25 Haylie Haskett – The Merchant’s Tale” – A Feminist Criticism Examination

Haylie Haskett (She/Her) is a third-year student majoring in English Education. She grew up in Cambridge City, Indiana. This paper was submitted to her Middle English Literature class led by Dr. Clapp-Itnyre in Spring 2023. It examines the relationship between January and May in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales.  Professor Alisa Clapp-Itnyre notes, “Haylie wrote a great, longer paper–she needed that length to cover the topic of Lancelot and Guenevere from Malory’s Morte d’Arthur so well, with a clear argument and good examples. It was fun working on the paper with her in various conferences, too! ”

“The Merchant’s Tale” – A Feminist Criticism Examination

“The Merchant’s Tale” holds the title of one of Chaucer’s more well-known tales within his seventeen stories in The Canterbury Tales. Chaucer arguably incorporated feminist sentiments within his writing in which he admonished actions such as rape and sexual assault within his stories while still holding to the patriarchal ideologies of the period. “The Merchant’s Tale” however offers interesting insight into these feminist perspectives.  As the story is being told by the Merchant himself, who hates his wife and the concept of marriage to another, we see a myriad of anti-feminist sentiments and blatant favoritism to the male counterpart within this story. Yet, even within these anti-feminist sentiments, Chaucer’s own beliefs seem to leak through into his storytelling, providing the reader with feminist insights into May’s own experiences within the marriage.

When beginning to examine “The Merchant’s Tale” it is important to consider our narrator, the Merchant, and what might be influencing his storytelling. The Merchant first laments marrying his wife and shares his regrets of marriage in the first place:

“I have a wife, the worst that can be;

For though the fiend were married to her,

She would outmatch him, I dare well swear. (lines 1218 – 1220).

The Merchant then goes on to call his wife names such as “Shrew” (line 1222) and “Cruel” (line 1225). Clearly, the Merchant holds no affection for her, and in turn, no affection toward his marriage. This leads to a story that will be a cautionary tale of sorts, and as he cautions men not to take a wife and to avoid marriage altogether.

In “The Merchant’s Tale,” we are told the story of January, an old man seeking a wife, and May, the young woman he betroths, from the perspective of January. He receives advice from his two most trusted friends concerning taking a wife, in which both have very different answers to his inquiry. Placebo supports January’s interest in settling down wholeheartedly, whereas Justinius says that taking a wife is not “Child’s play” (Chaucer Line 1530). Justinius then goes on to speak on his own experiences with taking a wife and how it had brought him nothing but heartache and suffering, once again wives being referred to as shrews in line 1534. This shows the Merchant’s dislike to marriage beginning to seep into the storyline of January and May. Justinius is a prime example of a man who holds anti-feminist and blatantly misogynistic sentiments within this story,

This misogyny continues with January who decides he will take a young wife, May, to not be tricked or manipulated, citing that younger women are easy to mold into the perfect bride:

“But certainly, one can guide a young thing,

Just as one can mold warm wax with hands.

Therefore I tell you plainly, in brief,

I will no old wife have at all for this reason. (lines 1429 – 1432). Throughout this piece, specifically toward the beginning, January continues to be misogynistic toward women in general not just May. Before he took May as a wife, he speaks ill of older women citing that they are, “nothing but dry bean stalks and coarse fodder.” (line 1422) as well as emphasizing the trickery that a woman who had been previously wed would bring,

“And also these old widows, God it knows,

They know so much trickery on Wade’s boat,

Do so much harm, when they please,

That with them should I never live in rest” (lines 1423 – 1426). Hanna argues that the distaste January has around marrying a widow also lies in the greater social and financial status that these women typically have (Hanna 4). This could stem from January’s desire to control his wife rather than work side by side with her (Hanna 5).  Hanna also emphasizes January using the term “wyf” repeatedly throughout the piece and how that “reflects his preoccupation with how the qualities of a spouse will benefit him as the “fruyt of his tresor,” referring to her economic, social, and moral value” (Hanna 5) January does not want a woman with her own mind, claiming he wants to mold his wife like “warm wax” (line 1430) and that the only way he could do that was if she was young and inexperienced. He wants someone pure, though he is not, The Merchant having expressed in lines 1249-1250 that January had laid with women previously. Through this lament from January, we can see what the man values in a wife, subservience and beauty. He sees women as nothing more than an accessory or useful tool, which only makes his actions later in the text that much worse.

