Feminism Response

The idea that Chaucer's works are sexist is taken completely out of context. Literature reflects the society it is written about, not the other way around. Following that train of thought, The Knight's Tale merely stated the way things were at the time. Classically, women were obsequious to men, especially to those they were related to or those with rank. So the fact that Emily goes against what she wants to fulfill the wishes of the men around her would not be surprising during this time period. Not only that, but by claiming this work is sexist against women implies that there are no victories for the "fairer" sex. This idea, then, would be completely unsupportable. A large occurrence that should please feminists was the victory of Venus. Venus, in essence the goddess of femininity, conquered Mars, basically the god of all things macho. What that demonstrates is Chaucer might have some women characters overcome obstacles, but in the end the female won. However, she did not win because she was a woman, but because she was right. Finally, one of his most masculine characters relied on a woman at one point. In a different story, Thesus needed aid in making his way through the Labyrinth. With the help of Princess Ariadne, Thesus was led through the Labyrinth. Obviously by having a male have such dependancy on a woman, Chaucer was not a misogynistic chauvinist.