Topic > Bisclavret: The Manipulation of Marie De France and Why We Hate the Wife

Bisclavret is Marie de France's only lai that deals with a couple who fall in love (Creamer 259). The lycanthropic theme is used by the poet as proof of love and respect for her husband, as the baron's wife does not approve of his wolfish nature. The central issue seen throughout the film is the Baron's wife's refusal to accept and understand. The wife's situation and power are slowly degraded from the beginning in the interrogation scene (he was honest, but she didn't respect him) and until the end when she becomes a missing criminal. Marie de France builds this story with the aim of deteriorating the wife and defaming her presence by making her disloyal and not accepting her husband's nature. From the way she writes the lines and the absence of the wife for most of the poem, it is clear that Marie de France's goal is for the reader to not love the wife. “Marie creates an insidious, woman-hating universe in her text.” (Creamer 259). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Betrayal is one of the first themes we encounter with Bisclavret, one that remains the reason for the Baron's misfortune. His wife's first betrayal comes from a simple deception, she asks him if he goes dressed or naked (when he is in werewolf form), this also a form of prefiguration of his continuing question. The position of his clothes indicates his coming betrayal. Now he knows the location. To the husband, the revelation doesn't seem so dangerous, since it comes from an honest place. “We readers must understand that her husband’s revelation of his humiliating secret should have been enough” (Creamer 265). In addition to the context of the story, Marie de France's stylistic choices reveal her contempt for her wife. Throughout the story we can see that the Baron is genuine and down to earth, while his wife is manipulative and even commits adultery. The wife's description is one fifth as long as the werewolf's and one third as long as the baron's. This demonstrates the narrator's devious and unfaithful nature of his wife (Creamer 264). The wife's description is only two lines long (in the actual poem). This shows that she is not very important in the story, not only that, but that she is negligible. Very slowly she begins to be denigrated more and more by the narrator. Marie's way of writing reveals the scenario, the way she writes the verses and the style in which she expresses the narrative. “All his love was directed towards her, and all his love was given to him again. This lady had only one pain." We know there is something bad on the surface, as both the wife and the baron are presented as almost perfect for each other, and with her pain we can see what could be happening. This line indicates that things will no longer be as mentioned at the beginning. "Line 62 'he hid nothing from her' and again in line 67 'he told her everything' (in the poem proper) - these two lines are another clue to the narrator abandoning objectivity by choosing the husband over the wife" (Creamer 264). From the beginning of the story we are aware that the werewolf is harmless. He goes out deep into the woods and does nothing but hunt (animals, not men) and wander in solitude. He can't really hurt anyone. The wife should have no reason to distrust him. They have been married for a long time and he has yet to scare her. This makes the wife even more repulsive to the reader, as he knows he won't hurt her, as he hasn't, and when he answers her questions he provides humiliating and sincere answers. “He is not a man-eater and therefore poses no danger to his wife, especially when combined with the statement of.