King Lear Essay

â€Å"Drama is basically about the battle for power and the effect of this battle on people. † How does Shakespeare utilize a scope of abstract shows and composing methods to investigate this idea? Inside Shakespeare’s creations the battle for power inside people is spoken to; in content as well as stage headings and composing methods. ‘King Lear’ is a disaster, viewed as a scholarly artful culmination. All through the corresponding plots, clashes between terrible legends and their ‘loyal’ supporters build up the significant thoughts of the play. The idea of the world, selling out and dependability are for the most part topics that structure the premise of these contentions. Unavoidably these topics incite the crowd to favor certain characters and make advanced analogies towards explicit subjects in the content; great engaging malice is the foundation of the content and the inescapable battle to recover power. Inside the content Shakespeare presents characters of incredible voracity and desire in the push to pick up power. Their battle towards power is followed, Edmund looking for Gloucester’s title and Gonerill and Regan in the chase for Lear’s land and force. At first, the crowd is given the ‘love test’ in which Lear’s girls need to compliment their dad into separating the Kingdom. Thusly, Shakespeare foretells the repercussions of Lear’s activities through representation ‘We have seen the best of our time†¦ every single ruinous issue tail us disquietly to our graves†¦ we make liable of our disasters†¦ by and affected acquiescence of planetary influence’. Through Gloucester’s words the heading of the play turns out to be progressively self-evident. From Act I we are given a battle of intensity and more is foreshadowed. Control is additionally an instrument utilized by Shakespeare to make compelling feeling inside the skirmish of good versus insidious. The tempest preparing outside the Kingdom is allegorically what is happening inside Lear’s head. Right now Lear is loaded with strife, outrage and confusion much like the earth ‘one disapproved of like the climate, most unquietly’. Shakespeare is controlling the crowd, changing their feelings in understanding to the tone of the demonstration. Shakespeare has permitted the crowd to shape their own perspectives on characters, simply subsequent to giving solid influential images and expectations of their capacity. Imagery is the best gadget in the content demonstrating how heartless characters, for example, Gonerill, Regan and Edmund seek after capacity to fulfill their necessities. Gonerill particularly, when depicted as having a ‘wolfish visage’ and as being ‘Sharp-toothed, similar to a vulture’. Thus, Regan is introduced in a similar light; ‘looked black†¦ most snake like’. On an entire, the sisters are ‘animalistic’ with ‘boarish fangs’, ‘monsters of the deep’, ‘dog hearted daughters’ and ‘tigers not daughters’. On the other hand Shakespeare differentiates this and passes on Cordelia with ‘saint’ like status, ‘sing like winged animals in a cage’. Cordelia is actually the main figure to be spoken to decidedly. Through this image of Cordelia the crowd is promptly pulled in towards her. While Gonerill and Regan are the encapsulation of fiendishness, Cordelia before the finish of the play is perceived to be the genuine quintessence of goodness. Shakespeare additionally gives bestial imagery, through Lear, while depicting humankind. ‘poor exposed forked animal’ depicting man’s respectability. It additionally unexpected in the sense, that as Lear increases a feeling of being he can sum up humanity through the force he once had. In spite of the fact that Gloucester is genuinely blinded, Lear is exemplified figuratively through his powerlessness to see the world plainly, ‘see better, Lear’. At the point when the sub plots at last meet, Lear’s experience with Gloucester is advantageous as things become noticeable. With cautious recognition, it turns out to be progressively evident that Gloucester’s blinding is the physical indication of the psychological torment Lear perseveres. Shakespeare incorporates incongruity after Gloucester’s physical blinding, ‘I bumbled when I saw’. He at long last recognizes his slip-ups and misjudgements about his children. For another situation this might be entertaining to the crowd however in reality it conveys parody of the bizarre. The crowd is profoundly disheartened through the incongruity. At the point when Gloucester could see, he couldn’t see the genuine nature of his children. On the other hand when he turned out to be truly blinded it was at exactly that point, that he completely comprehended his son’s genuine characters. Gloucester additionally turns out to be increasingly insightful with his catastrophe, and is nearly repeating focal thoughts of the play, ‘As flies to wanton Boys, are we to the Gods; they murder us for their game. ’ He is going about as an instrument for Shakespeare to show the effect of intensity among individuals. That humanity is unnecessary. Strife is the basic show Shakespeare utilizes, giving the crowd understanding into the genuine intentions of