(196). Each of these men she was able to gain some power over using either her sexuality or some type of manipulation. She freely admits to using sex to manipulate her husbands when she says:
Atte ende I hadde the bettre in ech degree,
By sleight or force, or by som maner thyng,
As by continueel murmur or grucchying.
Namely abedde hadden they meschaunce.
Ther wolde I chide and do hem no plesaunce;
Til he had maad his raunsoun unto me
Thanne would I suffre hym do his nycetee (404-412).
So, besides enjoying her sexuality with her first three husbands, the Wife of Bath also used it to gain more power and a greater variety of choices for herself. In a sense, she even has disdain for her husbands, since they can be so easily swayed by her use of sexual favors and manipulation.
As previously stated, widows had a little more power over their choices than married women, yet many chose to remarry, as the Wife of Bath did. The common belief at the time, however, was that women were complete slaves to their physical needs and desires and were a temptation to all men everywhere. Therefore, while being married was
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