Now by that lord that called is Seint Jame, Thou shalt nat bothe, thogh that thou were wood, Be maister of my body and of my good; That oon thou shalt forgo, maugree thyne yen.

Now by that lord that called is Seint Jame,
Thou shalt nat bothe, thogh that thou were wood,
Be maister of my body and of my good;
That oon thou shalt forgo, maugree thyne yen.

– Geoffrey Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath’s Prologue. Using her sexuality as a weapon of power and as a commodity for sale, the Wife of Bath puts it to her husband that he can’t be master of both her body and possessions. One of them he must give up, she says. Greedy Alison is candid about using her body to manipulate her husband into giving her the gold and riches she desires.

Geoffrey Chaucer Quotes