Weeks 4-6
1. Cite some variations in the Loathly Lady fabula across the three tales in your Reader. Focus on the conditions by which the lady is either beautiful or ugly, and the actions of the knight/king/"hero"...
2. The Wife of Bath's Tale is considered by some critics to indicate that Chaucer may have been a feminist. Why might they believe this? Do you agree? Remember to cite evidence from the text or some other source.
3.Hahn's essay (see critical reader)on The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelleidentifies the motif of the loathly lady, but arguesit has a different purpose than asserting the feminine. What does he think the function of the story is?
4. In the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets, how can we define "conceits"?
5. Discuss what you think is the most striking or outrageous example.
6. What does Revard (1997) suggest about the relationship between language, sex, power and transgression in the English Renaissance?
2. The Wife of Bath's Tale is considered by some critics to indicate that Chaucer may have been a feminist. Why might they believe this? Do you agree? Remember to cite evidence from the text or some other source.
3.Hahn's essay (see critical reader)on The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelleidentifies the motif of the loathly lady, but arguesit has a different purpose than asserting the feminine. What does he think the function of the story is?
4. In the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets, how can we define "conceits"?
5. Discuss what you think is the most striking or outrageous example.
6. What does Revard (1997) suggest about the relationship between language, sex, power and transgression in the English Renaissance?
(Purwanti Rachmadi - Group 6)
ReplyDeleteIn The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnalle, King Arthur decribes the loathy lady such as,
“Her face was red, her nose running,
Her mouth wide, her teeth all yellow.
Her eyes were bleary, as large as balls,
Her mouth just as large.
Her teeth hung out of her lips,
Her cheeks were as broad as a woman's hips.
Her back was as curved as a lute.
Her neck was long and also thick.
Her hair clotted in a heap”. (Hahn,T 1995, p.10)
The poem is distortion and it seems conflicting the roles of stereotypical gender. Because in some analysis, most knights in the Middle English era, are astonished to marry the most beautiful woman. Dame Ragnalle manipulates Gawain in order to follow her desire of marrying a high society with title. In this stage, Dame Ragnelle becomes the symbol of power, contradictive with general stereotypical gender behavior in society.
These descriptions remind me to a story of Snow White. Her stepmother is a witch and I thought she changes herself to a beautiful lady and beliefs there is no one will be like her until Snow White grown up and becomes more stunning than her. In reality, Snow White stepmother is as ugly as Dame Ragnalle with her eyes are bleary, as large as balls, her teeth hang out her lips and her back is as curved as a lute. Her aim is using her appearance to control her King husband, who is Snow White’s father. Unfortunately, she could not do it forever.
My point is, the romantic poems and stories in medieval tradition is a parody or they could be satire of the authors to aristocrat practice and to overall dislike of their behavior.
'the symbol of power, contradictive with general stereotypical gender behavior in society.' Contradictive is not a word. Contrary to, would be better. Or opposed to. Your analysis would benefit from reading Carter or one of the secondary sources.
ReplyDeleteIn the Wife of Bath’s Tale, some critics indicated Chaucer might have been a feminist, it could be seen here,
Delete“That this knight was condemned to be dead,
By course of law, and should have lost his head,
Perhaps such was the statute then,
Except that the queen and other ladies as well,
So long prayed the king for grace,
Until he granted him his life right there,
And gave him to the queen, all at her will,
To choose whether she would him save or put to death”. (Chaucer, G, 2006, p.68)
The word of "And gave him to the queen, all at her will", shows the person who decides on and initiates action is the queen. She exploits reversal of masculine roles of the King by control deliberately exerted to choose whether she would the Knight save or put death".
In her review, Carter's (2009) states," Chaucer’s foregrounding of gender exploits the shapeshifting loathly lady motif as a vehicle for examining the sphere of heterosexual power contestation". The Queen has important role in circumstances to decide the Knight's sentence of dead, but Chaucer still plays with fidelity and it tends to promote a behaviour of masculinity, since the King is the person who granted the knight's life but gave him to the Queen.
However, I want to say in different point of view and thought Chaucer might anti feminist. The wife of Bath refers to anti feminist Prologue. It tells about her fifth husband, who has a book and every night read such of texts to her. Finally, the Wife tried to act like a real person with showing her feelings and rips her husband's book at the end of this Prologue. The transformation tells how this stereotypes slip down from caricature to character rather than just combining two negative stereotypes.
