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Desire Espinoza

Figueroa

Senior English

15 December 2018

Chaucer’s Definition of Love

In The Wife of Bath’s Tale it was a time when woman were treated equally. Chaucer

defined love as a value that should be upheld every day and is most important. In the middle

age’s men treated woman with respect. The law was to treat woman with respect and treat them

equally. If any men went against their word they were put to death. Chaucer illustrates love by

using the old crone as an example by her judging the knight and showing how the knight finally

obeyed the law.

Chaucer believes love should be done when two people care and have faith within each

other. The old crone was a prime example of how loving someone should not be off their

background but who they are. “… that a man is not noble because he is the son of a duke or an

earl, but because he himself does noble deeds.” (Chaucer 3) In this quote it proves that no one

should love someone based on their background or who their parents are. Chaucer made it very

interesting towards the end of the story he proves that by loving someone of their true self, that it

is possible to live happily with the other person no matter what it was at first sight. “… when he

had drawn up the curtain and turned his eyes upon her in the full sunlight, behold, she was young

and fair and charming.” (Chaucer 4) Chaucer definition of love was a high aspect to life for him

and his characters. He made the knight see the old crone old and useless, but then he finally

accepts that his word was to marry her no matter what. Once the knight accepted it that is when

the old crone turned young and they both lived happily.
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Chaucer’s beliefs were bright, he seen the world very different from others. In his time

woman were respected and treated the same. Chaucer seen the world for many new

opportunities. He loved romance from the way he defined love in his tale. He was able to show

the readers how the knight transformed throughout the story and how he seen woman and how he

defined love himself. From this Tale Chaucer focused that beauty lies within the human, not just

the physical attributes.

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Works Cited

Chaucer, Geoffrey. “The Canterbury Tales.” 1392.