In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, Franklin's Tale and the Wife of Bath's Tale represent marriage in different ways . The most stark contrast is the role of power in relationships in both stories and for both storytellers. The Franklin believes in mutuality and equality. His ideal of marriage is a binding, informal contract making partners equal to each other. The Wife of Bath views marriage as an inevitable struggle for power. The assumption that one partner in a union will have more control is central to both her narrative and the history of her own past relationships. These different ideas about marriage fit well with the characteristics of their storytellers, as the reader shows in Franklin's brief description in the General Prologue and the Wife of Bath's extensive discussion of marriage and love in her own prologue. Among the countless subtle differences and similarities between the two stories, ideas about power are clearly important and entirely relevant. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Franklin's idea of ​​a contract is clearly expressed several times throughout his story. Contracts, agreements, and binding promises are found throughout the tale. The pragmatic language used to describe Arveragus courting Dorigen is an example of this. The words "serve" (Franklin's Tale, l.59), "business" (Franklin's Tale, l.59), and "work" (Franklin's Tale, l.60) all appear in the opening lines of the tale, subtly establishing the nature of their relationship. Finally, Dorigen chooses to accept his hand "...especially for his gentle [obedience]" (Franklin's Tale, l. 67) and takes him for "...her houbonde and her lord" (Franklin's Tale, l. 70 ). ). Dating comes and goes with more office talk than romance. Later, Franklin carefully explains the roles of marriage with "Thus hath she taken her servant and her lord - / Servant in love and lord in marriage. / Was Thanne both in lordship and in service. / Servant? No, but in the lordship above,/Sith he has both his lady and his love" (Franklin's Tale, l. 124). The repetition used here not only reinforces business language like Franklin's terms, but also neutralizes the power relationship by presenting the paradox of being simultaneously master and servant. The importance of equality in the marriage contract is abundantly clear in many other places in the book. Franklin's love story. Immediately, after Dorigen agrees to marry, Arveragus names her his equal rather than simply the woman he loves. He chooses, “of his free will”, to “swear to be hired as a knight/That never in his life, day or night/Ne sholde on him take no maistrye” (Franklin's Tale, ll. 73-75). It is crucial that this declaration comes after their commitment. It is marriage that necessarily makes them equal. The Franklin goes even further in stating the importance of mutual agreement, momentarily departing from the plot of his story to speak of his opinions on marriage: [must] obey, if they are to keep a companionship . Love will not be constrained by maistrye: When maistrye comth, the God of Love anoonBeteth his wings and his farewells, he is mad! Love is a thing like any free spirit; Women of gender Freedom desired, And nat to be forced like [slave] And so on men, if I say calmly shal. (Franklin's Tale, ll.89-98) By suddenly inserting the word "I" into his narration, the Franklin attractsPay attention to the lines that follow. He signals to his audience the importance of this lack of control in maintaining love long enough to make it a marriage. This is a crucial distinction. This is reiterated later, at the end of his story. Aurelius, who did not share mutual love with Dorigen, will never be able to win her heart from Arveragus, her equal. The Wife of Bath contradicts Franklin's depiction of marriage in the story she tells. The most glaring differences lie in the opposing ideas about the place of “maistrye” in a relationship. In this tale, power is not avoided in love, but rather the one thing universally desired by women. This idea is the central lesson of the tale, and the complete opposite of Franklin's ideal of equality. The wife of the Knight of Bath explains the concept of power to her queen as "Women desire to have sovereignty/As well over their house as over their love,/And to be above him" (Wife of Bath's Tale, ll.1044 1046). Like the Franklin, the Wife of Bath distinguishes this concept. It is offered as wisdom strong enough to be worth a man's life and also provides a solution to the knight's search for truth. Regardless of which partner gets dominance, a marriage involves power relationships more than mutual contracts. For the Wife of Bath, it is the woman who must hold power above the man. She fills her story with powerful women, who issue demands and ultimatums. It is the queen who controls the fate of the knight and who also initiates the plot of the tale (Wife of Bath's Tale, ll. 901 918). The Knight's mission requires him to beg for something from women, thus placing each of them in a superior position. His wife has enough control to marry him at his command and against his will. And finally, on their wedding night, she even clearly asks "What did I get from you maistry.../ Sin I can chese and rule like me for fear?" (Tale of the Wife of Bath, l.1243). Marital happiness is achieved directly when the Knight accepts this condition. The moment he agrees to cede all power to her, she becomes beautiful and “her herte bathes in a bath of happiness” (Wife of Bath's Tale, l. 1259). This is a strong and final reiteration of the concept that a relationship only works when it is done on unequal terms. The personalities of the two narrators only reinforce their different ideas. The accounts of the Wife of Bath's life carry the same depiction of marriage as her narrative. All of his marriages have been unequal in the distribution of power. With her first three husbands, she was in control. She explicitly says that she "...had a hem in my hand" (Wife of Bath's Prologue, l.217). Although she does not discuss this power with her fourth husband, she is fed up that "...in her owene greece [she makes] him fry,/For anger and for voiry jealousy" (Wife of Bath's Prologue, ll. 493-494). And her fifth husband clearly controls her physically, as she explains: “And yet he was the biggest shrew to me; so fresh and gay” (Wife of Bath’s Prologue, ll. 511-514). She stays with this violent man because she likes him sexually. This exacerbated sexuality is another aspect of his personality that we find in his story. Throughout her prologue, she is revealed to be a sexually voracious being with heightened desires and physical demands. Her story begins with a rape and ends in a marital bed, ending with sex scenes. The only aspect that prevents the knight from marital happiness is his lack of desire for his new bride. Love only happens once he finds her attractive, thus feeling sexual desire for her. This clearly reflects the.