'The female is nothing but the body.' Following your study of Chaucer's The Merchant's Tale and Milton's Paradise Lost, how far do you think that women are presented as inferior to men in each text?
The texts examined in this essay, Chaucer's The Merchant's Tale1 All references are from Hussey M ed., 1975, The Merchant's Prologue and Tale, Cambridge, CUP. and Milton's Paradise Lost2 All references are form Fowler A ed., 1984, Paradise Lost, USA, Longman , both explore the role of women in their respective societies, whether it was influenced by Milton’s Puritan faith values or the general standard of literature that validated the frailties of women in the 14th century. To understand what is meant by the statement 'the female is nothing but the body', we need to explore its interpretation in several ways: the idea of women as a domestic body or secondly as a sexual object, but also the Biblical idea found in St Paul's writing that considered the man as the dominator in a marriage, just as the head is to the body. Although both writers downplay their chauvinism, Chaucer and Milton do inherently to a greater or lesser extent see and portray women primarily in physical rather than in complete terms, thereby showing themselves to be truly men of their times.
Both texts, Paradise Lost and The Merchant's Tale explore the idea of women being moulded by their male partners. The view Milton presents through Januarie in The Merchant's Tale is that May is the object, the body, that Januarie can mould for his domestic and sexual purposes. The mirror simile episode introduces Januarie's way of thinking as 'Many fair shap and many a fair visage/ Ther passeth thurgh his herte nyght by nyght' through “a mirour, polisshed bryght... in a commune market-place”, which is simply a reflection of his personal desires, not actually real women and equally doesn't engage with a woman's depth or personality but rather is just an “impresse” of reality. The emphasis on the mirror being well polished suggests Januarie has a very refined, exact, deluded idea of how he sees women and what they can do for him. The idea of women being moulded by their male partners is more overtly explored through the use of the word “wax”. When Januarie describes what he's seeking in a wife, he states that he wants one that “Right as men may warm wex with handes plye” (218). The implication is undeniable that men are expected to mould their wives to their rules and ideals and women are expected to be malleable in this way. However, it is ironic that Januarie seeks this and May seems to adhere to this expectation but the reader, in a case of dramatic irony, observes Januarie being manipulated and controlled by his supposedly “fresshe” wife, ridiculing him. Chaucer makes the point that wives should be obedient and led by their husbands with allusions to other tales: The Clerk's Tale is about an infinitely obedient wife, Griselda, who is obscenely tested by her husband to show her subjection to his will, even to acceptance of her children being taken away. Although it is problematic in reading the author's viewpoint through his tales, we can turn to The Franklin's Tale that purported to be closest to Chaucer's heart. Yet, even here, the wife says to her husband that he is “hir lord,/ Of swich lordship as men han over her wyves” (Franklin's Tale 34-58)3 Accessed through internet site http://www.librarius.com/cantales.htm (viewed January 2014) . Although Arveragus is more benign in his mastership, the relationship between him and his wife, Dorigen, is still hierarchical and based on the husband's initiative. Therefore, whilst Chaucer does validate the frailties of women as most literature of his time does, he simultaneously presents less conformist and more independent thinking women.
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Equally, in Paradise Lost, Eve is shaped, moulded and controlled by the man. And although Eve is said to be, with Adam, “Godlike” (IV.288-293), it is made expressly clear that she should be controlled by the man as “Not equal, as their sex not equal seemed... He for God only, she for God in him.” (IV. 296, 299). Any equality is undermined by the hierarchy between Adam and Eve. Just as in The Merchant's Tale where one senses that Chaucer is disquieted by the infidelity of May, so Milton shows how Eve's independence of mind leads to disaster. Eve shows her resistance to Adam's command in Paradise Lost as “Eve/ Persisted... from her husband's her hand/ Soft she withdrew” (IX. 376-7). The repetition of the personal pronoun 'her' subtly hints at her independence yet the adjective “soft” reiterates her position as a woman. We also see Eve questioning herself, in her own personal thought, “If this be our condition, thus to dwell/ In narrow circuit... How are we happy?” which although is about Satan, one could interpret that Eve is speaking about being confined by Adam. This leads to her being seduced by Satan and the couple's expulsion from Eden and Adam blames his wife in strong words of association of Eve with evil