characters great or underhandedness. From this we can figure out who truly is acceptable, and who is in a general sense insidious. The unavoidable fight among Edmund and the remainder of his family, Edgar and Gloucester nearly drives Gloucester past the constraints of continuance. Gloucester’s overpowering misery; both truly and intellectually, incur significant damage, ‘but his heart flawed†¦burst smilingly’. Thus, Lear is gotten through enduring by his ‘pelican daughters’, and develops from it. At first he is a pompous, egotistical man which through his enduring recognizes that distinction and force are fleeting. Before the finish of the content Lear has formed into a philosophical, fatalistic elderly person. Control is again utilized by Shakespeare however in an unexpected sense, as force is decimated, concordance is created. As Lear accommodates with Cordelia, the ambient melodies speaks to Lear’s perspective. Music is the craft of joining vocal and instrumental sound to create congruity and express feeling. The tranquility of the music speaks to Lear’s mental state and genuine feelings of serenity, ‘my own tears do singe like liquid lead’. This is amusing as Shakespeare has changed Lear much equivalent to the climate. In obscurity desolate tempest, Lear was delicate, contrasted with spring the indication of new life where he is come back to quietness. Shakespeare represents the battle for force and its tangled impact. The content is changed into another measurement with the utilization of composing procedures and artistic shows. Incongruity has been the foundation where the focal thoughts of the play have been formed, giving the peruser ageless life injuries. Lord Lear is a book that advocates the battle for force and how this effects people. People must know about the addictive idea of intensity and be careful about its damaging capacity.

Network security tools Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

System security devices - Essay Example Wireshark alongside insider are two open source programs that are basic for any cybersecurity dangers. Parcel separating is a vital part of entrance and departure sifting must be led. System conventions will in general ensure traffic inside the domains of their own systems. Be that as it may, implanting entrance and departure organize separating will guarantee that active traffic gets endorsement. Another incredible apparatus for systems security is Secunia. The usefulness of Secunia PCI is to go about as an IDS and an enemy of infection framework, a multi-advantageous perspective for organize security. It examines the PC and distinguishes programs. It at that point supplies your PC with the fundamental programming security updates to keep it safe and examining. One of the most noticeable thought of this product. Secunia PCI firewalls provide far reaching safety efforts that screen movement inside customers. In the event that one machine is to be assaulted by a host, the other ma chine consequently duplicates information in practically powerful time that the client doesn't know about the circumstance. Another extraordinary system instrument is EasySoft is incredible outsider arrangement that will stop an interloper from infusion malevolent code introduction strings. This cures against programmers and different vindictive interlopers attempting to parody the

World Ethics Comparison of Philosophies an Example of the Topic History Essays by

World Ethics: Comparison of Philosophies It is intriguing to consider the manners by which an assortment of moral understandings and belief systems have showed all through the world. These methods of reasoning are regularly the spines of the wide scope of assorted societies found over the globe. In learning about the moral similitudes and contrasts between societies, it is critical to consider the significant scholars and their commitments to the manners by which individuals think. Individuals are continually searching for moral direction in forming their calculated systems about the world in which they live, and they go to specialists, ordinarily pioneers of strict and philosophical developments, to give understanding and confirmation about the alleged realities of the world. By looking at thinkers, for example, Saint Thomas Aquinas and Lao Tzu, one can take note of the likenesses and contrasts among societies and their moral turn of events and settle on close to home choices about the legitimacy of the philosophical obser vations. Holy person Thomas Aquinas and Lao Tzu were supporters of the philosophical establishment of Catholicism and Taoism individually. In considering the moral presentations of Saint Thomas Aquinas and Lao Tzu, one can pick up knowledge about the assorted variety of world morals and its relationship to different societies over the world. Need paper test on World Ethics: Comparison of Philosophies subject? We will compose a custom paper test explicitly for you Continue Understudies Often Tell Us:Who needs to compose paper for me?Specialists prompt: Choose The Qualified Help In Writing PapersTop Essay Writing Best Essay Writing Service Paper Writing