Final answer:
The Wife of Bath from Geoffrey Chaucer's 'The Canterbury Tales' gained sovereignty in her marriages through manipulation (option c). She used her sexuality, intelligence, and argumentative skills to control her husbands, countering the notions of traditional marital obedience.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Wife of Bath in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales is a complex character who asserts her sovereignty in her marriages primarily through manipulating her husbands. This manipulation takes on various forms, including using her sexual power, intelligence, and the mastery of arguments to maintain control and dominance over her spouses.
Unlike the extreme act of sati, which symbolizes a wife's ultimate devotion and obedience to her deceased husband, the Wife of Bath seeks to overturn traditional concepts of obedience within marriage. Her tactics show a strategic understanding of the marital dynamics of her time, which often suppressed women's autonomy and legal rights.