caused by her independent ear: “ O Eve, in evil hour thou didst give ear/ To that false worm...” (IX. 1067). This view that woman is to blame for the Fall supports S Erickson's view that Paradise Lost shows “but Milton's putative aversion to women”4 Sandra S. Fernandes Erickson: The Ethics of Gender in Milton's Paradise Lost. Accessed through internet (Jan 10) originally from the journal: Principios: Revista de Filosofia 1998 Volume: 05- Issue 06 . This may be an extreme view 5 'Milton stresses... not the inequality of Adam and Eve, but their matching each other.' Mike Edwards: John Milton: Paradise Lost (Analysing Texts) Palgrave Macmillan (2013) but nonetheless shows that Milton is bound by his Puritan acceptance of Biblical teaching: “It was not Adam who was deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and broke God's law” (I Timothy 2:14)6 Milton would know also of the Apocrypha text, Ecclesiasticus (Sirach), although not being in the Protestant Bible would not have so much authority: 'From a woman sin had its beginning, and because of her we all die.' (25:24) . This critique translates into women seeming less competent and intelligent than men even though Eve does have some power over her supposed superior. Adam, initially feeling the effects of his solitude, asks God to create for him a partner of his own image so God “formed and fashioned with his hands;/ under his forming hands a creature grew,/ Manlike, but different sex” and Eve is described to Adam as “thy likeness, thy fit help, thy other self”. This purposefully shows us initially that Eve is created through Adam and this could suggest both that she is a lesser, inferior version of Adam or at the same time that she is Adam's likeness and is therefore equal. The repetition of Word Count: 987
“thy” implies Eve belongs to Adam, as if God created Eve for him as entertainment. Adam was formed from nothing, from the creation of God's image but Eve was created from one of Adam's ribs which suggests Adam's superiority as Eve wouldn't exist without him. Furthermore, the circumstances of their awakening, with Adam having the sun shining down on him as opposed to Eve with only a pool of water in her surroundings. The allegoric pool of water is used to emphasize her inferiority, becoming enraptured by her own beauty and so implying her narcissism and foolishness. This general image of women could be said to be a consequence of the patriarchal society Milton lived in where Eve was the first woman affected by this.
The Merchant's Tale presents women as second class and as a domestic body as compared to Paradise Lost. The concentration on the woman's body, in The Merchant's Tale, leads to the idea that the wife is the domestic “servant” with all her concerns to be for the husband's welfare as “She nys nat wery hym to love and serve” (79). This emphasizes that women are really not supposed to feel for themselves if it doesn't benefit her husband and the verbs “love” and “serve” also exaggerate her diminutive status. May is also implicated in the tiresome description Januarie provides of his expectations of women and their roles as wives: “She kepeth his good, and wasteth never a deel... She seith nat ones “nay”, whan he seith “ye”./ “Do this,” seith he; “Al redy, sire,” seith she.” Evidently May is a domestic body who is to show submission to Januarie's rule and he takes it further than submission but more of women as a virtual servant to wait on him in his dotage. In this passage there is an echo of the marriage vows, and this shows that Januarie sees marriage as a righteous institution but also justifies his view of women through biblical references. In his mind the ideal wife will be akin to “seinte Marie”- virtuous, chaste and ready to tend to his every need. Similarly, in Paradise Lost, although Adam and Eve seem to work the garden equally, Milton cannot get round the myth that Eve was created out of Adam's rib as his help-mate. She too is to submit to his will: “My author and disposer, what thou bid'st/ Unargued I obey” (IV. 635-636). It has been argued that Milton had an enlightened view of marriage7 'We must constantly remind ourselves of the greatness of both personnages.' She is 'the Queen of earth' C S Lewis: A Preface to Paradise Lost chp. XVI. 1963 reprint OUP. ; there is evidence for this8 In his essay, Doctrine & Discipline of Divorce, Milton writes that the purpose of marriage is in the main for 'the apt and cheerfull conversation of man with woman.' Book I; accessed through Luxon, Thomas H., ed. The Milton Reading Room, http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton. Jan 2014 and the relationship of Adam and Eve seems o be more mutual than that of Januarie and May, yet still Milton is not able to break free of his puritan teaching that women are to be servants of their husbands alluding in book IV to biblical passages that identify man as the master of woman: “He is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man... Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man” (I Corinthians 11:7, 9).