Service Best Essay Writing Service Reviews Holy person Thomas Aquinas Holy person Thomas Aquinas is one of the best Catholic scholars ever, extending the Christian comprehension of God and coordinating philosophical ideas under the umbrella on the one awesome and Trinitarian God. It is intriguing to take note of that Saint Thomas Aquinas had faith in making a specific differentiation among religious philosophy and theory, in that religious philosophy tended to the examination of the world as for a heavenly, blessed, and sacrosanct God, while reasoning just tended to a shortsighted investigation of the world (Giancola, D. and Gregory, 2002). One of his fundamental philosophical contentions was maintaining the possibility of a Trinitarian God, three people in a single celestial nature (McInerney, 2009). This representation of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the holding Holy Spirit is the foundation of the Catholic confidence and the attestations of Saint Thomas Aquinas. Here, one can conceptualize the sacred and widely inclusive Father, the sired Son of Man, and the heavenly relationship in the Spirit. Being an exacting scholar and a firm safeguard of the one valid and Trinitarian God are basic components of starting to comprehend the moral assertions made by Saint Thomas Aquinas. The possibility of goodness and what is a great idea to do springs from the celestial being, the unceasing common request, the radiant vision of God. Lao Tzu Lao Tzu is one of the best Taoist savants ever, and he is noted similar to the exemplification of the Tao, the Tao being the one heavenly reality. The works of Lao Tzu have been portrayed as supernatural in nature, breaking down the world and its hallowed elements (Giancola way, a mix of prudence, instinctive nature, and dynamic, getting thoughtful enough to feel the otherworldly vibrations of the encompassing scene so as to control individuals on their ways. There are no rigid parameters for philosophical bearing, rather one observes the regular analogies and the support to feel the mode and swing of nature so as to assist oneself with coming to moral end results. Religious philosophy versus Philosophy A striking distinction between the ways of thinking of Saint Thomas Aquinas and Lao Tzu are that Saint Thomas Aquinas submits to a severe religious philosophy and impression of the Trinitarian God while Lao Tzu is progressively centered around the way of thinking of the regular energies of the world in tending to philosophical contemplations. Where Saint Thomas Aquinas is centered around humankind as celestial creatures partaking in Gods normal and perfect arrangement, Lao Tzu doesn't order mankind as being divine, rather just moved and guided by the common powers of the universe. Holy person Thomas Aquinas centers around the capacity of God to recommend characteristic law to his creation, in that all components of the perfect universe can be examined and comprehended by Gods common and heavenly law. Albeit Lao Tzu doesn't explicitly name a comprehensive and order God, he points out the different properties of the universe by they way they are dynamic and receptive to each other. Whe re Saint Thomas Aquinas can be soon as a greater amount of an absolutist, Lao Tzu can be seen as to a greater degree a relativist. The focal point of consideration of crafted by Saint Thomas Aquinas is exclusively vested in the capacity to know the will and wants of God, which are available in the core of man. Lao Tzu adopts a progressively loosened up strategy in portraying the normal ways, the practices of individual and ecological circumstances, and attempting to comprehend the world without the possibility of a ubiquitous, all-knowing, and making a decision about administrator. Goodness versus Balance It is fascinating to take note of the manners by which Saint Thomas Aquinas conceptualizes the possibility of goodness according to the manners by which Lao Tzu conceptualizes balance. To Saint Thomas Aquinas, the most noteworthy accomplishment of an individual is to be acceptable, to follow the wants and the characteristic law of God, so as to achieve bliss and moral rightness. From the viewpoint of Lao Tzu, he considers the to be as a liquid trade of powers, where nothing is completely acceptable or totally terrible, simply in transition. Here, the individual is best guided by settling on choices dependent on the requirements and the circumstance existing apart from everything else. The way that an individual must follow is dependent upon the parity of energies known to mankind the requirement for pretty much power, pretty much activity. Holy person Thomas Aquinas is an individual who puts stock in the matter of idealistic greatness similar to a part of character, in that an indivi dual is tune with the celestial will of God and ready to act in the manners which produce the best impacts, the ideal great. Here, the character is formed by ones want to do the desire of God, to act in great ways which produce preeminent moral results, or rather to remain lined up with the cooperative attitude of God consistently. Lao Tzu is less worried about