The Prioress' Tale

During the Middle Ages, the Christian Church had more power than any other authority in Europe. During that period of time, Jews were seeing as anti-Christ. The Prioress’ Tale’s nun in some way could be considered as an anti-Semitic or hypocritical. 

   In the Prioress’ Tale by GEOFFREY CHAUCER, nun had some kind of obsession with motherhood, as she stated, “O Lord, oure Lord, thy name how merveillous/ Is in this large world ysprad—qoud she--/ For noght oonly thy precious praise/Parfourned is by men of dignitee, /But by the mouth of children thy bountee/Parfourned is, for on the brest soukynge/Somtyme shewen they thyn praise,” (The Prologue of the Prioress’s Tale, Lines 453-59). This could never be consider normal thoughts from a nun, her thoughts should be focus on the holiness of Jesus and his saint mother, not on all those sensual descriptions of a mother with her infant’s sucking the milk.

    In another section, Chaucer described all the details about her wardrobe, which honestly it did not described the value of a nun. She seemed to have so much appreciation for riches, which contradicted the nuns’ vows of poverty. As Chaucer mentioned, “This gemme of chastity, this emeraude, /And eek of martirdom the ruby bright,”(The Prologue of the Prioress’s Tale, Lines 609-10). 

     The nun in this tale, she contradicted her self, as she, in some way criticized and at the same time she paid devotion the widowed mother with the little boy. As she explained the short life of this little boy, who’s devotion for the song of Christ’s mom demolished his life, “Of Cristes mooderr?” this was a song of holiness of Mary (The Prologue of the Prioress’s Tale, Lines 538). “O Alma redemptoris everemo/The swetnesse his herte perced so/ Of Cristes mooder that, to hire to preye, /He kan nat stynte of syngyng by the weye.” (The Prologue of the Prioress’s Tale, Lines 554-557). Since he used to sing it everyday, in his way to school and to home. Jews killed him, because they saw him as oppression. In some way she made responsible the mother for her son’s death, because she should teach him when and how to sing when he was around the Jews. 
        This tale evoked pity and curiosity for her tale and consequently for herself rather than selflessly indicating Christendom’s revulsion of Jews “Yvele shal have that yvele wol deserve,” (The Prologue of the Prioress’s Tale, Line 632). Deeply she did not know what she really wanted to be with her life, a mother or a nun. Chaucer had criticized the blatant hypocrisy against the church with the Prioress’ Tale and also with the Shipman’s Tale. Both tales, in some way, represented repressions against the Christian Church. 

The Nun's Priest's Tale

The Nun's Priest Tale is another amazing Canterbury Tales that narrated the story of a poor widow who lived in a little cottage with her daughters. She had some animals, from who she depended in order to eat "She eet ful many a slendre meal". These animals were three pigs, three cows, a sheep and some chickens.  Unlike other tales, this tale demonstrated that not all the widows were riches and selfish like the widow from the Wife of Bath's Tale. She remarried more than five times, just looking for money and position, in the other hand, the Nun's Priest Tale's widow, she preferred to live a simple and honored life with her children and animals. She had one particular chicken, his name was Chauntecleer, and his singing was his talent.

The General Prologue: The Wife of Bath’s

The Wife of Bath, this is another wonderful tale from The Canterbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer. This narrated the autobiography of a woman named Allison, who had remarried five times in other to acquire power and money from men. This tale somehow had a connection with the Shipman Tale's merchant's wife. Just like his wife manipulated men around her, The wife of Bath's woman used them too. Both tales described the necessity of two women for power. They abused of their position. they both used sex as an “instrument” to control their husbands. "She was a worthy womman al hir lyve"/ "Housbondes at chirche dore she hadde fyve"( The Wife of Bath, line.459-60). Just like the merchant's wife, the Wife of Bath's woman used verbal and sexual power to bring her husbands to total submission. she would tease her husbands in bed, refusing to give them full satisfaction until they promised her money. "You shall my jolly body have to wed;/By God, I will not pay you but a-bed!/Forgive it me, mine own. spouse so dear."(Shipman Tale's line 1613-14).

