Attitudes of Marriage in Chaucers the Canterbury Tales :: essays papers

Attitudes of Marriage in Chaucers the Canterbury Tales Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, demonstrate many different attitudes and perceptions towards marriage. Some of these ideas are very traditional, such as that illustrated in the Franklin’s Tale. On the other hand, other tales present a liberal view, such as the marriages portrayed in the Miller’s and The Wife of Bath’s tales. While several of these tales are rather comical, they do indeed depict the attitudes towards marriage at that time in history. D.W. Robertson, Jr. calls marriage "the solution to the problem of love, the force which directs the will which is in turn the source of moral action" (Robertson, 88). "Marriage in Chaucer’s time meant a union between spirit and flesh and was thus part of the marriage between Christ and the Church" (Bennett, 113). The Canterbury Tales show many abuses of this sacred bond, as will be discussed below. One example of corruption in marriage is The Miller’s Tale. This tale includes a lecherous clerk, a vain clerk, and an old man entangled in a web of deceit and adultery construed by a married women. It is obvious in this story that almost each of these characters show complete disregard to the institution of marriage. The two men, Nicholas and Absalon, both try to engage in adulterous affairs with Alison, the old man’s wife. Both of the men are guilty of trying to seduce Alison, which shows their indifference towards the sanctions and laws of marriage. Still Alison, who should be the wiser, also breaks the laws of marriage. She takes Nicholas because she wants to, just as she ignores Absalon because she wants to. Lines 104-109 of the Miller’s Tale show Alison’s blatant disrespect for her marriage to "Old John" and her planned deceit: "That she hir love hym graunted atte laste, And swoor hir ooth, by seint Thomas of Kent That she wol been at his commandmen t, Whan that she may hir leyser wel espie. Myn housbonde is so ful of jalousie That but ye wayte wel and been privee†¦" On the contrary, Alison’s husband loved her more than his own life, although he felt foolish for marrying her since she was so young and skittish. This, in turn, led him to keep a close watch on her whenever possible. The Miller’s main point in his story is that if a man obtains what he wants from God or from his wife, he won’t ask questions or become jealous.