What is that women most desire?

The hag was dreadful but wise...

That´s the million-dollar question. And it´s also the question Queen Guinevere told the lecherous knight to find the right answer for if he wanted to save his life in The Wife of Bath Tale from The Canterbury Tales. An ugly old woman was ready to tell him the difficult answer on condition that he promised to do whatever she asked him to. The knight, caught between the devil and the deep blue sea, accepted the deal. You know her answer (that saved his life): what women desire most is to have the upper hand over their husbands... Do you agree? Let´s see what you came up with in your compositions...

"In the Wife of Bath story this question is answered as being superior to men. This must have been the most important thing for women in Chaucer´s time, but this does not apply now. Nowadays this question is answered in many different ways, the answer varies depending on the woman you ask, some of them would answer that what a woman most desires is having a family, others would answer that what a woman most desires is having a steady job. In my opinion, taking into account I am not a woman, what a woman most desires is not being judged, like a book, by its cover". (Sergio P.)

"Saying that what women most desire is power over their husbands is nonsense and sexist. (...) As a woman I would probably say that personal success is one of the few things that we desire most. Being conscious that that you have been capable of reaching that goal that you have always wanted to get is quite satisfactory not just for girls, but for boys too. We are all people and, as humans, we usually have the same feelings and thoughts.(...) Women want the ability to make decisions for themselves instead of being ordered around like servants. They want to be respected as equal companions of men rather than their subordinates". (Carolina M.)

"From my point of view, what women most desire is to have a good family, a family that loves and protects each other. Also they want to the respect of their husbands, their entire love and loyalty (...). The thoughts of women haven´t changed so much from the 14th century (...). The desires of women have always been in relation to their families. What has changed now, in the 21st century, is that their main goal is not to have power but to have love. What is a relationship without love? (Eva  M.)

"Women desire power, money and love, love from their children, from their husbands, but above all that, what women most desire is gender equality. (...) Maybe we don´t say anything because of the fear of ignored or not to be accepted, but we have to join together, because together we can, together we are strong and together we can stop gender violence". (Paula O.)

"Of course that what the hag told the knight is true. Women like to have power over man, but from my point of view, that answer is a little old-fashioned, because what we are trying to create is a society of gender equality where men aren´t superior to women or the other way round. So, in conclusion I think that what women (and in general everybody) most desire is to feel understood". (Irene L.)

"Above all what women desire most is gender equality: going out to the street without being scared, having the idea that at any moment we could be sexually abused. We desire to have the same rights as men, and be treated as equals". (Paula F.)

"I think that what women want is love, (...), or better than that, true love. (...) They want a boy, man or girl that makes them laugh, have a good time, cry or even get angry. And you would say why cry and get angry? It is as simple as this: because true love isn´t perfect, true love is the one in which you are constantly fighting to be with the person you love". (Lorena C.)

"I think women have very different ideas and personalities, so they are never going to agree on anything. But I think that most of them would agree when we talk about inequality. I think women would like to have equal power and equality in general. Although it looks as if it is getting better, in fact it is not, men earn more money for the same job in some places, and people still get surprised by a policewoman or a female soldier". (Eva A.)

"I think one thing women most desire is to destroy the ideal of beauty because all are beautiful in one way or another, but no one has to feel ugly because the society has one ideal of beauty that maybe that woman doesn´t have". (David Q.)

"I personally think that each woman is different and this idea may vary a lot. But in my opinion what women desire most is being independent and being with the person they really love". (Natalia P.)

"If I only had to say one thing, it´d be that what women want is stereotypes to disappear. They don´t want stereotypes because in this society all girls want to be perfect, but  what is perfection? (Ariadna M.)

"In conclusion, women want to be free and not to suffer violence by men". (Jorge C.)

"My conclusion is that women most desire to be respected by everyone, because you can have all the money in the entire world, being sexy as hell and being married to a rich person, but if people don´t respect you, you have all that stuff for nothing". (Delia U.) 

"In the story, what women most desired was to have control over their husbands and over men. From my point of view, they are just looking for feeling comfortable with themselves. They want to learn how to love themselves before loving anyone else. (...) For me, what we most want is to learn how to feel good without the need of having someone next to us, because with ourselves, it should be enough". (Lucía R.)

"(...) women also want protection, someone that protects them physically and mentally, they will always be attracted by the strongest men, but they have to be strong for them, they must be men that understand them and they can trust." (Javier S.)

"I have been thinking for five minutes about a general desire all women could have and I have reached the conclusion that what not only women, but all living things need is love, who doesn´t want to have someone near that loves them?" (Iván F.)

"In many couples, women are supposed to be all day at home doing everything, and the man is supposed to be working all day. Well, that woman cooks for you, cleans the house, gives an education for your children, buys clother for you, and many other  things. I think that a woman works more than a man and she is not paid at all. She only wants to hear a "thank you" and she will be happy". (Stefania E.)

Great work!