Storytelling for Week 11: What Women Really Want

What Women Really Want

(The Favored Knight of the Kingdom: Source)

Once upon a time in a land far far away from here, there lived a King and Queen and their most favored knight. This knight was the royal couple's favorite because of his ability to uphold every knightly responsibility without fail until the fateful day when he disrespected one of the kingdom's fair maidens.

As the law told at this time, the knight who disrespected a maiden was immediately sentenced to death and no one would speak of his existence again. This punishment proved to be a problem for the King and Queen because of the accused knight's favored status in the kingdom.

The King was reluctantly ready to end the life pf his favorite knight, but the Queen begged and begged for her husband to spare him. The king fell to his wife's request and gave her the power to decide whether the knight lived or died, leaving the King out of the equation.

The knight gratefully visited the Queen and knelt before her as she spoke to him in a strictly disappointed tone, "Sir knight, you have not escaped the grasp of death just yet. I will allow you to live if, upon one year's time, you return and tell me the truest desire of all women." The knight, reveling in his life's span of an additional year eagerly accepted the task and set off immediately to fulfill his Queen's request.

All over the world the knight searched for the next year. He never found a definitive answer though. Some women said riches while other said security or happiness. Not one answer held true for more than any of the others. In sadness, the knight was forced to return to the kingdom with his head lowered as he thought about the noose that was awaiting him.

Upon reaching the outskirts of the kingdom's walls, the knight came across an old hunchbacked women sitting along the tree line. "Old maiden," cooed the knight, "May I trouble you with the burdens of my heart and mind?" The old woman nodded in agreement for she was of a kind hearted nature and wanted to help the knight. "I am on my way to my death for I have failed to uncover the desire of all women at the request of my Queen." The old woman pondered the knight's statement for a moment and with her ages of wisdom decided that she knew exactly how to help him. "I will tell you the desire of any women's heart to save your life as long as you do the very first thing that I ask of you." The knight, of course, agreed for his life was on the line and the old woman whispered the secret in his ear and he was off to the Queen's court.

After the Queen received the knight into her throne room, the knight proudly told her of the discovery he had made, "Dear Queen, the utmost desire of any woman on this earth is to have complete power over their husband." The Queen sat back in her throne with a smirk on her face, not able to deny this fact, and allowed the knight to keep his life.

The knight was overjoyed that the wisdom of the old lady had saved his life and just as he was turning to enjoy his freedom, he saw the old maiden in the doorway. "Dear Mother," the knight exclaimed, "You have saved me from the noose! Please tell me what it is that you desire of me. The very first thing." The old woman's mouth gave way to a toothless smile as she said, "Take me as your wife."

The knight stopped in his foot steps as he realized he had to keep his word to this old woman. "Please madame, do not do this. Choose another request, take all my riches, my house! But please do not take my freedom."

"You must marry this elder woman, sir knight," declared the Queen from her perch, "If you made a promise to her, you must keep your word, lest I decide to take your life once and for all for, yet again, disrespecting a maiden of this kingdom."

(The Queen that held power over her husband and the favored knight: Source)

At this, the knight reluctantly took the old woman to be his wife and was respectful to her for the rest of their years together.

Author's Note: This story is from the Canterbury Tales Unit and is based off of The Unknown Bride Tale. I really like this story because of the king and queen aspect, those always get to me! In the original story, the old woman turns out to be a beautiful maiden that had taught the knight a lesson before she revealed her true self after their marriage. I liked it that way in the original, but I really didn't like the fact that the knight had disrespected a woman in the kingdom in the first place, managed to have his life spared twice by the King and Queen, and still didn't mention being sorry for whatever it was he had done to the woman. I felt that he needed to be punished for a while longer by just marrying the old woman against his will. The old woman got to live with his fortune for the rest of her days, so it worked out for her!

Bibliography: Tappan, Eva, The Chaucer Storybook: The Unknown Bride, 1908.