Disrespecting Women - Zayne Kinkade

The theme meant in “The Wife of Bath’s Tale”  is that women are not meant to make decisions, and that the men are to rule the world. This picture shows the theme perfectly. It depicts a man looking down at a woman who seems to be working on something, perhaps sowing. The slight detail in the man’s face gives a condescending look, which was common throughout the time period of Chaucer. “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” tells of a queen who, in the end, let a knight run free when he really should not have. The claim that women are not meant to make decisions is represented nearly perfectly by the picture above. The man looking down condescendingly at the woman who is working represents the view of Chaucer and much of the Middle Ages. The men seem to be powerful figures, while the women are stuck in the background being told what to do, like the picture. The woman looks to be stuck in the back rooms of some house, being told what to do by the man of the house. Woman are not to be making decisions is what the theme is saying, and this picture exemplifies that. Woman should be seen, not heard, and that is what this picture seems to reflect.

Rothko, Mark. Conversation. 1932. Oil on linen. National Gallery of Art. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.