The other stereotype of anti feminism of this tradition, woman also presented as excessive of spending money, untrustworthy and could spill the secret, talk foolishly and greedy,
"And in one purpose steadfastly to remain,
And not reveal things that men tell us.
But that tale is not worth a rake handle.
By God, we women can hide nothing;
Witness on Midas --
Will you hear the tale?"(Chaucer, G, 2006, p.66)
Chaucer had grown treatises about the dangers and annoyances of women and wives or it could be said as disadvantages of being married. Well, I might be wrong but it seems, in late classical period many concept of heterosexual relationship had been involved in writing ideas, and Chaucer's story is one of them. But sometimes, The Wife of Bath Prologue could gives a sensible moment.
Reference:
1. Carter, S. 2003. Coupling the beastly bride and the hunter hunted: What lies behind Chaucer's wife of Bath's tale. .THE CHAUCER REVIEW, Vol. 37, No. 4. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. P330.
2. Chaucer, G. 2014. The Wife and Bath translation
A lot of what you said makes sense. I think would probably lean more towards Chaucer being anti- feminist. Feminism is still such a debated concept today that their view of women at that time is completely different to ours. We can question whether he is really giving 'women power? He is talking about the queen, someone who is already in a position of power as she is at the side of the king, and specifically talking about Guinevere and Arthur, many portrayals of their relationship show that they were very much in love, so she would probably have a lot of say in what happens in court. In 'The Wife of Bath's Tale' Chaucer does give some power to women, an idea that was comedic in that time. Basically what I'm trying to say is that feminism is about equality rather than females gaining power over men, so I don't think Chaucer was a feminist.
DeleteQ.2:
ReplyDeleteGeoffrey Chaucer, author of The Canterbury Tales, was seen by many to be a feminist; in this case specifically, The Wife of Bath’s Tale. Carter (2003) states that the themes they have inferred in this tale are to show “the lesson that gender roles are not the only option, and that female sovereignty may bring happiness” (p.339).
This tale is about a knight whose life is in the hands of King Arthur’s wife. He has 12 months and one day to answer a riddle in the Queen’s court, or he will be put to death. In the last few lines of the tale, Chaucer (c.1390) mentions that women could freely walk anywhere, “in every bush, or under every tree” (line, 879), but the one being that posed a threat to them was man. Women were never hurt, but they were dishonoured. In saying this, it ties into the knight’s reason for punishment; he followed a maiden and “by verray force, he rafte hire maydenhed” (Chaucer, c.1930, line 888). The knight rapes the maiden, and thus motivates the women of the Queen’s court to demand justice from King Arthur to have the knight’s head.
Before I continue on, it is important to note the dominant position in this tale, which supports the idea of Chaucer being a feminist. The fact that man has the upper hand in ‘dishonouring’ a woman, or generally being a natural danger to them, men were (and still are) the dominant gender in society. It’s common in hierarchy, and in this case, common in general tales of the loathly lady. However, The Wife of Bath’s Tale is quite different. Carter (2003) states that “[Chaucer] evidently appreciated the more immediate destabilization of gender roles” (p.332) that often appeared with the personification of the kingdom as the loathly lady. Mann (as cited in Carter, 2003) reports that anti-feminism is the driving force behind the tale’s “challenge to male domination”; the knight’s submission to the loathly lady isn’t due to his ideal view of her, “but to the woman conceived by the pessimistic terms of anti-feminism” (p.332). He who has done wrong will have to accept the wrong he has done.
In saying all that - proceeding with the women of the Queen’s court demanding justice, they eventually receive what they all pleaded for. Chaucer’s (c.1390) tale says that the King has given the Queen full control over the knight’s punishment. Carter (2003) mentions the Queen’s authorisation “to take over the king’s power as ultimate judge”. The fact that the Queen has total say in what to do with the knight’s life is the turning point of the switch of power roles. In addition to this switch is the women of the Queen’s court; “Ful many a noble wyf, and many a mayde / And many a wydwe, for that they been wise” (lines 1026 - 1028). Carter states that this tale “usurps the male prerogative of justice, [and] redistributes it to the women of the court…” (p.335).
