Shipman’s Tale
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Themes
The dominant theme is the role and position of power in the community. The tale is concerned with the position occupied by a merchant in the town. The wealthy merchant is very influential because of his wealth. He controls the people around him due to the position of authority he holds. As a merchant, he uses his position and power to lure others.
The merchant is associated with people in power and authority because he believes associating with people with high social order honorable (Silverman, 1953). Additionally, the role of women is another element of exploration. The author argues that empowering women leads to happiness in the community. Therefore, the author wanted to inform the readers about the impact of power and position in the community or the world.
Characters
The three main characters are sir john, the wife, and the merchant. Sir John is one of the generous people. He always brings gifts and money to his family members frequently. The gifts are shared with everyone in the house, including the servants (Silverman, 1953). A merchant is an opportunist man. He uses his position, power, and authority to influence others. He also wants the community’s social status by associating with the influential people in society to gain fame and recognition. The wife has been undermined and despised by the merchant because of the inferiority complex; instead, she is seen as an intelligent woman as she advises her husband accordingly.
Literary devices
The use of first-person plural pronunciation “us” in the phrase,” he has to clothe us” suggest that the author wanted to assign the story of one of the female member, especially his wife. The author uses similes to compare happiness that can be created by empowering women in society. For instance, “both were as glad of it as birds of dawn.” (Silverman, 1953). There is the use of vivid description to represent the realities and actions associated with power.
References
Silverman, A. H. (1953). Sex and Money in Chaucer’s Shipman’s Tale. Philological Quarterly, 32, 329.