“How the Goodwife Taught her Daughter

“How the Goodwife Taught her Daughter” by George Shuffelton 104-110, in this tale, a mother teaches her daughter to understand how to act in the merchant class, to understand different responsibilities depending on the class's level. This tale described that when a family is considered to be wealthy,and if daughters and wives are seen selling goods in the market, it can put in trial their status. In the other hand, lower class merchant families might encourage the females to go out to market. It also describes when the mother told her daughter, that men will not offer favors for free and that women should look out for this. Women were taught that favors from men were seemed as actions that can brought bad consequences for the women. “Also, for covetousness gifts beware to take;/ unless thou know why else, quickly them forsake;/ For with gifts May men soon women overcome;/ Though they were as true as steel or as stone. /Bound forsooth is she that if any man takes fee,” (“How the Goodwife Taught her Daughter” by George Shuffelton 104-110). In this tale, mother tells her daughter that men will not offer favors for free and that women should look out for this A perfect example could be the wife from the Shipman’s tale. When the monk delightedly promised to bring her the money when she asked, "Lend me this sum, or els. must I die! Daun John, I say, lend me these hundred franks!,” Canterbury Tale, Line 196-03. She freely offered sexual favors in exchange, “If that you list to do what I you pray;/for at a certain day I will you pay./And do to you what pleasance and service,” (Canterbury Tale, Line 204-10. ) .“That for thise hundred frankes he sholde al nyght/Have hire in his armes bolt upright;/ And this accord parfourned was in dede,” (Canterbury Tale, Line 315-17). In this case, women are truly portrayed as an object of lust, without value and self-esteem. The mother wanted to prevent her daughter from acting like the Shipman’s tale wife.

Margaret Paston

Margaret Paston story changed the whole perception we had about husbands-wives during the Middle Ages. Margaret Paston as an eighteen years old, young, inexperience wife of a landed man,who had the capacity to serve as the manager of the estate as well as the woman of the house as a mother. She exceeded expectations. She could handle and protected her husband’s business and could represent him as he was expecting. What made her sad was the idea that she was going to deal with men all the time, and for a woman from that period of time, they were very conservative and shame of having to deal with outside men beside their husbands ,"In a letter to her husband in December of fourteen forty one she writes: Jon of Dam was here, and my modyr dyskevwyrd [discovered or revealed] me to hym, and he seyde be hys trovth flat he was not gladder of no thyng flat he harde thys towlmonyth flan he was per of. I may no lenger leve be my crafte, i am dysscevwyrd of alle men flat se me. (Letter 125)." This was an unusual way of living for Margaret, she had to be a household wife and at the same time a businesswoman to help her husband. This is very interesting because she is changing the idea about women from that period of time. She is acting like a woman from this time. Unlike, Griselda in the Clerk Tales, Margaret was lucky enough to receive her husband's business and be part of it. Margaret did have to suffer and be part of a abusive relationship like Griselda did.

The Shipman's Tale

Shipman's tale is another master piece by Geoffrey Chaucer. The Shipman tells a story about a merchant, his wife and a frequently visiting monk called Dan John, who pretends to be the merchant's cousin. The wife secretly asks the monk to lend her money. She even told the monk how she was doing with her husband, "Mine husband is to me the worst. man, That ever was since that the world began,"Canterbury Tale, Line 1352-55. The monk gladly promises to bring her the money she asks. "Lend me this sum, or els. must I die! Daun John, I say, lend me these hundred franks!,"Canterbury Tale, Line 1375-79. The interchangeability and exchangeability of sex and money are emphatically elaborated in the Shipman's Tale. "That for these hundred franks he should all night Have her in his arm.s bolt upright." Canterbury Tale, Line 1505-07.The monk breaks his vows with God and he shows himself as a manipulator by falsely claiming that he is related to the merchant. Not content with taking advantage of the wife's desperate position regarding money, he betrays her confidence and his actions risk her unfaithfulness being revealed. He seems to profit from his relationship with the merchant and his wife and the joke is on them.This story demonstrates that the vision of life as a purely mercantile arrangement sterilizes those who hold it so that all human values disappear, including that of human awareness. No-one in the story perceived any significance in their actions beyond the immediate financial loss or gain that was incurred.