In the tale, the Queen bestows a riddle on the knight for him to find an answer to. If he doesn’t find the answer to the riddle within 12 months and one day, he will be executed. Chaucer’s Queen says “what thyng is it that wommen moost desiren” (line 905); what thing is it that women most desire. What’s interesting about this is that this tale sets this knight on his journey to some sort of redemption by learning about a woman’s needs. He finds what he’s looking for in a forest, where he comes across a hag. The events that follow lead to him becoming the old woman’s husband, to his dismay; the old woman provides him with the answer to the riddle, and in return, he must become her husband. Carter (2003) mentions that his decision to rape has lead him to be in the role of a sex object, and to suffer humiliation from that.
References
Carter, S. (2003). Coupling the beastley bride and the hunter hunted: What lies behind in chaucer’s wife of bath’s tale. In The Chaucer Review, 37(4), 329-345.
Chaucer, G. (c.1390). The wife of bath.
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DeleteAns. (2) I think you have made some fair points on the feminist ideas that
Deletecould have been potentially portrayed in the text. I would like to add some more points with respect to the the feminist notions mentioned in the tale (Batchelor, 2009).
The Wife of Bath's Tale (The Tale of the Wyf of Bathe), found in the Canterbury Tales s regarded as one of the most well-known works of Geoffrey Chaucher, written to mainly provide an insight into the role of women in the middle ages .
There are several contradicting theories as to how people interpret Chaucher's intentions/pupose with regard to the portrayal of women within the general theme and the context of the text. There are some elements in the text that may suggest that Chaucher was pro feminism (Batchelor, 2009).However, from a personal perspective, analysis of the text did not suggest that Chaucher's depiction of women were particularly positive and/or in favour of them.
Perhaps attempting to make sense of why a reader/audience would assume that Chaucher utilised feminist notions into the text could further help understand why one might feel that he had a positive bias towards portraying the power role for women in the tale.
According to Batchelor (2009), the wife of Baths standpoint on women's desires is such that the paths of mastery (maistrie) crosses barriers between classes that essentially suggest that women from all different backgrounds desire and want the same basic freedoms. It could be said that the wife's own newly found position as a developing merchant class leader maker her strongly advocate notions of empowering women and take into account their desires (Batchelor, 2009).
Let us take the concept of the use of 'maistrie' (mastery) in the text for instance;
-When the knight utters his answer to the queen's question, "As well over her husband as her love,And to be in mastery above him." he seems to be proposing and absolute feminist idea of authority; He goes on to say "This is your greatest desire though you kill me. Do as you please; I am here subject to your will" (Benson, 2008). At this point, it is quite evident that the knight has surrendered all his will and power to the wife of bath, thus subjecting himself to a totally submissive state (uncommon during traditional times) before her and the ladies at the court and subsequently positioning the women into the role of mastery. This in turn seems to put the textual content in favour of feminist ideals.
-As the queen had done previously before, the old hag in the tale sought the knight to reach the deduction of female supremacy on his own. By doing so, she held on to the idea that she she could not be accountable for persuading him directly. "Choose yourself which may be more most please, and most honour to you and me also" he says. "I do not care which of the two, for if it pleases you is enough for me" (Benson, 2008).Here again, we witness the knight yielding all his power to the mercy of the woman --to which the hag responds with; "Then have I gotten mastery of you since I may choose and govern as I please?" accrediting power and mastery as factors that enable this decision making (Benson, 2008).
From a personal point of view,even through the above mentioned example, it is possibly true that although the text may somehow appear to have views in support of feminist ideals, the underlying intentions are nothing but that; and are in fact, quite contradictory to the former. The male submission aspect and surrendering of power,giving all mastery to the women in this case are done so in a manipulative fashion; not exactly what feminism strives or stands for as it aims to preach equality amongst the sexes but not superiority, thus defeating the purpose of the cause (Batchelor, 2009).
References:
Batchelor, J. (2009). A Mixed Message. Retrieved March 30,2014 from http://ayjw.org/articles.php?id=607031.
Benson L.D. The wife of baths prologue: an interlinear translation.Retrieved March 30,2014 from
Q2. Your oppinion has good point. I want to add aother information and my opinion. :)
DeleteAccording to Rosemary (n.d.), there is the feudal tradition in Chaucer’s tales. Superior people protect their position to maintain their social status as well as to keep the inferiors loyalty in return. In this story, the knight is a character representing a loyal retainer to King Arthur, but due to a crime in which he committed, he was sentenced to death by King Arthur. At that time, the King is the one who holds the most power and could order anyone to do anything, including sentencing one of his loyal retainers to death. The King has the highest authority, even above the Queen, but in this story, the King gives all authority to the Queen.
