What
are the views of women that are implied in the bible and how did this influence
their role in Medieval society?
During the Medieval Period the Bible
was the ultimate 'how to live a good life' guide. But it is important to remember that the
majority of society could not read or write.
The bible stories were preached through Masses and these Masses were
dominated by men (priests, bishops etc).
It was mostly men that interpreted the bible, men who extracted the
message and then men who passed this message on to the general population. Should this influence our own interpretation
of medieval religious primary sources?
Biblical characters were crucial role
models for women in medieval society.
There appears to be four types of women during this period; Virgins,
Mothers, Nuns and Sinners. They can be
clearly seen through stories of women in the bible.
Eve
came under much criticism during this time, for it was she who convinced Adam
to eat the fruit on the forbidden tree. She created original sin and was the
first sinner. Death came through Eve. It is interesting to note that she
is blamed for Adam's actions...
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Painting of Joan of Arc from c1450-1500
Held in the Centre Historique des Archives Nationales, Paris.
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Virgins in Medieval Society
were under the protection of their fathers and brothers,
and considered the safeguards of purity. Medieval Society adored Mother Mary, for she
epitomised all purity and sinlessness. Both a virgin and a mother,
she gave hope and restored beauty to the world. Devoted to God and her son
Jesus, she was the ultimate role model
for medieval women as homemakers. Life was restored through Mary.
Mary Magdalene
brought hope to women in the medieval times. She was a prostitute and would
have been regarded as an outcast. She was a sinner who sought
forgiveness from Jesus. He forgave her and she followed Him and spread the word
of God.
Saint Scholastica
devoted her life to God as a Nun. The sister of Saint Benedict of
Nursia, she had a special relationship with God and he listened to her prayers.
She lived a good life according to God's teachings.
Are these the only types
of women in Medieval Society? How does the Image of Joan of Arc challenge this
idea?
--Michelle
Marriage, Status and Alliance
Marriage is one of the ways in which
historians are able to gain knowledge on the role of women and what rights they
have in late medieval Europe. In this weeks readings we see how marriages in
the late medieval Europe were formed to create alliances, bring a truce and create
peace. Because of this the women’s roles went beyond just being a good wife but
to uphold the alliance between the two families. The exchange of marriage
during the 13th and 15th century was very important in
society as it ended “prolonged vendettas” and “ancient hatreds” as well as
process of rivalry at times of open warfare. However, women in these types of marriages moved
in two directions: either upward and became higher on the social scale than her
own or down ward. Usually as the reading explains they would go downwards as fathers
would chose women who had a higher status, this would cause problems for the
women as they felt socially degraded because they were married to some one of
inferior blood and rank.
Do you think that these marriages still
exits today?
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King
Henry I of France sending a bishop, and his marriage to Anne of Kiev. An
example of the type of marriage explained above, as king Henry married Anne of
Kiev who was from a far off principality.
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--Anna
Women as Wives
Although some chose to follow a
religious life, and others refrained for personal or economic reasons, most
women in the Middle Ages married. Although it became a Christian sacrament,
marriage was viewed as being an inferior state to virginity; St Paul wrote that
‘It is better to marry than to burn with passion’ (1 Corinthians 7:9). The
below image is a miniature from a 12th century German manuscript
called Der Jungfrauspiegel. It shows
the benefits for three types of women: virgins, married women, and widows. Do
you think you could tell which group belongs to which line of the image?
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llustration: Women Harvesting, Der
Jungfrauenspiegel, Rheinisches Landesmuseum, Bonn, 1310. Wikimedia Commons
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A literary text from this time,
Geoffrey Chaucer’s
The Canterbury Tales,
will be used in the presentation on Monday, and you will find it useful to read
the text itself (two tales in translation, links provided below). For those
unfamiliar with the work, a group of pilgrims is travelling to Canterbury
Cathedral to visit the shrine of St Thomas Beckett. Between the travellers
arises a story-telling contest with the winner awarded a meal. Two of the tales
that reflect views of wives are the Clerk’s tale, which tells the story of
Griselda, a virtuous wife who faces cruel tests by her husband (
http://www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/chaucer/translation/ct/10clt.html).
The other story is the Wife of Bath. Her
prologue is almost twice as long as her story, both of which can be found here:
http://www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/chaucer/translation/ct/07wbt.html.
Her tale is about a knight who rapes a woman, and is given 366 days to find the
answer to the question of what women really want, or else be condemned to
death. To prepare for Monday’s tutorial, give some thought as to how you think
the answer to the knight’s question compares with the second set reading (pages
305 to 308), especially when women were expected to submit to their husbands.
There should be a chance for a group discussion on this, so please come
prepared to contribute.
--Catherine
