Chaucer's Merchant's Tale: Marriage & Society

• The Merchant’s Prologue and Tale is set between 1387 and 1400.
• Chaucer shared a similar mercantile background.
• King Richard II’s reign was a troubled time, marked by the 100 Years War and the Peasants’ Revolt.
• The Great Schism caused dissatisfaction with the Catholic Church.
• England was characterized by a rigid social hierarchy.
• Religion heavily influenced societal actions, with the Catholic Church at the center of politics, economics, and daily life.
• Society was divided into three estates: the Church, the Lords/nobles/knights, and the workers/peasants/farmhands.
• Marriage was the primary means of social mobility, especially for women.
• Merchants were a new economic group outside the traditional three estates, gaining wealth through trade.
• The clergy opposed merchant activities, viewing them as greedy and against God’s will.
• Merchants’ roles grew in the 13th and 14th centuries, as both peasants and nobility purchased goods from them.
• Noblemen were seen as spendthrifts, while merchants were considered misers.
• England operated under a feudal economy until the late 1300s.
• Sumptuary laws, such as the Statute Concerning Diet & Apparel [1363], dictated detailed dress styles for each class.
• Medieval audiences were familiar with the Ten Commandments and the Seven Deadly Sins.
• Purgatory was adopted as official Catholic doctrine in 1254, presenting a time of suffering to expiate sins.
• Time in purgatory could be shortened through penance, pilgrimages, or paying for sung masses.
• Men held legal, financial, and theocratic power.

The Clerk's Tale

• In 'The Clerk’s Tale', an Italian marquis marries Griselda, who promises obedience.
• The marquis tests Griselda’s faithfulness by taking away their two babies and claiming they will be murdered, which Griselda accepts.
• The marquis then pretends to annul the marriage and insists Griselda attend his new wedding to a young wife, but Griselda remains patient.
• Griselda is rewarded with the return of her children and praise for her eternal faithfulness.
• The Clerk's Tale intends to encourage wives to be obedient to their husbands.
• Chaucer’s adaptation of 'The Clerk’s Tale' has the Clerk comparing Griselda to Job, who was beset with disasters.
• Suffering is undeserved, and she remains patient and humble like the Old Testament character.
• The Clerk insists that the story’s objective is not to inspire husbands to test their wives.
• Chaucer’s version disapproves of Walter’s behavior, showing an anti-misogynist message, unlike Petrarch.
• Griselda is depicted as the perfect wife full of patience, potentially implying that men always win.
• In 'The Wife of Bath's Tale' successful marriage relies on husbands giving their wives sovereignty.
• In 'The Merchant's Tale', compromise is advocated, with women gaining sovereignty, but men must have patience.

Women

• Women are burdened by Eve’s legacy, reflecting the responsibility for original sin medieval art.
• The Adam and Eve story underscores the belief that women are the inferior sex, morally weaker, and prone to deception and disobedience.
• Mary is the medieval epitome of womanhood, highlighting expectations of chastity, silence, and obedience.
• The Virgin-Whore Dichotomy presents women as either evil sinners (Eve) or virtuous virgins (Mary).
• May combines both roles by having an affair but keeping appearances for January.
• Women often married very young to older men.
• Once married, a woman became one with her husband under the law of coverture, with all property becoming his possession.
• Widows might gain some autonomy after their husbands died and could legally inherit 1/3 of the estate.
• January desires “tendre veel” or “young flesh” instead of “old boef” or “old fish”.
• Medieval society believed women were inferior, believing that both men and women possessed the same fundamental reproductive structure until the mid-18th century.
• Ancient Greek anatomist Galen believed women were an imperfect version of the male body.
• Galen believed sexual desire was uncontrollable and that wombs were ‘cold’ and needed constant warming by ‘hot’ sperm.
• Galen’s ideas were promoted as fact by the Catholic Church, enforcing marriage.
• Women were categorized by marital status: maiden, wife, or nun, with the “Bride of Christ” metaphor encoding ownership by man to religious identity.
• Medieval scholarship, shaped by Aristotle, argued women were more mischievous, impulsive, jealous, deceptive, and difficult to rouse to action.
• The Clerk's Tale precedes 'The Merchant's Tale', depicting Griselda as known for "grete pacience" and obedience to her husband and became a popular tale in the Middle Ages.
• 14th-century literature often demonized women, but Chaucer mocks antifeminist literature.
• Theophrastus's stereotype is the shrew wife.
• While some say women are untrustworthy, another may have found women full of virtue.

'The Wife of Bath's Tale

• Suggests the use of God-given gifts to have power over husbands (M = wit).
• In King Arthur's court, a man rapes a woman, and she is given the chance to decide his fate.
• The woman said the man could live if he could discover what women really want, which turns out to be sovereignty over their husbands.
• When a man and crone marry, she can be beautiful or unfaithful, ugly or good, and the man lets her decide.
• It is suggested letting women have control will leave them pleased when in charge.
• 'The Merchant's Tale' forces the appreciation of flaws, playing degree of sympathy.
• The poem shows general opinions, e.g., are all women deceptive?

Fabliau

• This was popular during 14th century France.
• There was often anti-women/church + bleak/cynical viewpoints included, plus wordplay and puns.
• There are salacious discussions of sexual matters.
• It is sometimes considered 'amoral’.
• Chaucer suggests all marriages are based on deception/selfishness.
• Chaucer doesn’t assign any character morally good/evil, using a complex moral landscape of cruel traits.
• Deceit may be necessary to preserve functional marriage.
• The standard theme is of an adulterous repressed wife.

