ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -The Wife of Bath has been married five times and feels her experience with men makes her an expert on marriage and relations between men and women.

Detailed explanation-2: -Having already had five husbands “at the church door, ” she has experience enough to make her an expert. She sees nothing wrong with having had five husbands and cannot understand Jesus’ rebuke to the woman at the well who also had five husbands. Instead, she prefers the biblical command to go forth and multiply.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Wife begins her Prologue by claiming that her authority to speak on marriage is justified by her experience (an authority not available to the celibate clergy) rather than on her ability to interpret the Bible, a practice she attributes to men (WPB 26).

Detailed explanation-4: -In “The General Prologue, ” Chaucer describes the Wife of Bath as a deaf, gap-toothed woman. She has a bold face and wears ten pounds of “coverchiefs” and a hat on her head (Chaucer 91). She wears a skirt with red stockings and tight-laced supple shoes. She is also a great weaver and has been on many pilgrimages.

Detailed explanation-5: -In “The Wife Of Bath’s Tale", women most desire sovereignty over men in relationships. In other words, the power to have dominance over men is the one thing women most desire.