The Wife of Bath is considered a feminist because she is at one with herself. She is comfortable with who she is, her sexuality, and what she wants out of life.
The Wife of Bath is commonly identified as a feminist. She advocates for women having more than one sexual partner. She portrays herself as sexually experienced and sees sex as a positive experience. The Wife also believes in equality between a man and a woman in marriage.
The Wife of Bath was outspoken when it came to the perks of her marriage. “I will bestow the flower of all mine age, in the actes and the fruit of marriage” (Line 113-114). In these lines, she is stating her virginity is only hers to give. She has the intentions to devote her sexuality from youth to maturity to all aspects of marriage. Her being vocal about what she enjoys doing had a negative impact on her character.
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This upbringing affects her lifestyle and relationships because she did not care about what other people thought about her. She used her looks, body, and charm to get whatever she wanted out of men. She went through five husbands and was on the lookout for the sixth. One of her five husbands she married for love but she lost everything because he was abusive. The Wife of Bath implies she married to have rich husbands, and she enjoyed the act of sex. Her potential sixth, however, she wanted to marry out of love.
The Wife of Bath believes experience is a great authority. She considers herself an authority because she has been married five times. The Wife discusses how she had control over four of her husbands, “I governed them so well after my law” (Line 119), indicating she controlled them her way. Her fifth husband, however, was more interested in books than he was in her. This upset her because she was a woman desperate for attention, not sexually, but as a human being; therefore, she did not have authority over him.
The Wife makes an argument against virginity. “For hadde God commanded maidenhead, then had he damned wedding with the deed/ and cartes, if there were no seed y-sow, virginity then whereof should it grow?” (Line 69-72). She argues that if God wanted people to be abstinent and criticize marriage, where would people come from? There would not be any people and virginity would not have a seed to grow from, if everyone was abstinent.
“I n’ll envy no virginity/let them be bread of pured wheate seed, and let us wives hoten barely bread” (Line 142-144). She believes everyone has a gift from God and she thinks her gift is her sexuality. God has given her the body she has as a sexual instrument, and she uses it as much as she can. She believes virginity is not for everyone and it is perfection. The Wife of Bath has no regrets and is proud of her sexuality.
The Wife of Bath reflects on her younger years and has no regrets. She has lived her life to the fullest, had many lovers, and had a great time. “But, Lord Christ, when that it remembereth me, upon my youth, and on my jollity, it tickleth me about my hearte’s rooth/unto this day it does my hearte boot, that I have had my world as in my time” (Line 469-473). Aging has taken away her figure and her youth, but the fact that she enjoyed herself during her youth makes her feel good.
