Questions of "The Merchant's Tale"

First of all, we should all give a moment of praise for any pregnant woman who is coordinated enough to climb a pear tree and engage in sex. That takes a lot of balance.

This is going to be a post with lots of random thoughts.

THE OTHER
I was thinking about the Black studies classes I've had, where what white people say about Black people really has more to do with white people and aspects of themselves that they are uncomfortable with (and therefore project onto others) than Black people.

I started thinking about how much time medieval men spend talking and writing about women:

• Chivalry--men must protect women to be truly good
• Courtly love--men must serve and love women without ever actually getting sex
• Anti-feminist literature--they say women are evil, but the way they say it implies: women are smarter than men and will trick them, women are more powerful verbally if they can nag and control men, women have more power emotionally if they are the ones who can make men's lives miserable.

What fears about themselves are men projecting onto women?
They may not seem to, but these stories actually give women a lot of power. Why?

THE CHURCH
I wish I had Andrew to give me the correct quote, something like husbands love their wives like Christ loved the Church.

These are men that are about the opposite of that directive. They come to the symbolic church late. They expect it to be perfectly sensually pleasing (meaning pleasing to all senses). They expect the church to meet all their needs without a sense of reciprocity. They expect to control the church.

RAPE
Chaucer makes some suggestive comments that this was rape:
p. 358 lines 1755-1761

But nathelees, yet had he gret pitee
That thilke night offenden hire moste he,
And thoghte, 'Allas o tendre creature,
Now wolde God ye mighte wel endure
Al my corage, it is so sharpe and kene.
I am agast ye shul it nat sustene.
But God forbede that I dide al my might!

p. 365 lines 1958-1964

Anon he preide hire strepen hire al naked;
He wolde of hire, he seide, han som plesaunce;...
But lest that precious folk be with me wrooth,
How that he wroghte I dar not to yow telle,
Or wheither hir thoughte it paradis or helle,

The story of Pluto and Prosperina is a rape tale.

I hope you all comment. I have lots of thoughts and no answers.

 "I really hope this is going to be worth it."

http://blog.syracuse.com/cny/2010/07/cornell_university_instructors_ascend_the_worlds_largest_trees_for_research.html