The Wife of Bath's Tale
What is your reaction to the fate of the knight? Considering he raped a woman, is his trial a just punishment? Post by Monday night so we can discuss on Tuesday in class.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
First, what are your reactions to Coleridge's poems Frost at Midnight & Kubla Khan ? What reactions do they invoke in you? Next, what is different about the poems? If you had to do a side by side comparison or make a Venn diagram of them, what would you include in it? After posting your initial thoughts, return to the blog to respond to your classmates.
Considering that he raped a woman, I do not think that his trial is a just punishment. I think that he deserved a worse punishment than the one that he got. After the woman persuaded the king to have mercy on him, they sent him on a quest to find what women desire most; and while there was still a chance that he could die if he failed, he ended up finding the answer and avoided death. After learning the answer, he was forced to marry the old woman who gave him the answer; however, this wasn’t that bad of a punishment because she was a good person. Plus, this turns out fine because he accepts the woman; and they live happily. While I don’t necessarily think he deserved to die, I think that he should have been imprisoned. Instead, he was sent on a yearlong journey, on which he didn’t seem to face many hardships, resulting in him getting married to a kind woman and getting a happy ending that he didn’t do anything to deserve.
ReplyDeleteI am very disappointed by the fate of the knight in the Wife of Bath’s tale. He receives a happy ending with a beautiful wife instead of being executed. I have very mixed feelings about the tale because the story was entertaining but justice was not reached for the poor maiden. The rape should have resulted in a death sentence. The queen, however, decided to give the knight a chance to redeem himself, possibly because she thought he would fail and just wanted to prolong the torment of knowing he was to be executed. Unfortunately, the knight finds some crazy old lady who saves his life as she knows what all women desire most. In return, she demands that the knight marry her. This would have been punishment, however insufficient, for the knight, but then the old lady confronts the knight for being reluctant to treat her as a wife. This results in a long monologue from the old lady, and the knight finally agreeing to accept her as his wife. The Old Lady magically turns beautiful then, so the knight escapes any punishment. I do not think it is fair at all, as the knight “learned his lesson” but did not face any real repercussions.
ReplyDeleteBecause he raped a woman, I do not believe that his trial is a just punishment; knights are supposed to protect women, but he raped one instead. However, I feel as though he has not lost all hope. The knight is able to learn from his mistake by giving the power to his wife and leaving the decisions to her. I almost forgive him, but I also think he needs a more deserving punishment for his previous actions. The Wife of Bath's Tale reflects on the idea of women not losing all hope in men by depicting how they may change with time. When the knight eventually learns his lesson, he almost symbolizes how men need to listen to the desires of women. Even though I do not believe death is the best punishment. I think that his journey could have been more challenging as a punishment for the answer, but I am satisfied that he learned his lesson by answering his wife correctly.
ReplyDeleteIn short terms, I felt the resolution was extremely disappointing. The Knight, who's title held the meaning of virtue and ethics, represented none of the characteristics that knights were supposed to maintain. First, he took advantage of a woman, which went against a knight's morals, showing that he didn't deserve the title and occupation he was given. Second, after the old woman saved his life by giving him the answer to the Queen's question, he fought her on the stance that he didn't want to marry her, even though he vowed to keep his promise to her of doing whatever she wished. But lastly, the most disappointing part of all, was that he got a happy ending as the old woman turned into a beautiful young girl. He showed that he only cared about surface level things such as beauty and wealth, which shows shallow characteristics; it was a reward that he didn't deserve nor should have received due to him being a morally corrupt person who held a job of high regard. Even though he technically fulfilled his sentence to the Queen, the ending was disappointing as it showed good things happening to bad people. On the other hand, the old woman said that if she were beautiful, he'd have to worry about her infidelity, so hopefully that will be his karma.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that the knight got the punishment he deserved. He raped a woman and ended up with a kind wife and a happy ending. That doesn't sound right to me. Instead of being imprisoned, he was sent on a journey to find what women desire most in life. Not only did he find this answer, but it was basically given to him. Even though he was forced to marry the old woman that gave him the answer, it ended up fine because she is a kind and loyal woman. I don't think he deserved death, however he deserved a much worse punishment than what he received. He didn't really even get punished, he just faced consequences that he wasn't a fan of. Nothing bad actually happened to him which is why I don't think this was a just punishment.
ReplyDeleteI am very upset with the fate of the knight, to say the least. It surprised me that this ‘punishment’ was chosen by the queen herself, a strong woman that many others looked to. While beheading did seem a bit extreme, all turned out far too well for him. The extent of his punishment included walking around for a year asking fair maidens what they truly desired above anything else. I’m not saying that I think he should have suffered a terrible death, but the discipline feels nonexistent. Without help from a woman, the knight would have been killed. Yet, he still complains about marrying someone ugly and poor as repayment for saving his life. Because the old woman turns out to be young and beautiful, it’s almost as though he was rewarded for his despicable actions; he ended up marrying and living a happy life with a lovely woman. As a knight, he also dishonored the code of chivalry and righteousness expected from such a title.
