The structure of this story, therefore, grows out of the nature of the two main characters. Walter seems to be as determined to be cruel and wanton in his testing of Griselda as Griselda is in being submissive to Walter’s perverted demands. Each then possesses a single quality, and these are seen pitted against each other. But because Griselda tolerates everything, she brings about a happy conclusion for both of them.
The word envoy carries two meanings: Ffirst, it is a diplomatic term used to infer subtlety and authority; thus, Chaucer instructs both husband and wife about proper marriage behavior. Second, in literature, envoy means a short, simple concluding stanza. While the envoy to The Clerk’s Tale could belong to the Clerk, most readers believe Chaucer himself is speaking out to us.
The use of the word Chichevache is itself a comment on the function of “patience” (“chiche”–thin and “vache”–cow). In an old French fable, there were two cows, Chichevache and Bicorne. Bicorne is very fat and contented because her diet consists of patient husbands, of which there are plenty. Poor Chichevache, on the other hand, is fed only patience wives, and because of the scarcity of patient wives, she is thin as a rail.
