chaucer and milton

A detailed Summary of chaucer and milton

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, and Paradise Lost by John Milton both show how big the role was by women to contribute to the downfall of man. Each of these authors portrays women's actions in different ways. Chaucer, in his female pilgrimages thought of women has having an evil-like quality, which was that they always tempt and take from men. They were shown as untrustworthy, selfish and vain. He shows these examples greatly in the "The Wife of Bath", "The Prioress", and "Nun's Priest Tale" tales. Milton, in his view of women shows how they were submissive to man in his portrayal of Eve in the Garden of Eden.

The Wife of Bath represents the extreme in regards to female stereotypes of the Middle Ages. Unlike most of the women being undistinguished during the Middle Ages, she has a mind of her own and speaks out. She speaks greatly of herself and loves to show off whenever she can. She intimidates men and women alike due to the power she possesses. Because of her attitude Chaucer makes her obese and toothless. Doubtlessly, she is very ugly, almost to the point of not presenta

ble. She also had five different husbands and countless affairs, thus breaking innocent men's hearts. The Wife of Bath brings up many valid points, but Chaucer disregards her opinion because of her social class and looks, when in reality she is really wise. It is as if her intelligence is forgotten by the fact that she is a woman and considered a whore.

As we look at Milton's Paradise Lost we see that he depicts Eve as a weaker subordinate human. Certainly Milton was sexist; he could not be otherwise given his times and his religion. He has to tell a story that was itself sexist, because it is a myth with a social purpose. Poor Eve suffers from Milton's time and place. She is the "weaker," she was made not directly in God's image but from part of Adam's body, she must worship God through Adam, not in her own right. She is beautiful, yet her beauty is her downfall when the serpent flatters her and convinces her to eat from the tree of knowledge.

The "Nun's Priest Tale" is perhaps the best tale of men's downfall due to the influence of women. This story circles around a rooster, Ch

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Approximate Word count = 738
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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