Comparative essay plans for An Ideal Husband and The Merchant's Tale
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Course
Drama and poetry pre-1900
Institution
OCR
Written for A-Level OCR English Literature Drama and Poetry pre-1900s
Comparison between 'The Merchant's Tale and Prologue' and 'An Ideal Husband' by Chaucer and Wilde
Comparing ‘The Merchant’s Tale and Prologue’ by Chaucer (C) to ‘An Ideal Husband’ by
Wilde (W)
Men are weaker; the first susceptible to temptation
C: Januarie first susceptible to desire, sin through sexual acts
W: SRC desire for wealth, money
Use of setting to demonstrate greed and corruption
C: Pavie and its connotations of sex, which are destructive forces to Januarie
C: Ceremony and feast demonstrate ostentation, hedonism, greed, success, linked to ideas
of corruption and adding to distasteful presentation of Januarie
W: Baron Arnheim’s house as seductive, manipulation linked to downfall of SRC
Appearance vs. reality, disillusion
C: Januarie as a worthy, noble knight, ironically, does not represent expectations of honour
and chivalry
W: SRC as an English gentleman, corrupt
Self-delusion
C: Januarie’s convinces himself that his intentions for marriage are religious
W: SRC convinces himself that immoral actions are ones of courage
Repentance
C: Januarie believes marriage will purge his sins away, ill intentions
W: SRC believes wealth will fix his immoral actions, without remorse
Happiness, a state to which many aspire but which few will actually reach. Consider the
ways in which writers portray the search for happiness.
When their idea of happiness is delusional, unattainable
C: Unattainable perfection J attributes to May
Examples: Fabliaux, references to Adam and Eve and paradise hinting at sin in future
Context: men expected passivity and innocence from women, treated as property
W: Unattainable perfection that LC attributes to SRC
Context: placing men on pedestals, corruption, and superficiality of society
Examples: dramatic irony, have to accept weakness
Happiness can be achieved through ignorance
C: Januarie chooses blindness for true bliss
Examples: chooses to believe May’s excuse, ignores Justinus’s advice
W: LC’s pure happiness is dependent on false reality
Examples: ignores advice, lie to me, has to compromise, and lower her expectations
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