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Merchant's - SETTING - Coggle Diagram
Merchant's - SETTING
Lombardy and Pavia
Chaucer immediately establishes that the Tale is set in Lombardy, which may not connote much to us now
however, Chaucer had visited Lombardy in 1378 to arrange a marriage for the then-child king, and to negotiate with mercenaries
Chaucer had an intimate knowledge of Lombardy. And at this time it was associated with tyranny as it was led by the tyrannical Visconti Family, who were infamous for their torture methods and repression of the people
Moreover, Lombardy was associated with brothels, banks, and usury. This establishes January as an authoritarian and tyrannical character, who sins.
Moreover, the Merchant goes on to specify that the exact location is Pavia, a land associated with sensuality due to its link with the 'paphian' goddess Venus, according to Brown
for example, the Visconti family had a coat of arms that was a serpentine dragon eating a baby, which can still be seen in the region today, and symbolises their repression
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in this time, marriages were seen as a sort of political system, in which the husband is like a patriarchal tyrant. Therefore, we can see how January's own marriage is akin to the tyrannical family that rules Lombardy
this is seen with how January wishes to have full control over his wife, as he believes wives should be like how 'men may warm wex with hands plye', they can be controlled and manipulated and moulded, just as the people of Lombardy are
thus, January is clearly established as a dominant and dislikable character, making the ending of the tale far more satisfying as:
'his private property has betrayed him - one gathers that his wife was something more than wax' (Shoaf)
Garden
the garden is constructed hubristically by January as an 'amans locus' that should be reminiscent of Eden, a 'paradys'
however, it is not dwelt in by christian deities, but by Roman Gods. A former version of the tale, the Novellino, featured Christ and St Peter in the garden, and so this was a conscious alteration by Chaucer
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also, the marriage of Pluto and Proserpina foreshadows the destruction of the May and January relationship, as Pluto had actually kidnapped and 'ravysshed' Proserpina, akin to how January treated May as his property
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this is emphasised by the mention of Priapus, as 'ne Priapus ne mighte nat suffice'. At surface level, because he is the god of gardens, this merely suggests the beauty of the garden. However, he is frequently pictured as having a large and consistency erect member.
therefore, the mention of him introduces a 'carnal atmosphere' (Brown) to the garden
therefore, it is clear the garden will be no paradise, but instead a sort of hell on earth for January
Furthermore
January's name is akin to Janus, the God of entrances and exits, gateways etc. he is frequently depicted holding a key
this is ironic, as January is not akin to Janus, and cannot control who enters and exits the garden
instead, Damyan is more like Janus, as he is able to open the garden with a 'wicket' and a 'clicket', and he can go within in order to complete the consummation
the 'wicket' and 'cricket' is suggestive of penetration, compounded by the lewd description of their sex 'and in he throng'. This satirises the nature of January as he is not able to be like his namesake
January tries to be the keeper of the paradys but 'finds instead that he has opened the doors of hell' (Wood), amplified by the fact that Pluto is the God of the Underworld