ReplyDeleteTaking in account his horrid deeds and behavior, the knight deserved a much more intense punishment than he recieved. I found it somewhat empowering to see the queen, a woman, decide the knight's fate. While I do not disagree with her option of beheadding him, his ultimate punishment was more humane -- but still improper. He continued to move through life, getting away with his actions. His character is terrible as he only values materialistic things in life and pure looks, rather than character and personality. He then marries an ugly woman - which almost feels like some form of justice - but then she turns into a young and beautiful woman. Why did he get a fair ending after all of his horrible actions? He ended up with a pretty wife after putting her down for her looks. He is a terrible human being but somehow gets rewarded in the end? WHY?
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that the Knight did not endure a just punishment for his crimes, I think that this outcome was better than any execution could have possibly been. Yes, the Knight raped a young woman, and yes, that is an unforgivable crime that should never have happened; however, the point of the story is that the Knight learned why he was wrong in doing so as opposed to merely dying as the same sexist, violent, and superficial brute he was before. In truth, all rape and violent crime stems from a misplaced sense of power and superiority-- whether this is motivated by higher social standings, economic superiority, or philosophical belief that one is superior to his peers for whatever reason doesn't matter. It is the resolution of this misconception that creates a better world. Yes, killing the Knight would have been an appropriate punishment for his crimes, but the Queen sent him on a quest not for redemption, but for knowledge and compassion. When he first declared to the Queen what women truly desire, he did not understand the true meaning behind what the old woman had told him. Only through an intimate conversation with her about what their relationship would entail did he understand that the other option of a pretty, rich, yet woefully unfaithful woman was extremely undesirable in comparison to the genuine love and loyalty of the woman in front of him. As a reward for his enlightenment, the woman is transformed (very Beauty and the Beast-esque) into a gorgeous maiden. Her outside appearance was probably designed to mimic the beauty of her pure love and morality. This is a happy story-- a story where the villain is given the chance to see reason and happiness. For this reason, I believe that the outcome of this story was the best that it could've been.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Knight’s punishment was adequate. My reasoning behind it is due to the fact that he was essentially banished from the kingdom for a year and a day. I understand that rape is an atrocity, especially when it violates the Knight’s code of honor; yet the Knight remained honorable and sought the answer to the Queen’s question. He even started to return with the thought of disappearing since he had no answer to his quest. Furthermore, he was going to give up any possibility of a beautiful wife to give the old woman the decision of his relationship fate. In the end, I the Knight's original actions were heinous and the punishment soft, but I think justice was served in a thematic sense where he remained virtuous on the journey and put the old woman's decision above his.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, while it may have prevented the story from occuring, I think the king and queen should have just gone through with the execution. By raping the woman, the knight betrayed the code he swore to uphold, disgracing himself and the king he served under. Back in those days just insulting a king or lord ranked above him could have garnered a death sentence, and in this case, the knight essentially ignored all duties and ethics given to him by the king and his fellow knights. At the very least, he should have lost his status as a knight and been banished or imprisoned. While his punishment did act like a temporary banishment that taught him a lesson, it definitely was not enough. He basically wandered around for a year, found nothing, paniced for a day, made a suspicious deal with an old woman, and survived. Not only does the knight completely fail at achieving his task himself, but he even tries to back of of the deal he made with the one who achieved it for him. Even if the queen did not kill him, he should have faced punishment for that at least. Maybe the queen should have made the knight the old woman's slave; that would have been ironic.
ReplyDeleteThe knight’s punishment is not fit for his crime. His trial and ‘punishment’ was not equivalent to the despicable crime he committed and even worse, he never learns how reaching his actions may be. After everything he is rewarded with a great life and a wife who is willing to stay by his side despite his crimes. The knight was able to essentially travel for a year searching the land for an answer to a question which was supposedly impossible to answer, yet he was saved. His ‘trial’ was actually just an experiment by the Queen to know if anyone would be able to find the answer to her question.
ReplyDeleteThe contradictory nature of the knight’s title and his actual behaviour shows how pride in one’s position and power without humility can lead to corruption. A knight should be a paragon of the virtues that society deems most important. In most cultures these values are things such as chivalry, charity, strength, respect, and a desire to do good in the world. The knight shows that despite having the title of a hero, his character is not consistent with that of a good knight or good man and therefore is not worthy of respect or salvation that he is given.