Question

Consider why the wife of bath speaks directly to the other pilgrims in lines 249-258. what effect might this digression have on her audience

Answer 1

Her audience would likely think back to Ovid's tale of Midas. But in Ovid's telling, it's not his wife who knows about his ears, but rather his barber. If her audience is savvy enough, they might instead infer that men are also gossips.