Courtly Love

• This emphasized nobility and chivalry.
• Popularized Dante's Divine Comedy [1320] + Boccaccio's Decameron [1353].
• Dante & Beatrice embodied forbidden love, resulting in Dante’s desire to reunite with Beatrice in heaven.
• Knights adventuring, devotion to beloved, chases + 'wins' woman.
• There is experience between erotic desire + spiritual attainment.
• Clandestine love is popular in myth/literature.
• Chaucer = satyrical/parody of courtly love mixes courtly love alongside fabliau.
• "He made a gardyn, walled al with stoon” becomes increasingly possessive of May.
• Chaucer translated some of medieval French allegory → based on courtly love →unattainable /May →J's hubris + M&D courtly lovers = comic.
• “Bille...in the pryvee softely it caste” shows Chaucer is critical and is unrealistic genre.
• It is 'Morally elevating'.

Marriage

• Medieval marriage was based on mutual consist.
• The vows that were exchanged was the marriage which was ['handfasting'].
• Marriage was declared as one of the sacraments to try to introduce more solemn rituals and discourage insincerity.
• There was joyous/energetic medieval weddings full of feasts and drinking. Marriage as a sacrament = destine heaven [sex within marriage is holy procreation] or hell being mortal sin.
• “Trewe” wife means loyal [like Abigail] and “trewe knave” means ultimate servant which justified slavery. “Fruit of his treasure” and “thy good to kept, than thyn owene wif” symbolizes the ultimate piece of property. “To kepe him, sik and hool, as is his make” suggest to look after husband in old age.
• Placebo and Justinus have cratylic names which were given to reflect popular 'debate' genre at the time.
• ”Heigh Fantasie and curious bisyness” signifies that marriage is a transaction where beauty is traded for money.
• There wasn't any parental consent required meaning May was a result of J’s imagination.
• January and May’s wedding references Capella’s De nuptiis for irony, with Mercury and Philogia as opposites showing irony.
• Chaucer seeks to legitimise marriage despite strange circumstances.
• Wives didn’t have rights, couldn’t refuse husbands sexually, borrow money or own own will.
• Marriage was seen a solution for woman’s medical need for sexual Intercorse.
• Neither man nor wife could deny other 'repayment' of 'conjugal debt' and law controlled sex life.
• Medieval society forced people into marriage, true love must come out of marriage which meant courtly love. “Wedlock is so esy and so clene, that in this world it is a paradys” and “Made al siker ynough with hoolinesse” represents idealistic views on marriage.

Anti-misogyny/men

• There was male authority/reliability questioned from the outset where the Merchant wasn’t trusted.
• Men were directily criticised from failing in love.
• There are binding stereotypes about men for example senex amans.
• May was given a voice, comedy was male characterized at the tim where narrative centralises M.
• The destructive nature of desire used fire imagery.

The Merchant

• “Forked berd” means very fashionable and deceptive.
• "Flaundrish bever hat" and "he was in dette"
• "I noot how men him calle” states merchants are name/statusless. "Well koude he in eschaunge sheeldes sell” for profits and deception.
• Chaucer uses irony stating "This worthy man"
• "I am a rude man" and apologises for crudeness.

January

• Includes a mirror [spy on marketplace women] shows his shallowness, superficialness, objectification voyeur.
• He is religious and hypocritcal concered about not entering heaven.
• He is a stock charter classical Greek comedy with old man married to young girl.
• J "ravysshed in a traunce” and raped my May’s beauty and has no agency.
• Heavily preoccupied about heaven.
• He is lizard like.

May

• J orders May asserting ownership and underscores her role.
• There is assertion of hubris and dramatic irony.
• She is 'described with feminine beauty which is dangerous presented by the merchant.
• Consistently "fresshe” even after May .
• She doesn't believe lost virginity and has poor performance so is not in love.
• Subverts “gardyn” “wex” and “cliket”
• Given masculine form adjective.

Damyan

• Damyan has an illness and is described almost serpent like.
• Named after St. Damian, a satirizing of moral hypocrisy.
• Lust is assigned to D.

The Garden & The Gods

• Deus ex machine is a plot device where the resolution brings a comedic happy ending.
• Prosperpina was abducted and released by Pluto.
• J "made a gardyn, walled al with stoon" where he controls May
• Women were beautiful and had a sting in their tail.

AO5

• M+D = P+T which conspire to fulfill desire despite obstacles symbolising pear trees.
• M hints at future affairs giving freedom
• J bending and shifts between love. M and P make a shift in actions.

Jacobean Tragedy

• According to Bushnell, Jacobean revenge tragedy "is a symptom of a society in transition, where traditional forms of authority and the nature of law were being questioned".
• Hoffman and Hamlet included a pathetic women because it was less common.
• Webster brings the courtroom on stage and gives a radical critique of its political order

The Great Chain of Being

• This examines class relations Feudalism was present, a mix of merchant class with city expansion.
• Religious power was removed and there was great function of marriage.
• Nicollo Machiavelli stated “those who achieved great things have ben those”.

The Duchess of Malfi General Context

• The play was first staged in 1614.
• Webster's knowledge was derived from Painter's 'Duchess of Malfy', and Webster echoes sympathy for D.
• Webster quoted "why might not I marry?
• Painter retold events Bandello Novelle.
• The play alludes to corruption in King James' court and is set in Catholic Italy, cleared of treasonous implication.
• Reflects complex moral ambiguity and the relationship between individual impulse and societal norm. Common theme relationships were domestic/courtly. Webster celebrates theatricality using dumb shows/trickery.