You see women standing for gender equality to this day! The well known artist, Beyonce, recently released an self-titled album that would be deemed too "sexy" for most listeners. She's a woman of power, money, and success all within a male dominated industry. Majority of her songs challenges the social norm! (ex: "Who Runs The World" and to be honest, the whole self titled album). She openly talks about her sex life with her husband through her music and I honestly see nothing wrong with that. If men could rap about having sexual intercourse with multiple women in one night, why can't she sing about her love life? Beyonce recently told CNN:
"But I guess I am a modern-day feminist. I do believe in equality. Why do you have to choose what type of woman you are? Why do you have to label yourself anything? I'm just a woman and I love being a woman." (CNN)This reminded me of the Wife of Bath and her arguments as to why she should be able to marry multiple times and to be able have sex with her husband(s). It's not like she's having sex out of wedlock so it should not be frowned upon. At least she's going about it the "right way" (aka through marriage).
Wife of Bath, you better do what you do and don't let anyone tell you otherwise!
I really enjoyed this post. Wife of Bath are so similar in how they think. Why should they restrict themselves because they are women ? I think not. If men can do it them women can do it.
ReplyDeleteI really like the picture you chose! I really did picture the wife of bath that way. I also compared the wife of bath to Elizabeth Taylor because Elizabeth also had many husbands and was often criticized for it. I hear some rude comments about Elizabeth Taylor being a "hoe" just like people refer to the wife of bath. It shouldn't matter if they had a million husbands; if they're happy being married more than once then people shouldn't ruin their happiness just because it doesn't fit societal happiness.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this post I loved the connection with Beyonce; I really didn't consider the similarities between the two until your post! I love the fact that both Beyonce and the Wife of Bath are not afraid to be open about their sexualities in the way that men are allowed to. At the same time, the uproar that both societies are in as the result of these women's open sexuality shows that society really hasn't changed that much!
ReplyDeleteI really agree with you Amirah and I am really glad that you related that to Beyonce. I think in a way at SVA we are all becoming our own feminists and in this way we can relate to the view of the Wife of Bath. We may not aspire to marry as many times but I do think we agree with her views on equality . Good Job Amirah!
ReplyDeleteI love that you feel that the WOB has the right to make her own decisions about her sex life, and I totally agree! I never thought of Beyonce as a modern day feminist, and it was interesting that you connected her singing about her love life as a way for her to own her own sexuality, similar to the way that males rap about having multiple partners.
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing the WOB into the 21st Century, Amirah. There's actually a lot of controversy about Beyonce's particular brand of feminism (as I'm sure there would be about the Wife of Bath herself). However, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who Beyonce samples in the song flawless, is certainly an inspiration for feminists everywhere. If you're interested, check out her TED Talk "We Should All be Feminists" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg3umXU_qWc
ReplyDeleteI love that you compared the Wife of Bath to Beyonce, I see many similarities between the two. I agree that the Wife of Bath should have the freedom to do what she pleases with her life. And I like her because she pushes further than just fighting for equality, she wants power over men completely; which is still unconventional in our time. Women still do not have complete control over men (maybe some women do). But Beyonce does express herself in similar ways to the Wife of Bath
ReplyDeleteI love your connection to Beyonce's new album! I completely agree with you and I think that even though she discusses her sex life she does it in a tasteful manner, unlike these rappers. She is entitled as much as any man to make whatever music she pleases. I think the Wife of Bath was not a woman of her time but she was a symbol for the feelings that women of that time were too scared to speak about.
ReplyDeleteWoman Power! Great blog.
I really like the Wife of Bath. She was very unconventional for the time period in which she lived in. She didn't care about other people's opinions on her life and she was very open about things that people back then would not dare say aloud. It seems like she was proud of all the men she's had in her life because she's openly disregarding social standards for women of that era. I don't know if she was ever really in love with all of those men, but the way it is written by Chaucer, it sounds like they're just trophies to her.
ReplyDeleteWow, great connection Amirah! I can really see the similarities between the WOB and Beyonce now. Her tale is definitely in my Top 5 favorite reading assignments. I just really loved her attitude. Whatever a man could do, she could do better. I remember going down my tumblr at one point and seeing this quote, "I think the concept of virginity was created by men who thought their penises were so important it changes who a woman is." Not only do I completely agree with his quote but I also think this quote connects to the WOB. Sex just isn't a big deal for her. To make it a big deal and to get all emotional about it would only give the guy an upper hand(control) over her. Her virginity wasn't this big prize possession, it was just intercourse. I feel like I could go on about this topic forever(so excuse me if I do), because I always find myself thinking about our society and it's double standards. But just think about it, who created the concept of self respect? Women can't do this or women can't do that because it means that they have no self respect. I have yet to ever hear someone say to a guy, "Dude, why are you sleeping with her? You have no self respect". Self respect, when it comes to women, is of course a concept created by men. I believe it's just a way to control our actions. To bring this all back to the WOB, some may say that she lacks self respect but I will argue that self respect in that society is just doing what men view as acceptable.
ReplyDeleteI love the comparison to Beyonce! I feel like the Wife of Bath was frowned upon because of the time that she lived in, but by bringing her into modern times, she becomes a role model, and a perfect symbol of feminism. Just like Beyonce, she believes in her convictions and backs them up with facts. I feel like she's such a perfect example of how to stand up for yourself and be proud of your woman hood in a male dominated society, instead of having to be ashamed or feign modesty.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Amirah. I really liked how you compared the Wife of Bath text in comparison with Beyonce. Women back in the day were frowned upon for trying to seek control or equal rights as men and it is still seen today. Women should be able to have the same equality as men do in society. I feel that the Wife of Bath serves as a role model to women in our society today, standing up for herself and showing the differences between right and wrong. No one should ever be over powered by anyone else and we as women should have the same freedom to do what we want as men do.
ReplyDeleteI love this connection, you are absolutely right! Reading this reminded me of the saying "Boys will be boys". As we all know many people use this to justify the things men do, but if it is accepted for men then why not for women? I love that you compared the Woman of Bath to Beyonce because they are both very open, strong woman who are not afraid to express their feminine side. They stand up in a male dominant society without fear and say it like it is.
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