Humour, introspection and allegory aside, The Canterbury Tales stands out as one of the greatest social commentaries in the history of the English language. Chaucer uses a collection of prologues and tales to explore the issues that lie at the heart of medieval life. His work as a public servant brought him into contact with every level of society and, as a result, this chameleon-like author has courageously tested the waters of social tolerance with his tales of church corruption, courtly love, trade secrets and relationships between men and women. women. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Chaucer's depiction of the medieval "ying and yang" of the gender interface is a recurring theme. His descriptions of courtly love, interaction within marriage, and male domination culminating in the crime of rape are three examples that illustrate Chaucer's desire to explore the influence of human nature on gender inequality. When examining the General Prologue and the thirteen short stories studied on this term, rape is an integral part of at least four works. Therefore, I chose to analyze the depiction of rape in the General Prologue and the tales of The Summoner, The Reeve, The Wife of Bath, and The Franklin. Chaucer's carefully crafted tales use rape to emphasize the weaknesses of male human nature, and aside from the "gentillesse," Chaucer demonstrates that moral corruption and degradation are inherent in every level of society. Gender inequality, a norm in 14th-century England, was the social acceptance of possession; however, Chaucer clearly means that rape should be seen as the male selfish desire to use sexuality as a tool of emancipation and "maistrye". It would be of little value to examine the crime of rape in the 14th century without first discussing the importance of virginity or 'maidenhede'. The medieval church's defense of virginity and celibacy represents an aspect of the medieval aesthetic ideal. There was a very real belief in the “perfect maiden, perfect wife,” and although St. Jerome, in his 4th-century Epistle against Jovinium, acknowledged that marriage was an acceptable outlet for sexuality, he held that virginity was the “state superior" '. The issue of rape seriously compromised the image of perfection, and therefore "in medieval moral theology, theologians argued about the subjective guilt of the rape victim. While the general principle was that non-consenting victims of rape remain, morally, virgins, even the early Church fathers considered the morality of suicide to preserve virginity in the face of the threat of rape" (Hallissy, 51). The Canterbury Tales opens with the general prologue. This short story not only establishes the rules for the "storytelling competition", but introduces characters by "rank", physical characteristics, and reputation. Chaucer creates structural irony by using the literary device of the "naïve hero," while Geoffrey takes on the role of the dim-witted narrator-journalist. Within this role he is able to share information and character traits about his fellow pilgrims, which prove both enlightening and damning. A careful reading of the General Prologue gives us our first indication that all is not well in medieval society. Chaucer introduces Huberd as "A FRERE ther was, a wishowne and a merye" (GP, 208). The word 'wantowne' can be translated as pleasure-loving, but after considering the friar's inappropriate attentions towards women, the alternative translation,'lewd' might be more appropriate. The naive Goffredo notices that the friar has a neck as white as a lily flower (GP,238), which 14th century physiognomists believed to be a sign of lasciviousness. Using the irony of juxtaposition, Chaucer darkens the profile by observing, “So he was as strong as a champion” (GP, 239). Not only is the Friar a libertine, but he is as strong as a fighting champion. The implication is clear; sex by force. The Summoner, in his tale, reinforces the Friar's lewd reputation when he describes the Friar's visit to the home of a sick man. Upon entering the house he embraces his wife "closely" and, in giving her the usual kiss of peace, "chirps like a sparwe" (ST, 1804). The sparrow, another medieval symbol of lust, has entered the house. Geoffrey, the narrator, the friar notes, "had many marriages to young women at his expense. By his order it was a noble office." (GP, 212-214)This double meaning, or reference to the 'noble office', would indicate that the Friar was a valued supporter of his order, but the second meaning, more sexually graphic, would not have escaped even the most naive of readers. So why is he so eager to arrange the marriage of young women at his own expense? It must be assumed that the result of her seduction was directly responsible for the need for marriage. Given her position in society and her male "maistrye", the "many" women indicate a disturbing trend. Like the wax coating of her "peyre of tables" (ST, 1741), her history and conscience are erased once the girls are married. Despite sparkling eyes and an engaging delivery, it would seem unlikely that young women would choose to have unprotected sex with an overweight, experienced, entitled beggar. There would have been no chance of marriage to the Friar to begin with, and considering he was a lymytour, technically with no income or