‘The General Prologue’, mentioned in the article, is set by Edexcel Literature and English language and literature; the ‘marriage debate’ is relevant to ‘The Wife of Bath’s Tale’ set by OCR Literature, AQA (A) Language and literature, WJEC and Edexcel Literature
Marriage is a theme that recurs so frequently in The Canterbury Tales it can be thought of as a ‘debate’ that the characters explore through a wide range of viewpoints and opinions. The Merchant is completely anti-marriage and his derogatory view of women was shared by many of his contemporaries. Although January is much more idealistic, his objectification of women was equally commonplace. He expects to be able to do what he likes with a woman in a socially acceptable way. A sensible contrast to these views is provided by Justinus, while Chaucer weaves his own subtle authorial comments throughout the tale.
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