The Griselda's Clerk Tale

The story of Griselda in the Clerk’s tale by Geoffrey Chaucer narrates the life of a young humble woman whose husband tests her devotion and obedience with tremendously obstacles. This clerk’s tale is a very intense and remarkable story, where Griselda had to demonstrate her devotion and obedience to his noble husband. Griselda knew excitly how to follow the ruled stated in the Component Books. These books stated rules that women had to follow as part of they routines. The rules laid out are "how to be pious, faithful, silent, and subservient, and household duties." Griselda was raised with the belief that woman had to accept and obey husband’s will under any circumstance. Walter, Griselda’s husband, made her believe that he killed both of his children, and he also dismissed her, he did all of these just to test her wifely virtue of obedience and faithfulness. In this story, Chaucer had as the ideal wife like a woman who can overcome any obstacles. Despite the situation Griselda had lived with his husband Walter, deeply Walter felt sorrow and ashamed of the situations that he’s making Griselda goes through. As the Clerk states “The Constance of hys wyf, he caste adoun/His eyen two, and wondreth that she may/ In pacience suffer al this array;/and forth he goth witth drery contenance, /but to his herte it was fil greet plesance.”(Chaucer, 108, lines 667-72). In his interior, he knew what’s he was doing was terrifically inhuman. At some point, Walter acted kind of obsessive with Griselda’s loyalty. At the same time, he felt happy because Griselda showed him her loyalty and obedience. Griselda behaved as one of the most grandiose wives, as the most amazing of all loving and dutiful wives. In the end, Walter stood up as a man, and overcome his obsession to prove Griselda’s worth.

Comportment Books

How stressful can be a book based in the obedience and meekness that wives, daughter and women in general have follow. "Comportment books." These books stated rules that women had to follow as part of they routines. The rules laid out are "how to be pious, faithful, silent, and subservient, and household duties." These characteristics is present in the movie "The name of the Rose's" girl. This girl was pious, faithful, silent and subservient with Adso of Melk. The rules laid out in those texts are not impossible to uphold. Those books were absolutely created by men to underestimate women’s capacity. It demonstrated men’s frustration to maintained women under control, because they knew what women were capable of doing. Women have so much potential and control, they definitely can follow those rules and at the same time be able to improve herself and intellectual. I know it might be difficult back then, but just knowing the fact that for the first time a woman dared to sit down to write a conduct book. Christine de Pizan’s work (1364-1430), one, Le Livre des Trois Vertus was written for the daughter of the Duke of Burgundy, this is the first comportment books written by a woman. Women were already getting an intellectual realization, gaining place in the society as writers and at the same time, they obeyed and subservient men. Men were used to write books and all the laws back then. This is a very smart move by women.

Il nome della rosa

The Name of the Rose  
(Il nome della rosa)




It is a very impressive film directed by Jean-Jacques Annoud. Where William of Baskerville with his novice Adso of Melk were called upon to solve a deadly mystery in a abbey. In this film not only God has part of it, but also the insecurity of human beings. This film gave the perception how authority can lead to fatal errors. How monks abused of their authority just because they didn't want to accept the reality.

There were different types of monks group. Each of them had their own perception and idealism about God. The saddest part is that they didn't provide any hospitable, charitable and hospital services to the poor peasant from outside, especially toward women. The movie emphasized women as a human beings that did not have any respect and value. They were seen as a sin. A sin that can lead to destruction and self-disvalue, if men follow women. They were perceived as a pleasure object, nothing more. In the end of the movie, the novice Adso of Melk who fall in love with a girl, he had sex and felt something especial for her. He left her, even though she looked for him. He choose to follow William of Baskerville than to stay with the love of his life. He choose to have wisdom than love. During that period of time, men valued more wisdom than women. They preferred to live a life alone with wisdom than married with family. Women did not have freedom of speech. The beginning of the Middle Ages, women did not receive any consideration from men. Freedom of speech was prohibited for women. If they did, they were considered witches. Women were seen to be inferior to men. For the Church, women should be docile and obedience to their father and husband. During this period of time, men had an absolute control. In the Film, the only girl that appeared, she was a poor one, with not education, self-respect and notions. She used to look for food in the abbey. This showed how women were the silent voices of the middle age. Any mistakes could lead women to be burned at the stake. The film might reflect a negative side of the women. This negative side is showed when the monk was looking for the girl to offer her food in exchange of sexual act. The young girl was seen as a sex object in exchange of food. A woman was like the forbidden fruit.