Women being seen as bodies rather than minds is illustrated in Milton's Paradise Lost and reinforces the hierarchy between them and men: husbands have their minds on higher things; women have their brains hardwired for domesticity. Adam with “His fair large front and eye sublime [that] declared/ Absolute rule” (IV. 300-1) contrasts Eve described focusing on her body with “She as a veil down to the slender wasit/ Her unadorned golden tresses wore/ Dishevelled, but in wanton ringlets waved/ As the vine curls her tendrils...” (IV. 304-8). The use of sibilance and assonance in this description exaggerates Eve's sensuality and makes the focus on her body seem more idyllic and softer than the harsher description of Adam that is more overpowering and masterful. Milton's description of Adam focuses on his head, suggesting Adam's most important characteristic is his intellect; Eve's “unadorned golden tresses” pull his focus away from her head to her entire body, implying her primary characteristic is her beauty and grace. Eve's description shows her body partially covered and her hair natural and wild which symbolizes disorder, implying that she needs a man's control to be put in order. It has been said that Adam shows a strong interest in profound subjects when he talks with the archangel Raphael (IV. 15-40) and Eve prefers to participate in conversations that are not entirely abstract, but more-so include touching and feeling (VIII. 52-57)9 Luxon, Thomas H., ed. The Milton Reading Room, http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton, accessed January 14. . So although Milton pictures Eve in majestic terms10 Note VIII 59-61 on Eve: 'With Goddess-like demeanour forth she went; not unattended, for on her as queen, A pomp of winning graces waited still' , Adam is seen as closer to God and more capable of discourse with God than Eve; he is the spiritual- she lives in the realm of the senses. To understand why Milton does not stray from this idea of Adam- Eve as akin to head-body we need to remember that Milton belongs to the Puritan faith that could not challenge biblical teaching such as that of I Corinthians 11:3 where St.Paul writes, “But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.” The fact that a woman is not mentioned as such but rather a wife shows that women were not supposed to have any other purpose than to be a wife and to 'serve' her superior part, her husband. Moreover, as Eve is portrayed as easier to fool, allowing her to be tricked into eating the fruit and blamed for the fall of Paradise. This detracts from her significance for her mind and shows even her body is a liability- Satan appealed to her beauty to gain her trust. What is more often overlooked, is that fact that Eve convinces Adam to eat the fruit much faster, implying that not only is Eve not as subordinated and naive as she is made out but also that Adam, who was “fondly overcame with female charm”, is not so superior to Eve as a rational and intelligent being- he is taken in easily by female charms and Eve holds a certain power over Adam that even God cannot transcend, although this inherently links back to Eve's power and worth being held in her body.
Women are portrayed as sexual bodies in both The Merchant's Tale and Paradise Lost. Serving the needs of the husband, includes ministering to his sexual desires, but The Merchant's Tale highlights this in offensive tones whereas Paradise Lost openly writes of the mutuality of sexual desire. Januarie confesses “Allas! I moot trespace/ To yow, my spouse, and yow greetly offende,/ Er tyme come that I will doun descende.” (616-18). Januarie, because of his lust, offends and trespasses on what should be love-making; this is displayed in the clever use of harsh sounds 'k' and 'br': “he kisseth hire fu ofte; With thikke brustles of his berd unsofte,/ Lyk to the skyn of houndfyssh, sharp as brere” (611-13). It is a violation of May and of what true loving marriage should be11 E. Talbot Donaldson, 'Speaking of Chaucer' 1970: 'A sour note sounds again in the wedding of January and May. No marriage ceremony should be taking place between this ill-matched couple.' ; she appears to be just a body, a sex doll, passively taken to the bed, “broght abedde as stille as stoon” (606). This is an unpleasant labour of lust12 'Thus laboureth he til that the day gan dawe.' MT. 630 in which the roughness of the night corresponds with the harshness of how Januarie acts with May “Night with his mantel” is “derk and rude” (586)13 Contrast the epithalamium or marriage song in PL VIII: 510-52: 'fresh gales and gentle airs/ Whispered it to the woods, and from their wings/ Flung rose' with its wonderful alliteration and clever play on the word 'airs' in the sense of wind and the sense of music. . Moreover, the feeling of coldness and passivity, emphasized by the sibilance, comes close to a description of rape, reminding us of the rape in the Wife of Bath tale. However, even May reduces herself to a sexual body; May turns out not to be the sexual victim but also the sexual predator and manipulator reaching its climax in the garden of love with her copulating with Damyan in a pear tree. The context is the debasing of the concept of courtly love, the dignified admiration of a knight for his lady; a signal of this debasement is found when May thrusts Damyan's love letter down the “pryvee” (742). Contrastingly, in Paradise Lost, sexuality and eroticism are seen paradoxically in positive terms, as the couple make love before the Fall, it is clearly the opposite to that of Damyan and May: “not... loveless, joyless, unendeared,/ Casual fruition, nor in court amours...” (IV. 764-7) In having a view that Adam and Eve have sex before the fall, he challenges the teaching of the Church which tried to suppress female sexuality. The church was deeply suspicious of sexuality in general but more particularly female sexuality. Milton boldly asserts that Adam and Eve enjoyed a full and fruitful sexual relationship and writes, “Nor those mysterious parts were then concealed, Then was not guilty shame, dishonest shame/ Of nature's works, honour dishonourable” (IV. 312
-4); the oxymoron in the last two words shows how Milton feels that Church's views of eroticism are mistaken.