assets, it would have been considered a bad bet for even the unluckiest of maidens. However, given the Friar's propensity to frequent inns and taverns, it would not be unlikely that illicit opportunities would present themselves in the early hours of the morning. In closing, it must be considered that due to the nature of his work, tied to the authority of the church, he would have been allowed to enter most medieval homes in a "position of trust". Although the friars generally traveled in pairs, the Summoner's Tale indicates that the brother was sent ahead to find a room at the inn, leaving the friar to make an unaccompanied visit. The number of young women for whom he had apparently arranged marriages would indicate that this church beggar was at best an opportunist and, sadly, though likely, an occasional rapist. Reeve's tale is a fabliaux. The conventions of a fabliaux require the inclusion of jokes and sex, but it is the depiction of rape as a joke aimed not at the women, but at the drunken miller, that invites scrutiny. This story includes not one rape but two. The rape of the daughter occurs through a surprise attack while she is sleeping, and the rape of the wife occurs through false statements in the middle of the night. The clerks justify their attack on women by the corruption of the laws of the land: Some examples have shaped us, for, John, there is a law that goes thus: That a man at one point is satisfied, That at another he will be relieved . Our corm is stolin, sothly, it's na no, and we've had a fit all this day; any syn I sal ho neen amendementAgayn my los, I will have esement.By Goddes sale, sal neen other bee!(RT, 4179-4187) The value placed on women in the eyes of academic employees is important here, since the "institutionsdominated by men who have in effect 'enchanted' men and women alike into accepting as 'natural' the socially imposed moral, physical and social inferiority of women." (Leicester, 238). In an attempt to get revenge on the miller , the two clerks rape his wife and daughter. They are not seen as human beings with individual rights, but as property or 'personal property' (OED), to be stolen from the miller as revenge for his theft of grain of the daughter's alleged virginity is considered equivalent to a sack of flour. In the morning the daughter and the employee seem to get along, but this does not prevent the relationship from continuing by force and without consent constitutes rape, and the presumption of law to be given part of the clerks creates the literary tension that drives the fabliaux. These acts of rape, whether casual crimes, a practical joke, or real revenge, were meant to be acts of power over the dishonest miller an inappropriate modifier. In their attempt to "cheat" the miller, the selfish clerks had "vilified" the daughter and broken the wife's "herte." The Wife of Bath's Tale paints a much darker picture of rape. A lusty bachelor of King Arthur's court: who one day cam ridynge from Ryver, and happened to, all alone as he was born, saughed a mayde walkynge hym biforn, of which mayde anon, maugree his head, with true strength, rafte hirs maydenhed; (WBT 884-888) Chaucer reverses many aspects of medieval life in this tale. This tale not only describes the cruel and violent act of rape, but refers to it as an act done "by itself as it is born"; that is, without the inhibited manner, courtesy, or decency expected of civilized or learned behavior. The introduction of a rapist-knight turns courtly love and the concept of the Arthurian "gentillesse" on its head. The convention of courtly love is one of romance, obedience and male servitude, yet this tale confirms that there is nothing courteous about rape. Moreover, despite the high social position of this young knight, there is nothing noble in his actions. As the wise old hag reminds him near the end of the tale, "He nys nat gentil, be he duc or erl, for vileyns synful dedes make a cherl. For gentillesse nys ma renomee" Of thy uncles, in high-reward rent, which is a strange attitude towards your person. Your gentillesse comes from God alone. Thanne comth our verray gentillesse of grace; supernatural creature, is it a woman? Once the knight gains freedom, he begs the old woman to release him from his marriage commitment, but the impact of his bad deed has become a life lesson. In an ironic reversal of his previous crime, the knight implores the old woman: "Taak to my good and let my body go." (WBT, 1061). He is freed from death, but has lost his freedom of choice. “After raping a maiden, stealing her most intimate bodily property, he is suddenly faced with a stark reminder of how intimate and precious bodily property is: no amount of possessions is worth the enslavement of your body,” (Shoaf, 100 ).Finally, this is not the story of a 14th century rape. Rape, a crime of opportunity and selfish indulgence, forms the main plot; a fairy tale about the balance of power in relationships. Rape, the ultimate symbol of mental, social, and physical gender inequality, is represented in this tale by a man and a woman, a knight and a humble shepherdess, a lusty bachelor and a desperate young virgin. The Wife of Bath has chosen a story that opens with the plight of a powerless woman, but calls upon the magic of the elven queen to restore balance. In telling his story,, 36).