Conclusion

The Wife of Bath is rich in character and story. Through this Prologue, Chaucer focuses his attention on the primary character Alisoun, who one might interpret as wicked, fallen, wanton, assertive, and feminist all at the same time. Throughout the Prologue, the narrator works in conjunction with other characters — including Jankyn — to reveal the Wife as a multi-dimensional figure whose main purpose in life appears to be convincing herself and others that her actions are valid and justified. The minor characters of the Prologue, from the unnamed first three husbands to the combative Jankyn, ultimately serve as foils that throw Alisoun's bold, contradictory, and deeply human character into sharper relief.