Compared to The Merchant's Tale, the woman in Paradise Lost is described in a more dignified way but at the same time Milton uses Eve's sexuality and consequent narcissism and naivete to make her seem foolish, inferior and weak. The description of Eve in book IV sexualizes her through her body being partially covered but erotically pictured as “half her swelling Breast/ Naked” (IV. 495-6), her hair disheveled and wild and her yielding resistance to love-making: “Yielded with coy submission, modest pride, And sweet reluctant amorous delay.” (IV. 310). As Peter Western argued, “In the seventeenth century, female coyness, or sexual refusal was more sexually exciting for men than it is commonly thought to be today”14 Peter Western: Penguin Critical Studies: Paradise Lost 1990 pg. 105 . It is difficult to see how someone pre-Fallen should practice “amorous delay” and “when Adam leads Eve, who is “blushing like the morn”, to the nuptial bower, it is hard to understand why a person with no sexual experience, let alone shame or guilt, should blush” (VIII. 511)15 Peter Western op. Cit. 105 . This concentration on Eve's sensual nature allows her to be nothing but an eroticized creature, someone without independence of mind as we have seen16 From Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects (London, 1792): 'when he (Milton) tells us that women are formed for softness and sweet attractive grace (PL IV. 298), I cannot comprehend his meaning, unless... he meant to deprive us of souls, and insinuate that we were beings only designed by sweet attractive grace, and docile blind obedience, to gratify the sense of man when he can no longer soar on the wing of contemplation.' . Furthermore, it undercuts Milton's wish to show that there is such a thing as physical love-making which is pure: “Hail wedded love... reason, loyal, just and pure” (IV. 750, 755). It seems that in describing Eve's sensuous qualities, Milton shows his masculine 17th century prejudices. It is hard to deny the conclusion of Erickson: “Lust is made a clear motivation for the Fall, as in Book IX when the Serpent flatters Eve with the words, 'thy celestial Beauty adore/ With ravishment beheld, there best beheld...' (IX. 541-542). The implication is that Eve is not a modest, honest wife, satisfied with love and admiration of her husband, but a brazen hussy seeking admirers.”17 Sandra S. Fernandes Erickson: THE ETHICS OF GENDER IN MILTON'S PARADISE LOST. Accessed through internet (Jan 10) originally from the journal: Principios: Revista de Filosofia 1998 Volume: 05- Issue: 06 Eve is perhaps portrayed as sexually greedy for the needs of the body. Similarly, when Eve is first created and wakes in the Garden of Eden, her response to the pool of water introduces narcissism as one of her major flaws, or even a fatal flaw for women in general, as she becomes self-absorbed with her beauty in the reflection. This emphasizes firstly that her most important quality that seems to be appreciated is her sexuality and beauty, and her response not only denotes a vanity and shallowness that consequently makes her vulnerable to the serpent's persuasion, but also reiterates that she doesn't see or appreciate more in herself than very primarily her beauty.
Through this essay, the idea that The Merchant's Tale pictures women as bodies only (domestic and sexual) under the rule of men is argued and that, likewise, Milton's Paradise Lost presents women as second place and that Eve, the first of women and their epitome, is the body to be ruled by Adam as head. Moreover, in his concentration on Eve's body and her sensuous behavior, Milton shows that he shares the prejudices of his time which was suspicious of women's sexuality18 Note Proverbs' warning against women that might be applied to Eve, who is able to talk her way out of being side by side with Adam and also persuade him to eat the fruit: 'With seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him' Proverbs 7:21. and warned men to focus on spiritual matters so they have the strength to control women's bodies.
Bibliography
- https://www.bartleby.com/essay/Chaucers-View-of-Women-Exposed-in-The-P3AAJSSXH3G4Y
- http://plato.acadiau.ca/courses/engl/rcunningham/2283-06/Paper2Web/Wells/Paper_Template2.htm
- http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton, accessed January 14
- Hussey M ed., 1975, The Merchant's Prologue and Tale, Cambridge, CUP
- Fowler A ed., 1984, Paradise Lost, USA, Longman http://www.librarius.com/cantales.htm (viewed January 2014)
- Sandra S. Fernandes Erickson: THE ETHICS OF GENDER IN MILTON'S PARADISE LOST
- Mike Edwards: John Milton: Paradise Lost (Analysing Texts) Palgrave Macmillan (2013)
- Doctrine & Discipline of Divorce, Milton
- E. Talbot Donaldson, 'Speaking of Chaucer' 1970
- Peter Western: Penguin Critical Studies: Paradise Lost 1990
- Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects (London, 1792)
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