Mini Analyis: Politics of marriage

                                                Politics of Marriage: Miller’s Prologue and Tale

In the Miller’s Prologue and Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer, the sanctity of marriage is incongruently portrayed through characters Allison, John, Nicholas, and Absolon as each character adds to the misrepresentation of the couple’s union. To begin with, women oppression is portrayed in order to show that women should not be weighed down because of their gender ties, especially during the 1400s when tradition was becoming distorted.  As far as gender ties, character Allison is connected to the negative idea of women in marriage and what they tend to do when a husband is away. In addition, Woman entrapment is seen through Allison, the wife that is “trapped” in her home by her husband John whom is frightened that his wife will be promiscuous; such fear impacts their marriage because John makes sure that his beautiful young wife does not go out and do such impermissible actions.  Regardless of John’s careful actions, he is not able to stop fate from happening or keep his wife trapped forever because her womanhood is far more powerful than the limitations he sets for her. In other words, the politics of marriage affected this tale because the perspective of a “holy” union changed drastically during the 1400s because rebellious topics of temptation, age, and women empowerment became more relevant.

            As mentioned earlier, John, the apprehensive husband, traps his wife Allison so she can stay faithful to him. John is an example of a typical husband that is trapped in his own mindset and whom is influenced by traditional male and female beliefs. Such beliefs make his actions seem unforgivable, but he truly believes that he, “deemed himself been lik a cokewold” (118). In this occasion, John thinks that he will become a victim of “cuckoldry,” which is basically the idea of a husband being with a wife that sleeps with other men, and a result would be that the husband would grow horns. Even though Allison is caged, she still falls in love with Nicholas, a young, gorgeous, and intelligent astrologist, and so they both decide to deceive John so they can have a night alone together. As gullible as John is, he does not want to grow horns, but such foolishness allows him to fall for Nicholas’s, trick that there is going to be a one day flood. Their relationship emphasizes temptation, but does not look negative for Allison, but most of the guilt is directed towards the men. For instance, at the end of the story, Absolon, the parish clerk, burns Nicholas’s butt with a burner, and John breaks his arm. Thus, the satirical incidents illustrate that the men are at fault because “bad men sholde wedden after his similitude” (120). Relevantly, if John would have married a woman his age then he would not have a problem, and if Nicholas would not have an attraction to a married woman then he would not have gotten his butt burned, literally. Ironically, Allison is harm free, and this demonstrates that women should not be caged up because traditional beliefs on marriage change as the time goes by, and if one still believes in obsolete beliefs, then there will be negative consequences. The overall significance shows that the politics of marriage influenced this tale, but did not limit it; in other words, the implication is that marriage must be mutual, women must be able to have control and one must marry someone ideally close to their age and for love instead of the traditional arranged marriage whereas women are seen as inferior to men and were unable to make such powerful decisions.