In the article, “’To take a Wyf:’ Marriage, Status, and Moral Conduct in “The Merchant’s Tale,” Natalie Hanna offers critical insight into the difference between the roles of wife and husband in this era and the distinguishment of January utilizing his wife as a caretaker rather than be in a partnership. Hanna emphasizes the line in which January states that a wife is God’s gift to man, “suggesting a man’s unquestionable right to a wife that has been conferred by divine authority.” (Hanna 4). January views taking a wife as a proposition for his benefit rather than mutual gain or even love.

Many of the instances we see in interaction between January hold some sort of sexual context from January, he often views May as a way in which to satisfy his sexual urges now that he is a man of God,

“But in his heart he began to menace her

That he that night in arms would her strain

Harder than ever Paris did Helen of Troy.” (lines 1752 – 1754)

Just like Paris loved Helen so much as to wage war; January would “menace” May sexually, waging war against his own wife’s body as it is unclear whether this interaction between the two is truly consensual. Lines such as this highlight January’s lust and disregard for May’s emotions. By Chaucer using the word “menace” we can see the almost predatory actions of January toward his young bride. January hastens May from their celebratory dinner to get into bed with her and complete the consummation, officially becoming husband and wife. Hanna also touches on the utilization of food esq language when regarding taking a wife, “The comparison of a wife to food reflects not only Januarie’s preoccupation with a wife’s market-worth but also his desire for her as one who can satisfy his sexual appetite” (Hanna 4). This sexual appetite can now only be sated by May as we see an underlying repentance for having sex out of wedlock by January on their wedding night as he repeats to May that having intercourse is okay because they are now man and wife,

“It does not matter how long we play;

In true wedlock we two are coupled,

And blessed be the yoke that we are in,

For in our acts we can do no sin.” (lines 1835 – 1838). Before this, January states he must “do injury” to May and greatly offend before he will descend (lines 1828 – 1829). Statements such as these spread throughout the entirety of the piece, highlighting the blatant misogynistic and harmful ideals of both The Merchant and January.

So far, the Merchant appears very misogynistic and sympathetic to men.  However, Chaucer’s sentiments are subtly woven within it and make the readers wonder where the lines blur between narrator and author. Arthur Hoffman was the first to suggest a divide between Chaucer the man and the characters within his piece, “The Two Narrators” outlining the differences and similarities between the characters’ actions and the correlation to Chaucer’s own societal and cultural experience. Hoffman talks of the portraits of Characters within this piece and how their differing views change how they experience the world around them such as the Knight’s experience versus the Prioress (Hoffman 539). Hoffman states that Chaucer “has found ways, as in the case of the Prioress, of making an ideal of standard emerge within a portrait.” This can be seen in “The Merchant’s Tale” with the standard of what is expected of wives. However, it is also important to note that Hoffman states, “The standard may be ambiguously stated or heavily involved in irony, but it is almost always present, and nowhere with greater effectiveness than in the most sharply satiric portraits.” (Hoffman 539). Considering this, Chaucer may be inserting himself more to support the woman victim, May, in “The Merchant’s Tale” perhaps suggesting an ambiguous ideal of his view of women. The first example is the wedding night shared between January and May when we begin to see May’s perspective.  Here, the narrator begins to display empathy for May’s situation by providing insight into her thought process and emotions at the time of their marriage’s consummation.  We begin to see Chaucer’s sentiment seep into the piece in line 1852, “But God knows what May thought in her heart,” before this, we had never been given insight into May’s emotions. This line marks the beginning of the exploration of May’s thoughts and actions within the piece.

In the text after May and January consummate their marriage it is stated that, “She rates his playing not worth a bean” (line 1854) which shows the reader May’s clear distaste for her husband and his sexual “playing” of her. This is also exemplified through the demand of January for her to strip herself naked on their wedding night. May is not enthusiastic about this interaction merely obeying him, “And she obeys, whether she wants to or not.” (line 1961) This line in and of itself creates a sense of dread within the reader, highlighting the dubious consent given by May to her husband and the power dynamic held between them. After this interaction with the two of them, May remains in her bed chamber for four days straight. This further highlights May’s reaction to having sex with January and the disgust and other negative emotions she felt. We begin to see May’s perspective within this piece and through Chaucer making a point to show she hid in her bedroom for four days, begin to feel empathy for her.

