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Male Invasion of the Female in Chaucers The Knights Tale
DC Field | Value | Language |
---|---|---|
dc.contributor.author | Kim, Min Young | - |
dc.date.accessioned | 2012-05-22T10:33:40Z | - |
dc.date.available | 2012-05-22T10:33:40Z | - |
dc.date.issued | 2011 | - |
dc.identifier.citation | 영학논집, Vol.31, pp. 79-89 | - |
dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10371/76275 | - |
dc.description.abstract | This paper analyzes the ways in which female characters in Chaucers The
Knights Tale are intricately but ruthlessly intruded by men. A close reading of the text will reveal the fact that female characters in The Knights Tale suffer from male invasion in virtually every aspect of their lives: their bodies, their voices, their feminine qualities, and their gender roles. The various types of male infringement on women are signified by the stories depicted on the walls of the temple of Diana. For this reason, a careful, close reading of the pictures on the temple of Diana is crucial. William F. Woods argues that her temple paintings are scenes from Ovids Metamorphoses. Considering that they are Chaucers original inventions, however, one may assume that the paintings unfold much more. Moreover, the fact that the temples are constructed under Theseuss orders reflects the manipulative power of Theseus and the Knight narrator over women. Hence the depiction of women in the stories illustrated on Dianas temple symbolizes the whole idea of male invasion of womens domain in The Knights Tale. The problem, then, does not lie in femininity itself which men tend to disparage as vulnerable and fragile, but rather in the stubborn patriarchal order that men endeavor to establish and impose on women throughout the tale. The Knight narrator intentionally deletes the details regarding women in his tale, and even when he allows women characters to speak, he grants it only when it reinforces the patriarchal order; Theseus possesses the Amazonian women and uses their merits and roles for himself in order to become an impeccable men-hero who would not need womens help. The uncompromising system of the patriarchal order is indeed prevalent in Chaucers The Knights Tale. Hence reading the tale either only as a narrative stigmatizing feminine passiveness or only as a positive integration of activity and passivity into a fully human ideal would be incomplete. The Knights Tale is full of attempts of men, both the narrator and the male characters who try to put women absolutely under their control to construct an utterly patriarchal order. This is well illustrated when Theseus tries to locate the feminine Wheel of Fortune under the influence of the masculine First Mover. Because of this one-sided system both in heaven and earth, however, there lurks ever threatening forces of chaos everywhere. There can be no ultimate order of all things as long as men force to silence and cripple the will power of women. Taking passiveness and mutability of women as a sign of weakness or negativity may stem from the bias inherent in the patriarchal society; but one must be aware that if those feminine qualities are deprived from male oppression, they can never be a positive force. It is this patriarchal oppression which produces potential chaos. The Knights Tale enables the reader to explore the theme of male invasion of the female in the patriarchal world by presenting a male-oriented narrator who tells a noble yet troublesome story. | - |
dc.language.iso | en | - |
dc.publisher | 서울대학교 인문대학 영어영문학과 | - |
dc.subject | patriarchal order | - |
dc.subject | system | - |
dc.subject | voice | - |
dc.subject | silence | - |
dc.subject | body | - |
dc.subject | gender role | - |
dc.title | Male Invasion of the Female in Chaucers The Knights Tale | - |
dc.type | SNU Journal | - |
dc.contributor.AlternativeAuthor | 김민영 | - |
dc.citation.journaltitle | 영학논집(English Studies) | - |
dc.citation.endpage | 89 | - |
dc.citation.pages | 79-89 | - |
dc.citation.startpage | 79 | - |
dc.citation.volume | 31 | - |
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