Critic quotes

What does John Hathaway say the tale is a warning against?

“a warning against unfettered male desire”

What does Laura Ashe say courtly love embodies?

“love as recognition of beauty and status”

How does Januarie percieve may according to John Hathaway?

“a living puppet”

What does Samantha Seal note about the perceptions of female sexuality during the middle ages?

“The female sexual appetite was often conceptualised as a carnal manifestation of human sin”

How does Tison Pugh summarise the tale?

“a series of five debates concerning gender and marriage… each highlight various aspects of the classical and medieval debate tradition”

How does Alan Lopez summarise the tale?

“a tale about a deluded old man who is cuckolded by his young, resourceful wife”

What does Alan Lopez say about the power dynamic between Januarie and May?

“May's access to political agency is Januarie’s subsequent loss of it”

What does Tison Pugh say about the presentation of women’s power in the tale?

“its fabliau humour envisions a world in which women can debate as persuasively as men.”

How does Alan Lopez apply Foucault's theory of feminine and masculine discourse to the tale? (2)

“through that [masculine] discourse May gains access to political authority”

“An appropriation of the authoritative masculine discourse”