Wife of Bath Analysis

In Arthur's court a knight comes across a young maiden one day and rapes her. The court declares that the knight should be put to death by decapitation. However, Arthur's queen and other ladies of the court plead on for him and ask the king to give him one chance to save his life. Arthur grants their request. The queen presents the knight with a following challenge. If he can discover what the one thing women want most in the world and report his findings back to the court in one year, he will not be killed. If he cannot find the answer to the queen's question, or if his answer is wrong, he will be killed. The knight roams the country, asking the question to every woman he meets. To the knight's disappointment, nearly every one of them answers differently. Some claim women love money best, some admiration, some looks, some remarriage, some charm, and some say that women most want to be free to do as they wish. Finally the Wife says that women most want to be considered trustworthy, but...