Though their wedding night shows a subtle empathy for May, a second suggestion for this sympathy lies in her ability to easily deceit her husband and lie with another man, Damien, right under his nose. In their first meeting, Damien almost faints upon seeing May which leads to easy control of him. This allows May to regain control that she previously did not have with her husband. January remains oblivious throughout this affair, even going as far as to have this oblivion manifested physically by Chaucer in which January is struck with sudden blindness. This could, perhaps, be intentional on Chaucer’s part to allow May to easily fool her husband and begin to build a relationship and plan to cheat with her lover, Damien. January even encourages May to interact with Damien stating,

“”My Lady,” said this January, “take good heed,

At after-dinner you with all your women,

When you have been in chamber out of this hall,

That all you go see this Damian.” (lines 1920 – 1923). Chaucer essentially builds an easy emotional escape from her husband, having January unknowingly encourage the affair.

A final suggestion that Chaucer incorporates aspects of feminism is his portrayal of the Goddess Proserpina. In the original story from this era, “The Pear Tree” the two gods are Peter and God. In this original story, we follow a similar plot to that of “The Merchant’s Tale” in which

A final suggestion that Chaucer is a feminist is his portrayal of Proserpina.  In the original story that we have from the era, “The Pear Tree,” the two gods are Peter and God. In this original story, we follow a similar plot to that of “The Merchant’s Tale” in which the husband is blinded and the wife is adulterous. Again, similarities show when the woman and the secret lover attempt to have sex in a pear tree and the man’s sight is returned by God (or in the case of “The Merchant’s Tale”, Pluto) and the woman formulates a quick retort to save herself from repercussions. The stark difference here is, in “The Merchant’s Tale” Proserpina argues with her husband in favor of May’s endeavors and blesses her with the gift of wit and allows May to trick January once more,

“Now by my mother’s father’s soul I swear

That I shall give her sufficient answer,

And all women afterwards, for her sake,

That, though they be in any guilt taken,

With bold face they shall themselves excuse,

And bear them down who would them accuse.” (lines 2266 – 2270).  In doing so, Chaucer changes the narrative from the woman being able to manipulate to being blessed with the ability to manipulate. There is also the added layer of turning one of the deities into the opposite gender, making someone in a position of power in this story female. This, in turn, provides May with a bit of grace, further emphasizing Chaucer’s empathy for her.

Overall, when considering “The Merchant’s Tale” and the different perspectives that lie within the story, we can see a clear perspective of Misogyny rooted within the main character, January. January perpetuates stereotypes surrounding a woman’s role in a marriage and views his wife on a very materialistic, shallow level. This could be in part due to the Merchant’s cynicism toward marriage and women. However, while considering our narrator and characters, we must also consider our author. Chaucer, throughout the piece, incorporates his nuanced ways of encouraging the reader to see May’s perspective and develop a sense of empathy for the woman the Merchant wanted so badly for readers to scorn. We see many examples of this throughout the piece such as his detailing within January and May’s wedding night, the easily obtainable affair between Damien and May, and of course, Proserpina allowing May to get the last laugh. Chaucer’s writing in “The Merchant’s Tale” while holding sentiments of misogyny still allows for his perspective of women of the period to shine through and reveal aspects of the female perspective.

Works Cited

Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Norton Critical Edition, 2018.

Hanna, Natalie. “‘To Take a Wyf’: Marriage, Status, and Moral Conduct in ‘The Merchant’s Tale.’” Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques, vol. 42, no. 1, Apr. 2016, pp. 61–74. EBSCOhost, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=60ca6e8a-e6f2-3b74-8594-07a333dc1012.

Hoffman, Arthur W.. “Chaucer’s Prologue to Pilgrimage: The Two Voices.” The Canterbury Tales. Norton Critical Edition Edited by V.A Kolve and Glending Olson, 3rd ed., Norton and Company. 2018 pp. 533 – 543