completely great idea and activity and increasingly worried about generally right idea and activity. There is more space for translation from the moral point of view of Lao Tzu, in that each circumstance is unique and expecting of an alternate inclination, way, or wellspring of intensity for what is correct. In spite of the fact that these belief systems are not fundamentally unrelated in the craving to accomplish goodness versus balance, it is essential to take note of the accentuation of Saint Thomas Aquinas with respect to the accentuation of Lao Tzu. Male versus Female In examining the moral thoughts of Saint Thomas Aquinas and Lao Tzu concerning sexual orientation, one notes that the Catholic way of thinking of Saint Thomas Aquinas is progressively male centric and hierarchal, while the Taoist way of thinking of Lao Tzu is increasingly adjusted and evened out between the sexes. From the viewpoint of Saint Thomas Aquinas, there is a caring progression of vitality from God to man, wherein elegance considers man to know the altruism of God. From the point of view of Lao Tzu, there is interchange between the manly and female energies, in that one may need to draw from these everlasting profound powers in different circumstances and for different reasons. Where Saint Thomas Aquinas submits to a male centric and Christian conviction framework, where man is viewed as the blessed creation and picture of God with Jesus Christ as the sole connect to understanding the perfect arrangement, Lao leaves the entryway open to an assortment of translations about th e characteristic world and the best moral bearings for man. It is noticed that Saint Thomas Aquinas centers around the predominance of the Father over the Son, yet additionally of the association between the Father and the Son and their shared perfect relationship, a portrayal of how the heavenly religious philosophy went into the being of man. Then again, Lao Tzu places his emphasis on the characteristic world and the association between the manly and ladylike standards of nature and humankind. Where Saint Thomas draws his moral conclusions from the authority of God the Father being transmitted descending to Jesus Christ, man, and afterward ladies and youngsters, a general yet hierarchal model, Lao Tzu draws his moral judgments from the declaration of the characteristic world itself, the widespread contemplations which are in consistent motion and address the male and female energies of the world, featuring the properties of yin and yang as being portions of finding the method of e dification. End It is imperative to comprehend the assortment of understandings of presence, the significance of life, and the moral reason for man, with the goal that one can make decisions about what bodes well in ones own journey for truth and reason. Holy person Thomas Aquinas offers an exemplary Catholic philosophy as to the arrangement of man under the careful gaze of God, and the shared adoring aim and relationship which springs from this bond and most popular through the duration of Jesus Christ. This point of view places most extreme incentive on the capacity of the person to adjust himself under and with the generosity of God. Lao Tzu offers an exemplary Asian way of thinking with respect to the capacity of one to know oneself and the otherworldly universe through the dynamic vitality and powers experienced. This point of view places most extreme incentive on the capacity of the person to have the option to understand the right way, the best strategy, or inaction, in an assortment of circu mstances. The two viewpoints manage points rela

College inc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

School inc - Essay Example Which is certifiably not an awful attitude to be subconsciously taking care of the watchers by any means. The plugs for these schools don't sell training, they sell optimism. They sell a way of life, They offer a guarantee to give you instruction that will set you making progress toward money related security. As such, the promotions feed on the helplessness of the American populace that is searching for an approach to have a superior life or a superior activity. The individuals who will in general be lured by these advertisements are the individuals who have been dismissed by ordinary instructive foundations either for absence of capabilities or a full program of understudies. In the event that I were accountable for a revenue driven school that is worth around $60 million like Chancellor University, I would allot 50 percent of the benefits to increasing the expectation of instruction by recruiting the most ideal educators that cash can purchase in a legally binding premise. That is on the grounds that residency is something that is seriously over appraised. Educators ought not be paid more based on their residency at a school, rather they ought to be paid for the nature of their capacity to instruct. In the event that they dont get by, at that point dispose of them. In any case, that must be done if the educator doesn't hold residency at the school. Government awards help the understudies at the revenue driven universities get a kick off on their training by permitting the understudies access to citizen dollars that was intended to assist them with offering back to the general public later on in their expert lives. Since the FSA deals with 90% of the charges, the understudy for all intents and purposes has a free ride through school. The revenue driven schools profit by the framework since they make certain to be paid for their education costs and different charges paying little heed to the real limit of the understudy to pay for their instruction. Uncle Sam really deals with that for them. The issue is that some revenue driven schools, for example, DeVry University offer projects that are not authorize by the right foundations and in this manner