In my opinion, Chaucer is a definite feminist as he clearly shows the authority line between a male and female dominance. In this story, the Queen wanted to interfere and asked for all authority over the Knight’s life. The Queen who now held all authority over the Knights life, gave him a mission. When he did finish his mission and passed the question, the Queen then forced him to marry an old hag and yet again, Chaucer shows the reader of why he is a feminist. Chaucer in this case basically says that the Knight who is a male, doesn’t have any power even in a marriage due to his crime and shows the reader that the female can also be a very strong gender. Also, Chaucer shows that in this story the female ends up being more dominant than the male, and also ending it on equal grounds between female and male.
Reference:
Rosemary, M. (n.d.). A Feminist Perspective on The Canterbury Tales. Retrieved April 7, 2014, from http://salempress.com/Store/samples/critical_insights/canterbury_feminist.htm
Naufa, excellent comment using Batchelor. Tie in to rise of Merchant class is fascinating. Was this new, emerging class more liberal in its attitude to woman's 'mastery' than other classes, like the nobility with their vested interest in male power?
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DeleteIn contrasting the liberalism between the attitudes towards women's 'mastery' and male power, I wouldn't necessarily say that the new emerging class were too directly involved in favouring towards notions of feminine dominance - my opinion lies on the fence with regard to this.Perhaps this is because feminism and any perception was unfamiliar to the masses - and women were expected to have certain submissive standards; if thought otherwise, it takes away from the history and changes certain dynamics (Harden, 2007).
DeleteAs Whitaker (2012) suggests, society in of late 14th century England was as she describes, excessively ''patriarchal'' and ''androcentric'' - we can evidently observe this if we look into the wife's history, or the prologue of the tale in which she clearly calls out men on being harshly oppressive towards women.
It is perhaps fair to say that although a fair share of people would like to advocate and be liberal towards the idea of womens 'mastery' practices, others probably prefer to stick with traditional beliefs, what they are familiar with - thus, we are probably unable to conclusively say that the new emerging class was more tolerant towards the issue in comparison to male power (Martin, 1990).
References:
Harden, S. (2007). Chaucer's Wife of Bath: Feminist or Failure?. Retrieved April 11, 2014, from http://voices.yahoo.com/chaucers-wife-bath-feminist-failure-392170.html?cat=38
Martin, P. (1990). Chaucher's Women: Nuns, Wives and Amazons. Iowa City. University of Iowa Press.
Whitaker, N. (2012). The Wife of Bath’s Tale and Anti-Feminism. Retrieved April 11, 2014, from http://nataliemwhitaker.wordpress.com/2012/11/24/november-11-2012-the-wife-of-baths-tale-and-anti-feminism/
An addition to Q.2:
DeleteGood pointing out, Naufa - I understand your point of view, and it does make me rethink about the original concept around feminism which is definitely equality. There is a bit of evidence of feminist views in The Wife of Bath’s Tale; though, not completely. I would say that there are different ways of projecting feminist views, which all leads to the different ways of approaching the greater goal of equality. Considering the time of this tale, and the setting of this tale, the idea of the power-switch roles would lead one to believe that Chaucer was a feminist.
The prologue of Chaucer’s tale, The Wife of Bath’s Tale, is narrated by the Wife of Bath, who tells the tale in the manner of her own marital experiences. Leicester Jr. (1984) reports that the Wife, who has had enough of the male expectations of women in the time of that society, decides to gain the ‘authority’ by telling a tale from her own experiences. He continues on to state that “the form her counterattack takes is that of appropriating the instruments or institutions of masculine power” (p.159). Leicester Jr. also mentions that public speech and storytelling are male-dominant, and her tale is a reflection of her dismay toward that; the wife “takes an aggressively feminist position in structuring the world of the tale and pointing its moral” (p.160). Based on his words of “aggressively feminist position”, he also states that the wife has been said to ‘womanhandle’ the traditional tale, but is only telling it in its original structure of how the Loathly Lady tales are presented, of course, with her own twist to it. The word ‘sovereignty’ is used throughout the story, which contradicts the whole idea of feminism. The Wife talks of ‘sovereignty’, which is the power to overcome man, but in marriage.
