A wys womman wol bisye hire evere in oon
To gete hire love, ye, ther as she hath noon.
But sith I hadde hem hoolly in myn hond,
And sith they hadde me yeven al hir lond,
What sholde I taken keep hem for to plese,
But it were for my profit and myn ese?

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath’s Prologue. A wise woman will be constantly busy to get herself loved when she is not, says the Wife of Bath. But since she had her first three husbands wholly in her hand and they had given her all their land, why should she go out of her way to please them? Unless it was for her profit and pleasure, of course! These comments speak to Alison’s greed.