Midday Break free essay sample

Late morning Break Finally, the Just ten minutes more till break! I thought as my stomach snarled noisily. I was anticipating break time! I had an entirely light breakfast today, and I have a vacant stomach which I needed to fill so seriously! As my study hall was on the subsequent floor, I could without much of a stretch smell the thick fragrance of the bottle food. That made me hungrier than I am presently! Ring! the chime at last rang, flagging that it was break time early afternoon break. In a quick movement, I angled out my wallet and rushed out of the study hall to the flask. I moaned as I seeing the container welcomed my eyes. It was packed! Each store has incredibly long lines. Incredible, I murmured, This will take me a million years to get my food. I made a direct route to my preferred store. The main thing at the forefront of my thoughts was the heavenly, mouth-watering prates, the Indian forte! Not long later, I got my food and went to settle at a table with my companions. We will compose a custom exposition test on Late morning Break or then again any comparative subject explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page Uproarious jabbers of sprightly understudies filled the air, alongside the solid musky scents of flavors from the stores. I was nearly slobbering as I cut my food into frosts. The root prates accompanied a bowl of delicious curry. I dunked my Pratt into the satisfactory curry then into my mouth. Very quickly, I could feel the hot fresh of the Pratt in my mouth. The delight of having food in your mouth, mind boggling! I pondered internally. It tasted extraordinary. Ewe! How might you eat that That oily thing! Its gross! my companion, Liana shouted. I shot her my demise glare and countered, Its my preferred food! Your sushi looks so crude, appalling! With that I kept chomping on my food. In the wake of eating, my companions and I chose to have a walk around the school as there was still time to save. As we strolled past the Science lab, I began giggling out of nowhere. I recollected a period, during break when we strolled long the Science lab. On that day, one of our companions, Joseph, out of wickedness, chose to pull a trick on Liana. As Liana and I strolled past the Science lab, Joseph clutched the skeleton and Jumped before Liana. This made her screech as loud as possible and she began to cuss at Joseph who around then was grasping his stomach moving round snickering. The sight was exceptional as we as a whole idea that Liana was an intense young lady. Since that day, Liana feared skeletons and could never stroll past the Science lab alone. She even spread bits of gossip that the Science lab was reviled! I shook my head as I quietly chuckled at the idea of that occurrence. Before long, another chime sounded, demonstrating that break was finished. We hesitantly advanced back to our homerooms and prepare for the following exercise. Our educator ventured into class as I quietly moaned and anticipated the finish of school. By congratulate

Persuasive Essay Topics Where and How to Find Them

Persuasive Essay Topics Where and How to Find Them Choose Your Persuasive Essay Topics for College There exist many kinds of essays that you can write. A persuasive essay turns out to be one of the popular ones. The most teachers love it. It’s because you have to read a lot at the stage of preparation. You also have to find reliable evidence of your ideas. In this type of an essay, the author has to state a personal opinion and persuade the reader that this opinion is the right one. Thus, you need to choose the topic very attentively. What is a good topic for a persuasive essay? You need to be familiar with the problem or at least you should know where to look for the information about it. And we don’t mean google here. How to pick up the best persuasive essay topics? What’s the best topic? The answers may vary depending on the college you’re studying in and what you’re learning at the moment, and much more. There isn’t a universal answer to this question. Why choosing the best topic for your essay? First of all, we all write essays to get high grades. And many teachers value the choice of the topic. So you get a higher grade only for the idea that you’ve chosen. Let’s try to find out these topic ideas for the persuasive essay. Make a research Try to find something