The Merchants Tale

CORRUPTION
1. 'In her own hand a letter she made'
2. 'so secretly that noone knew it'
POSSESSION
1. 'for who kan be so buxom as a wyf?'
  1. A wife is obedient and the man is in control of organising the marriage, shows this is an important feature of a wife
  2. Rhetorical Question
  3. Link to Prologue: 'Between Griseldas great patience and the cruelty of my wife'
    1. The clerk before tells of the prefect example of a patient wife
2. 'that wife is mans help and his comfort'
3. 'His earthly paradise, and his source of consolation'
  1. Woman is Gods gift (Adam and Eve)
  2. Helps him to fulfill his religious obligations, show a woman is only there for a man
  3. Metaphor
  4. give him sexual pleasure and fulfill his sexual needs
  5. Marriage= earthly paradise OR Marriage= purgatory
  6. 'She may be your purgatory'
4. 'O flessh they bbeen, and o fleesh, as I gesse,/ Hath but oon herte'
5. '"Do this," says he; "Al redy, sire," seith she'
  1. Husbands are in controls and women are obedient and do as they are told
  2. Link to Griselda the patient wife
6. 'the bride was brought to bed as still as stone'
  1. Sibilance
  2. Against her will, drunk, unconscious, scared, unwilling, not in control, is she reluctant or passive?
  3. 'As blind as is a stone'
7. 'A man can do no sin with his wife,/ Nor hurt himself with his own knife'
8. 'That from her heart she can not drive'
MARRIAGE
1. 'And followed always his bodily desire/ On women, where was his appetite,/ As do these fools that are secular'
2. 'God man and womman bond' 'housbond'
  1. The Creation Story, Adam and Eve, woman was made for man.
  2. Bound to someone else, trap of marriage
  3. 'Were I released, so I may prosper,/ I would never again come in the snare'
    1. Metaphor
    2. Sees himself as more powerful and thinks he is more prestige than his wife. Implies she constrains him and marriage is something against his will.
3. 'As sooth as God is kyng, to take a wyf is a glorious thyng'
  1. Encomium (praise someone of something highly) OR Eulogy
  2. Using Authorities of God
  3. People though marriage would help fulfill Gods plans
  4. Uses this authority to justify his desire for marriage and to hide his true intentions
4. 'A wyf is Gods gift truly'
  1. Would have appealed to those travelling with him (pilgrims)
  2. Metaphor
  3. This highlights the importance of religion and tests the Patriachal society as it asserts the wife is not a gift from the Father or Family
5. Marriage is a full great sacrament'
  1. Homily: full of platitudes (a remark or statement, especially one with a moral content, that has been used too often to be interesting or thoughtful)
  2. Marriage is solely religious, says this to hide his true motives
6. 'As Christ loved his church'
7. 'A man can do no sin with his wife,/ Nor hurt himself with his own knife'
  1. Sounds as though he is trying to convince himself, if your careless with your own knife (relationship) you will hurt yourself, talks as though she is his possession or belonging. Implies a man can do whatever he wants with his wife and she will not betray him (too scared to hurt him)
  2. 'I had rather die on a knyf than thee offend true dear wyf!'
DECEPTION/SECRETS
1. Jacob and Rebekke
2. Judith
3. Abigayle
4. Ester
5. 'O brittle joy! O sweete venom deceitful!/ O monster, that so subtly can disguise/ Thy gifts under appearance of steadfastness,/ That thou deceivest both high and low'
6. 'His own man shall make him cuckold'
SEXUALITY
1. 'And followed always his bodily desire/ On women, where was his appetite,/ As do these fools that are secular'
2. 'Thanne is a wyf the fruyt of his tresor'
  1. Garden of Eden and the Pear tree story: Forbidden fruit, knowledge of the world is a sin
  2. 'Fruit' links to the idea of fertility, shows the wife is a product of the man, 'Treasure' suggests he uses money to buy a wife (maybe uses dowries to pay the Father), shows he is self deceptive as he is confusing his motives and manipulating them so they seem inter changeable with the creation story
  3. Metaphor
3. 'I have my body foolishly wasted,/ Blessed be God that it shall be amended!'
4. 'I fair as does a tree,/ That blossoms before the fruit is grown;/ And a blossom-filled tree is neither dry nore dead./ I feel me nowhere white haird but on my head;/ My heart and all my limbs are as green/ As laurel through the yea is to be seen'
5. 'Your heart hangs on a jolly pin'
6. 'Many a fair shape and many a fair visage'
7. 'In his heart he began to menace her'
8. 'He lulleth hire; he kisseth hire full ofte' 'He rubbeth hire'
  1. 'He taketh and kisseth her full ofte'
    1. Use of more violent and possessive language
  2. Verbs
  3. Tender and soft words, she is passive as everything is being done to her
9. 'I must do trespace'
  1. Not wanted, an invasion, destruction of innocence
  2. Contrasts between the courtly love he thinks hes in and the reality
  3. Fabliaux: Coarsely humorous short story based on sexual intercourse
  4. Bathos: Over in a second
10. 'She rates his playing not worth a bean'
  1. Shes more mature than him even though she is younger and less experienced, putting up with him, in control of her emotions
  2. His is not good in bed and is selfish as he does not care about her pleasure: Is she more interested in sexual gratification? Mean? Looking down on him?
  3. 'playing' suggests she is still childish and superficial
11. ''And' during sex description
  1. Gives the sense it is fast, the quick rhythm shows sudden action, passivity and submissiveness
  2. Repetition
12. 'that stood under a laurer alwey grene'
13. 'That he will no one allow to bear the key/ Save he himself; for of the small gate/ He bore always of silver a latchkey,/ With which when he desired, he unlocked it'
WEALTH
1. 'A worthy knyght, that was born of Pavye'
  1. A city in Lombardy that was famous for usury, wealth and sexuality
  2. 'worthy' suggests nobility, repetitive use of worthy but what really makes him so worthy? Foreshadows what Januarie will be like and justifies his viciously sexual nature
2. 'Thanne is a wyf the fruyt of his tresor'
3. 'they worked so, by sly and wise negotiation'
  1. Emphasis on Januaries class and culture of being a knight
  2. The wife is the fruit of his treasure, as if she was bought in a market place and he is boasting about his wealth
4. 'this noble January with all his myght,/ In a respectable manner as is suitable to a knight,/ Arranged himself to live full voluptuously'
5. 'Paye his wyf her dette'

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	Created by Sophie Conisbee over 6 years ago