SOURCE: Cox, Catherine S. “Holy Erotica and the Virgin Word: Promiscuous Glossing in The Wife of Bath's Prologue.1” Exemplaria 5, no. 1 (March 1993): 207-37.
In the following essay, Cox explores the sexual connotations of the term “glossing,” highlights the double entendres in The Wife of Bath's Prologue, and investigates the link between sexual fulfillment and control of language. Cox maintains that although the Wife of Bath seeks to fight the patriarchal system, her lack of feminine discourse forces her to use male definitions, and ultimately she is unsuccessful in self-definition.
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