really unique. If your college tutor reads one and the same things every year, the grade cannot be the highest for such an essay. Try to do some serious research to show your approach to the writing. If you pick up a new topic and you can’t find any example essays about it. Your tutor will appreciate this. You will show that you’re not lazy and you’re willing to accept all the challenges of your student’s life. Remember what books you have recently read, what films you’ve watched or what things made you sad or happy. Brainstorm ideas Take a pencil and a piece of paper. Write down all the problems you see around you all over the world. It can be everything starting from the garbage in the street to the melting the glacier melting. You can do it alone or with your friends. If there are over three people, it’s better to use a board for noting all the ideas that come to your minds. Choose the most significant topic If you have several variants of persuasive research essay topics, you should choose the most interesting for you and people around you. If you pick a good but boring topic, you will lose any desire to write it and you have a risk to postpone the writing until the last minute before the deadline. Moreover, developing such a topic will be like a torture for you. So, what’s the use of it? Another effective tip for you is that you need to make sure that the topic will be significant for the teacher as well. If your topic is about choosing the cartoon for kids, it can be ok, but the topic of illegal abortion can be of more significance. Have a talk with your tutor If you’ve tried all methods mentioned-above and still have no idea how to come up with good topics for a persuasive essay , contact your teacher for help. Describe how you’ve researched for the idea and how you’ve brainstormed it but you haven’t finished any of the processes successfully. If your tutor has time, you will get some help. It doesn’t mean you will get a persuasive essay topic, you will get a guideline what to do to choose the right topic. Nothing helps me to find a good persuasive essay topic There are different situations in life that cannot let you make a choice. It can be a banal lack of time. Even if you want to succeed in writing, stress can reduce the effectiveness of your brainstorming or the teacher can refuse you to help. Or you simply don’t know what kind of topic you can call a good one or a bad one. This task can easily turn from an essay writing into a real nightmare for any student. What’s the way out? Here let’s consider what you can do if you can’t find good persuasive essay topics. We advise you to ask a person whom you are not familiar with. The more experience this person has in writing essays the better result of such a cooperation will be. Where to find him or her? You can do it online on a specialized website where you can get such services as choosing the topic or even writing the essay for money. Don’t worry, the sums for such work are low, so you can save your time and feel relieved. Just give it a try.

The Presentation of Masculinity in The Wife of Baths Prologue and Tale - Literature Essay Samples

The Wife of Bath, with the energy of her vernacular and the voraciousness of her sexual appetite, is one of the most vividly developed characters of The Canterbury Tales. At 856 lines her prologue, or preambulacioun as the Summoner calls it, is the longest of any of the pilgrims, and matches the General Prologue but for a few lines. Evidently Chaucer is infatuated with Alisoun, as he plays satirically with both gender and class issues through the Wifes robust rhetoric. Scholars and students alike have continued this obsession with her, and as a consequence Chaucers larger than life widow has been subject to centuries of scrutiny. Indeed, she is in the vast minority amongst the Canterbury bound pilgrims; apart from the in-vogue Prioress she is the only female though she appears in no way daunted by the apparent inequality in numbers. It seems almost a crime to examine masculinity in her prologue and tale, but as I hope to show, there is much to learn both about the Wife and about Cha ucer from this male presence.When we consider that Chaucer chose his pilgrims with careful precision to present a cross section of late-medireview society, the small number of women travellers can be seen as a clear reminder of the patriarchal culture in which the Wife existed. Nevertheless, despite Alisouns vigorous assault on olde and angry nigardes she is the first to recognise the political ascendancy of men. Her prologue is peppered with allusions to great biblical patriarchs such as Abraham and Jacob: Lo, heere, the wise king, daun Salomon;I trow he hadde wives mo than oon. (35-36) Here, the Wife makes no attempt to deny Solomons sovereignty she even praises him as a wise king; her marital arguments are social and it is for this purpose that she invokes his name. Importantly, Alisoun refers to ancient patriarchs not only is she prepared to acknowledge the male monopoly on politics, but also the deep rooted nature of their hegemony, a recognition reinforced by the setting of her tale in  ³tholde dayes of the King Arthour ². Chaucer has created a woman who in spite of her fierce social ambitions, remains acutely aware of the civil order of her time. Masculinity also manifests itself clearly in the scholasticism to which the Wife continually refers: St. Paul, St. Jerome and Theophrastus. Once again these are historical figures, and though she aims to castrate their learned authority with her own experience, the very fact they are mentioned is an assertion of their erudite dominance. Ironically the bombast theology of such figures is applauded as much as it is assaulted: Ovids Midas is cited for her own purposes in the tale, while Ptolemy is exalted in the prologue: Of alle men yblessed moot he be,The wise astrologien, Daun Ptholome (323-324) Her reference to the wise astrologien echoes her description of Solomon as the wise king; clearly in both cases she holds their intellect in the highest regard. Perhaps most surprising in the Wifes tone is the hum ility which arises from her near religious adoration of the man, and as these lines illustrate, there remains a degree of subservience on Alisouns part. Beneath her verbal offensive lies a submissive quality about the Wife, though this is not a negative feature.  ³Only that which is filled with contradictions is alive ², said Bertolt Brecht, and it is her dichotomic personality that gives her such zest and which truly marks out Chaucers genius.However, the masculine presence in the prologue and tale is not limited merely to historical figures, whose contribution is more thematic than personal. The chief male components are Alisouns five husbands creations that we presume are Chaucers own. The first three of these are not distinguished as individuals, but the Wife informs us that they were rich and old in the plainest terms, medireview sugar-daddies. There appears nothing remotely patriarchal about this pathetic triumvirate, and Chaucer (through the Wife) presents them as utter ly malleable they are figures of fun, archetypes of what Alisoun considers to be a goode husband: But sith I hadde hem hoolly in myn hond,And sith they hadde me yeven al hir lond. (211-212) The first line is a middle-english idiom for control, a modern equivalent of which might be under my thumb. Nevertheless, it is impossible to ignore the sexual suggestion of this line, one that illustrates in a graphic manner the methods that the Wife uses to gain maistrie. Meanwhile the pun on hoolly can be interpreted as a joke about the sanctimony of marriage, something for which Alisoun has little regard. Here, as the reference to lond indicates, men are presented as the landowners: the powerful aristocract whose ascendancy is inextricably bound to their estates. Traditionally, a wife would simply become another of their assets, yet clearly the Wife has used sexual persuasion to manipulate and subvert such conventions, as she receives their property. In this instance, Chaucers presentation i s socially pointed and amusingly ironic: men are powerful in theory, puny in practice. Husband number four, again nameless, but at least described in dislocation, is not so pliable. The Wife describes him as a revelour who kept a mistress, a person you would assume to be immune to Alisouns unique methods of manipulation. Yet this is not the case, and the presentation of masculinity as an easily governable force continues, as with superb ingenuity the Wife feigns an affair: That in his owene grece I made him frieFor angre, and for verray jalousie. (487-488) Clearly he is a temperamental character, one whose personality up to this moment appears in the same mould as that of the Summoner. Yet for all his riotous activities, he still succumbs to the Wifes sexual trickery, and Alisoun herself, confesses the extent to which she bent his nature:  ³how soore I him twiste. ² The Wife revels in her victory with an almost perverse enjoyment. Indeed there is even the suggestion that she dro ve him to his death-bed. Once again Alisoun exposes empowered masculinity as weak and feeble, and Chaucers presentation of men maintains its consistency in spite of political or physical supremacy, men retain an Achilles heel in the form of the sexual act.However, the force of the above lines, with the angre and verray jalouse does highlight another aspect of masculinity that of aggression. This manifests itself both verbally and physically; the former of which can be seen clearly in the interjecting confrontation between the Summoner and the Friar at the close of the prologue. As the Friar nonchalantly ridicules the Wifes waffle, the Summoner erupts with indignation:  ³ Lo, quod the Somonour, Goddes armes two!  ². What follows is a humorous quarrel that equates to little more than harsh words, but reaches its climax as the seething sarcasm of the clergyman is countered by, ³I bishrewe thy face ² the epitome of the Summoners plain bullishness. The ease with which Harry Ba iley quashes the scuffle leads us to doubt that there is any physical intent behind the aggressive language, as once again it is the lack of substance beneath the powerful front of masculinity that becomes the source of amusement. Nevertheless, this aggression takes on a repressed, physical form in the tale, one considerably darker than the amusing male misdemeanours in the prologue: Wommen may go now saufly up and doun.In every bussh or under every treeTher is noon oother incubus but he (878-880) Here the Wife demonstrates the more vindictive facet of her nature, as she gains retribution for the Friars previous interruption. At the same time Chaucer allows himself the opportunity for anti-clerical social commentary. An incubus is traditionally a male-spirit who, according to popular folk-lore, would have sexual intercourse with sleeping maids, and this reference maintains the fairy-tale background to the Wifes tale. Nevertheless, the suggestion of nymphomania on the Friars behalf i s clear. The manner in which such implications are obscured by the cotton-wool of elf-queenes and faieries reflects the way that the immoral vices are carried out in the seclusion of bushes or under trees evidently this sexual aggression is repressed. As before a sharp distinction between masculine appearance and masculine reality is drawn, though rather than power concealing weakness, the Friar obscures sexual degradation with religious virtue.This idea of male authority and integrity being only superficial seems equally present in the two chief males of the piece: Jankin in the prologue, and the junior knight (or lusty bacheler) of the tale. As the perpetrators of shockingly violent acts, both fail to live up to the standards expected of their position. The anonymous protagonist of the Wifes Arthurian romance is anything but chivalrous: He saugh a maide walkinge him biforn,Of which maide anon, maugree hir heed,By verray force, he rafte hir maidenhed. (886-888) The words force and rafte are stressed and clearly stand out in the iambic pentameter. Their monosyllabic nature further enhances the stresses on the words, while the harsh dental plosives within rafte heightens the sense of violence. There are no docile fairies here Alisoun is candid, and though she chooses not to ponder on the violation, she does seem at pains to emphasise the aggression of the act through the vigour of the last line. Furthermore there are definite implications of a struggle in the phrase maugree hir heed. Such premeditated violence seems incongruous not only with the young mans status, but also with the quasi-courtly nature of the narrative. Such rape is the antithesis of the Knights Tale and this reminds us that we are not hearing Chaucers view of masculinity, but the Wifes an opinion that has its foundations in experience. Indeed this experience may be that of her fifth marriage to Jankin, a man who as a former  ³clerk of Oxenford ² combines scholasticism and marital commit ment. Such a learned male you would expect to be passive above the stereotypical brutish behaviour of the Summoner. Yet as with friars and knights in training such expectations would be incorrect, and following Alisouns petty vandalism to Jankins misogynistic  ³booke of wikked wives ², he quite literally beats her deaf: And he up stirte as dooth a wood leoun,And with his fest he smoot me in the heed. (794-795) The prolonged o sound created by dooth,wood and smoot is pervasive and has resonance with the sounds of pain and despair  ­ the Wife is the clear victim. Here the allusion to the lion can be perceived as something of a dichotomy. On the one hand, a feline has strong associations with feminine passivity and elegance the lion is a creature of beauty. Yet on the other hand it is a symbol of bestial aggression and of patriarchy, as king of the beasts. Chaucer uses the lion to accent Jankins own contradictory nature. While at a superficial level he is the young idealistic s cholar, behind closed doors he is guilty of domestic abuse. This masculine aggression of the junior knight and Jankin appears to counter the malleable nature of Alisouns earlier husbands.However, the use of brutality does not lead to masculine despotism, since it is the Wife (or the ideals of the Wife embodied in the loathly lady) that ultimately gain the maistrie, as the physical fury of the males proves futile against manipulative feminism. Both men succumb to their female companions, as Jankin is shocked into submission by the Wife feigning death: He yaf me al the bridel in myn hondTo han the governance of hous and lond. (813-814) The rhyme of hond/lond echoes the couplet 211-212, with the final recognition that, in spite of disparity in personality, the fate of marital subservience eventually unites all five husbands. The poetic justice and humour of the situation belongs to both protagonist and writer. Thus, while the Wife remains acutely aware of the patriarchal ascendancy of her medireview world, she succeeds in subverting social gender roles in her own realm of experience. Many have cited Chaucers Wife of Bath as a satirical portrait of females and feminist ideals, yet this suggests that Alisoun is the chief figure of fun. In my own opinion, it is the hollow futility of a superficially empowered masculinity that becomes the true subject of the poets irony in this piece.