I guess my whole point is I’m not entirely sure if there’s a ‘correct way’ to achieving the goal of equality, and if there was, would there be any progress toward that goal if it were achieved the ‘right way’ as opposed to the ‘aggressive way’ we see in The Wife of Bath’s tale? Even if Chaucer were not a feminist, it’s safe to say that his tale is a story told from a woman’s perspective about power-switch, and the moral teaching to men of a woman’s place in society. I would call this tale a piece of female empowerment, which is only one aspect of feminism.
Reference:
Leicester Jr, H. M. (1984). Of a fire in the dark: Public and private feminism in the Wife of Bath's Tale. Women's Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 11(1-2), 157-178.
Q3. Hahn's essay (see critical reader) on The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle identifies the motif of the loathly lady, but argues it has a different purpose than asserting the feminine. What does he think the function of the story is?
ReplyDeleteThe Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle is one of the most popular stories in medieval England. This story focuses on the motif of the loathly lady but this story actually can be interpreted as two different meanings.
First interpretation can be fantasy’s relationship with reality. This story’s genre is romance. However, there is a serious problem which has to be solved to save Gawain’s life and the problem is finally solved by ‘fantasy’. More explanation of this would be that the loathly lady can be seen as a character representing/portraying fantasy. There are not only feminine but also some different meanings such as royal authority, political dominance and loyalty in the story but these factors are hidden by the appearance of the loathly lady representing fantasy in strange woods. The character knows the answer to solve the king’s question and in return to giving the solution to Gawain she wants to fulfil her desire.
Although there are realistic problems such as maintaining Gawain’s position and fulfilling women’s desire which all the women’s want and expects in the story, the main point is that ‘fantasy’ hides and solves the realistic and serious topics. Furthermore, another main point is that ‘fantasy’ is an essential factor to maintain its genre, romance.
Second interpretation is that this story has another topic such as kingship, political dominance and loyalty to the king and queen. Hahn(1995, p.19) points out, “Ragnelle explores the ties of chivalry through a structured repetition and variation of a fundamental pattern. This consists of a series of linked and interlocking oaths and commitments”. In short, the story also identifies ties of chivalry. Sir Gawain is a character representing obligation to be a loyal retainer to the king. At that time, kingship meant very high authority and, political dominance meant very important point which everyone wants to get more. In short, this story also includes these topics by using the character of Gawain.
References:
Hahn, T. (Ed.). (1995). The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle. In Sir Gawain: Eleven Romances and Tales. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Medieval Institute Publications
Q3. You've made some really good points here. But we could possibly look further into the motif of the loathly lady. Firstly, in his essay, Hahn (1995) describes the 'Loathly Lady' as being a duplicitous character. She is both ugly and beautiful, a danger and a life- giver. Hahn explains further that these qualities are often associated with women. This does tie in with the idea of Chaucer taking a feminist approach with the text, but we could also look at it in such a way where the Loathly Lady' is as much of a protagonist in the story, as Gawaine or King Arthur. She possesses the power to either let King Arthur be killed or let him live and her choice to help save him is one that helps the story progress. She is also the reason Gawaine lives, as she provides him with the answer he needs for the queen. If she did not choose to help, our heroes would not have been able to fulfill their quests.
DeleteHahn also explores the idea of Ragnelle being the link between all the male characters in the text. She holds the story together and is therefore the link that all the men (Gromer, King Arthur and Gawaine) have with each other. Hahn states "by passing among these male characters, she becomes the nexus that ties them together and makes possible the fraternal and hierarchic bonds of chivalric solidarity" (1995).
References:
Hahn, T. (Ed.). (1995). The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle. In Sir Gawain: Eleven Romances and Tales. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Medieval Institute Publications
Solid ideas emerging here. Kim Sun Min, you are right in that there is a decided atmosphere of a fairy-tale or folk tale in 'The wife of Bath' tale. It reads like a fairy story, complete with magical transformation.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete4. In the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets, how can we define "conceits"?
ReplyDeleteIn the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets, generally they used metaphysical conceit. The conceits can be defined as an elaborate idea or conception. The point of conceits is very difficult to clearly determine. In short, it also can be seen as curious and excessive metaphor or simile making a relation between two different things that are never connected in the context of Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets. These conceits could give a shock and make the readers mentally confused. At that time, in short, during the Renaissance period, the conceits were related to metaphysical poets (Tanvir’s Blog, 2010). For example, we can find an example of these conceits in Shakespeare’s poem.
