How does the Wife of Bath treat her first three husbands?

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The Wife of Bath

How does the Wife of Bath treat her first three husbands?

On page 33 the Wife of Bath reveals that, of her five husbands, “three of hem were goode and two were badde”, going on to say that “The three men were goode, and ryche, and olde”. This suggests that, since the Wife of Bath regarded her three oldest and richest husbands as her favourites, she was fonder of their wealth than their personalities. Indeed, she then reveals: “And by my fey, I tolde of it no stoor,/They hadde me yeven hir land and hir tresoor”. Evidently they didn’t mean anything to her, and in marrying them she was thinking of herself.

        On page 34 she tells her audience “Me neded nat do lenger diligence/To wynne hir love, or doon hem reverence”. As the Wife of Bath is telling her audience that her husbands loved her passionately without much effort on her part, it’s clear that she’ll exploit their love and devotion, and she even admits that this was her intention: “But sith I hadde hem hoolly in myn hond/And sith that they hadde yeven me al hir lond,/What sholde I take kepe hem for to plese,/But it were for my profit and myn ese.” With the Wife of Bath so blatantly taking advantage of her husbands, it’s obvious that her relationships were far from peaceful, and she admits this to her audience: “The bacon was nat fet for hem, I trowe,/That som men han in Essexe at Donmowe.” Referring to the ham that is the prize for the happiest couple at the ceremony in Essex, it’s evident that the Wife enjoyed stormy relationships with all three of her first husbands. She goes on to describe how dominating she’s been in her marriages: “I governed hem so wel after my lawe,/That ech of hem ful blissful was and fawe/To brynge me gaye thynges fro the feyre.” Despite her boast that her husbands were eager to bring her gifts from the fair, she admits that she nagged them enough which suggests the gifts weren’t from the goodness of her husbands’ hearts: “For God it woot, I chidde hem spitously.

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        The Wife then explains to her audience how she is able to turn her husbands’ accusations and arguments against them. The length of her explanations, along with the pride in which she introduces them to her audience, suggest that turning her husbands’ arguments against them were common occurrences during her marriages.  The Wife claims that “A wys wyf, if that she kan hir good,/Shal bere hym an hond the cow is wood,/And take witnesse of hir owene mayde/Of hir assent;”, clearly showing that she is experienced at lying to her husbands and knows all of the tricks to get them ...

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