In The Franklin's Tale, Dorigen's hasty (and unserious) promise precipitates a crisis when Aurelius accomplishes a task that Dorigen was certain was impossible . Aurelius faces a similar problem when, consumed by his inordinate passion, he unthinkingly promises to pay a huge sum to a magician in exchange for completing Dorigen's task. The power of promise is apparent throughout this story between Dorigen and Arveragus, Dorigen and Aurelius, and Aurelius and the magician, three promises of great importance are made. These promises direct the action of the story. Examining these promises reveals that in Franklin's Tale, the promise binds two people in a deeply private relationship; this private relationship operates on a trust mechanism. Firmly anchoring the promises in the private world, the tale argues that privately oriented values ​​(as opposed to public oriented values, such as shame) are the guarantors of harmony in relationships. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay The first of these relationships is formed by the touching promise of equality made by Dorigen and Arveragus, establishing early in the story that a promise is entirely in the private domain. Arveragus gives his word: From his free wyl he swears to hire like a knight who never in all his lyf he, day and night, does not sholde on the hymn takes no maistrieAgayn hir wyl, does not kithe engages jealousy, but commit obey, and follow his wyl in Like any lover of his lady, except that the name of sovereign, he will be ashamed of his diploma. (ll. 745-52). The phrase "Of his liberty" establishes that Arveragus did not make this promise due to social conventions or customs. The promise he makes to her is completely private, a secret between the two of them. Their arrangement actually goes against social norms; speaking out about the equality of their relationship would result in a loss of face for the knight. The two will be equal, "Except that the name of sovereign, / That he will be ashamed of his diploma." Essentially, Arveragus and Dorigen must have two marriages, one public and one private. Public marriage is based on the assumed sovereignty of the husband over the wife, while private marriage is based on a promise of equality. This promise structures their private relationship; this is partly the reason for their strong affection and love for each other. The Franklin states that "When Maistrie comes, the God of Love soon / Beteth his wings, and farewell he departs!" (ll.765-6). By explaining what some couples get wrong, Franklin makes an argument for what this couple gets right. Nor is it necessary for a promise to be kept in light of social surveillance: Arveragus promises that he "will not praise in jealousy." True to his word, when he returns after two years of absence, he does not worry about the fidelity of his wife: No list of hymaginatyf, if someone had spoken, during his absence, to praise the love ; he had no doubt about it. He has no intention of swich mateere. . . (ll. 1094-7). Not only does Arveragus keep his promise not to show jealousy towards his wife, but it never occurs to him that his wife's virtue has been compromised. He had no doubt, he didn't think about it; Such strong language suggests a man whose confidence in his wife's private conduct is beyond reproach. Franklin's lengthy arguments on the necessity of equality in love argue for the fundamental rightness of the couple's approach to marriage; the reader can infer from this argument that a promise of equality would lead to enhanced affection. Their exchange of promises, withoutexternal surveillance, leads to increased private happiness. The power of the promise extends to the most private place: the inner self. Even Arveragus's thoughts seem to be shaped by this, so secure is he in his wife's affection (reinforced by their promise of equality) and so in tune with her promise to avoid jealousy that he doesn't not even consider the possibility of impropriety on Dorigen's part. The promise creates a private relationship based on trust. Dorigen's hastily crafted promise to Aurelius is also a private matter. Not only are the two alone together when the promise is made, the reader is assured that Dorigen's friends "have nothing to do with this conclusion" (l. 1014), but the promise comes at a time when very private are revealed. Aurelius kept his infatuation a secret for a long time. Dorigen has no idea of ​​his feelings until their moment in the garden: “But nothing told him of his understanding” (l. 959). After baring his soul and being unambiguously refused by Dorigen, she gives him conditions of love. Just as Aurelius reveals his private and secret feelings in the garden, Dorigen's promise strongly alludes to his private mental state (Pearsall 2/22). The narrator leaves no doubt that his promise was not serious, made “en pley” (l. 988), but Dorigen chooses a rather inappropriate moment to be playful. Nothing previously indicates that she does not love Aurèle, and yet here she makes a strange joke when he has just told her that her life is in her hands. The rocks have become a deep obsession for Dorigen, revealing themselves in this moment through his strange behavior. His promise comes in an intensely private moment in a garden where two single people share a secret and reveal mental states. There is a strange kind of trust here, and unspoken is the assumption, made on both sides, that no one must know their moment in the garden. After all, Dorigen doesn't even tell her husband about the situation until she is forced to by Aurelius who has completed his task. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Made in private, the promise is kept in private. Arvaragus keeps his promise not to show jealousy, even to the point of mentally internalizing an attitude of non-jealousy, and he expects his wife to be faithful in keeping her promise to Aurelius: "You should worry, by my faith! " (1474). But fear of public dishonor is not the motivation for keeping one's word, even if Aurelius claims to fear for Dorigen's honor if she does not keep her word (l. 1331), there is no indication that he is blackmailing her. The "honor" here is apparently not in a public space. Why do Arvaragus and Dorigen choose to honor his promise? His promise was made in jest and there is no real threat. of public exposure On the contrary, the threat of public shame hangs over the respect of the promise: Arvaragus demands that “never, while you last, do not lyf blow, / Do not tell you this adventure” (ll. 1482). -3). He also says that they must avoid showing their sorrow so that their friends will not ask them the cause of their sadness (ll. 1485-6). he knows that paying the magician's price will result in poverty: "Mon trouthe wol I kepe, I wol nat lye" (l. 1570) Yet Aurelius makes no mention of the possible repercussions if he did not pay the magician's money. magician, except that would mean breaking his promise. In these two cases, respect for a promise is therefore not motivated by the concept of shame oriented towards the public but by the concept of trust oriented towards the private. There.