Shakespeare – Sonnet 18
“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temporate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d,
And ervey fair from fair sometimes declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee”. (Shakespeare, W, 1609, p.105)
In this sonnet, we can see a Petrachan conceit to immortalize his beloved one. This poem used simple conceit. ‘Eye of heaven shines’ means sun and then it also represents gold complexion dimmed as a conceit. A summer day is compared with his beloved one in this poem. In the poem, line 13-14 means that, that beloved person will live or last. That is to say such as out of time, eternity (Philology.de, n.d.).
References:
Tanvir’s Blog. (2010). Conceit/Metaphysical Conceit. Retrieved from http://tanvirdhaka.blogspot.co.nz/2010/07/conceitmetaphysical-conceit.html
Phililigy.de. (n.d.). William Shakespeare Sonnet No. 18: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?. Retrieved April 1, 2014, from http://www.philology.de/william-shakespeare-sonnet-no-18-shall-i-compare-thee-to-a-summer%e2%80%99s-day-an-interpretation/
Shakespeare, W. 1609. Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day.
Ans. (4) I think you have made some interesting points with regard to defining and elaborating on the use of 'conceits' in Elizabethan and Jacobean sonnets.
DeleteYou have stated that the "point of conceits is very difficult to clearly determine"; I, however, believe that metaphysical aspect is probably harder to define due to the complex levels of philosophy and differing ideas involved (Kolentsis, 2008). Although this is probably debatable, I would like to point out that the reason for the usage of 'conceits' can be described in two ways of an applied linguistic approach that aims to:
(i) Controversially claim and manipulate perceptions in various unexpected ways that enables a reader to grasp a much cultivated understanding of a subject/object in comparison (Kolentsis, 2008);
- Through Sonnet 130, "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun", I will aim to explain the first example relating to conceit with a few verses from the mentioned text.
First, lets take a look at first three verses;
"My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun
Coral is far more red than her lips' red
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun"
Pretty straightforwardly, here Shakespeare compares the "mistress" to the "sun", "coral" and "snow" , elements typically used to compare, contrast and reflect on the beauty of femininity of a woman. In this instance, however, there is an unexpected twist. Instead of praising her physical beauty, he dulls down her appearance in comparison to these elements - which makes one wonder why this woman made out to be such catch giving her the status as a "mistress" (Mabillard, 2008).
Just as suddenly though, Shakespeare changes his tone midway through, stating "I love to hear her speak, yet well I know. I love to hear her speak, but I know. That music hath a far more pleasing sound"; complimenting her voice and then going on to praising her walk; " I grant I never saw a goddess go". Notice how the concept of conceit has manipulated its way through the language and themes to create a plot twist with contrasting views (Mabillard, 2008).
(ii) Achieve immortality through the language in verses integrated through the writers perception (Ward & Trent et al. , 2000);
- I will attempt to illustrate this second example of conceit with verses from Shakespeare's "Shall I compare thee to a summers day (Sonnet 18)" to elaborate on the concept of perpetuity.
Take these few lines of the sonnet for instance;
"Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee."
The immortalising potential of these verses are a fundemental component, and veritably an unavoidable matter - it in turn provides a straightforward intention with regard to language contributing to maintaining the sonnet's balance and constancy of love and its power to immortalise the motif of the theme (Ward & Trent et al. , 2000)
"Nor shall Death brag thou wander' st in his shade,When in eternal lines to time thou growest" ; here Shakespeare is almost literally suggesting that not even "death" could claim her in its "shade", which is technically an obvious impossible occurence if we base it on reality. He then goes on to say that the "eternal lines", the verses in his sonnet will assure her immortality forever.
Now at this point, we must consider the utilisation of conceit as a parapet to the linguistics as it is indirectly,but strongly influencing the possible effect it can have on an audience. The final two verses support the former statements, implying that "So long as men can breathe or eyes can see", that is as long as there is presence of people on the living planer, "so long lives this and this gives life to thee", insinuating the subjects eternity again, through his words.
References:
References to Ans. (4)
DeleteI was unable to post the references in the previous post which prevented me to post my comment with the references.
References:
Kolentsis, A. M. (2008). Shakespeares Telling Words. Grammar,Linguists encounters and the risk of speech.
Shakespeare, William. Sonnet 130. Ed. Amanda Mabillard. Shakespeare Online. 8 Dec. 2008. http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/130detail.html.
Ward & Trent, et al. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1907–21; New York: Bartleby.com, 2000 (www.bartleby.com/cambridge/).
Well done, Naufa. A fine close reading of the text in terms of the conceit.
DeleteKim Sun Min. Good thinking going on here. The conceit in this sonnet is the ongoing comparison of the loved one with nature. What is a Petrachan conceit?
ReplyDeleteThe Petrarchan conceit can be defined as a metaphor. Especially, it was used in love poems written by the 14th century. The conceit was used by Italian poet Petrarch. Factors of Detailed, imaginative, and often bombastic comparisons is consisted with the figures. (About.com, n.d.). The conceit is related to expression of love in the poems. In short, lover’s situation or a new method that represent feeling about love is revolved around the love poem (Wisegreek, n.d.).
DeleteReferences:
About.com. (n.d.). Conceit. Retrieved April 9, 2014, from http://grammar.about.com/od/c/g/Conceit-term.htm
Wisegreek. (n.d.). What is the function of the Conceit in Poetry. Retrieved April 9, 2014, from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-function-of-conceit-in-poetry.htm
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ReplyDeleteQ4: The Oxford companion to Shakespeare defines ‘conceits’ as “an unusually elaborate metaphor or simile that is developed ingeniously, often as the basis of sonnet or other lyric; but also found in dramatic speeches. One of the most well- known is from Shakespeare’s sonnet XVIII, “Shall I compare the to a summers day”. Sonnet CXXX is full of conceits like “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the son”, and “and in some perfumes is there more delight than in the breath that from my mistress reeks”.
ReplyDeletePersonally I find the use of this language technique really effective in getting the writers point across. Reading through these sonnets, I found it easy to picture what the author was trying to portray. As well as this, these poems were written to be spoken and not read so when recited, this technique makes the text much more entertaining.
Looking at these texts from an Elizabethan and Jacobean perspective, it is quite clear that people were obsessed with appearances. Whether or not they accepted that their loved ones were beautiful or hideous, these poets often talk about their lovers appearances or their feelings of lust. People today are pretty much the same, obsessed with appearances, and they have lustful tendencies, but I feel that the poets of the Elizabethan and Jacobean era were much more tasteful and clever in expressing themselves than some of the poets we see today.
I’ve been thinking about modern- day poets and poetry, are they using conceits and does it have the same effect as some of these texts?
References:
(2001). conceit. In The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare. : Oxford University Press. Retrieved 7 Apr. 2014, from http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780198117353.001.0001/acref-9780198117353-e-680.
Q6:
ReplyDeleteRevard talks about the leading female poets in Renaissance England, and the impact they have had in the literary world against (and with) their male counterpart. From what I have read and understood, it seems that Revard suggests that the relationship between language, power, and transgression in that era were male dominant. In support of this, Revard (1997) states:
“A man’s view of a “learned” woman almost always involves a man’s view of women in general, and assessment of her literary achievement cannot take place without considering the acceptability of her competing “equally” in the domain of poetic performance. At stake is more than the man’s monopoly of wit. For if a man and a woman compete in a literary contest and he “loses”, as a man he also loses the right to dominate in other areas.” (p.19-20).
Male dominance was prominent in Renaissance England, and the literary field was no exception. Female poets have had their share of success, but never to the point where they are considered an equal to others in the same profession; male poets. Revard mentions that “complimentary poems to men are extravagant”, where their profession was mentioned before noting their gender. Yet poems in ode to women, like poet Abraham Cowley’s complimentary poem to Katherine Philips (who was the leading female poet in her time), mention their gender before praising their abilities. Revard states that “it was apparently almost impossible in this era to be gender blind”. A woman’s gender was always first and their profession second. Men, the other way around.
An area that women in that era seemed to dominate in (according to men) was sex. Revard talks about Cowley’s Pindarics, where he “[emphasizes] the rivalry between men and women poets” but states that the beauty of a woman results in her win in the contest of love against man. Only then can a woman make a man “submit to her wit”. Personally, it’s quite unfair that a female poet was only taken ‘seriously’ if she were considered a ‘beauty’ as well as a good writer. Even then though, they were never really taken seriously in their field. There are also mentions about the lack of education that women had access to in that era, and how it would have made a huge difference; like, the ability to be able to read old literature in latin or greek in its original form, without the need for translations.
Reference:
Revard, S. P. (1997). Katherine philips, aphra behn, and the female pindaric in representing women in renaissance england, edited by Claude J. Summers and Ted-Larry Pebworh. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.