The Lady in the Tower: Medieval Courtesy Literature for Women PDF
Preview The Lady in the Tower: Medieval Courtesy Literature for Women
The Lady in the : Medieval Courtesy Literature for Women Diane Bomstein This first study of medieval courtesy liter ature for women analyzes didactic works written between 500-1500, with a prelimi nary discussion of treatises by the Church Fathers. The author has broadly defined courtesy literature to include not only books of etiquette, but also books of advice from mother or father to daughter, books of instruction addressed to women by clerks, mirrors for the princesses, and even Arts of Love containing practical advice that was intended to be taken seriously. The courtesy books were meant to serve as guides for behavior in the real world. Con sequently, they reveal a great deal about the roles women were expected to play in the Middle Ages, the restrictions they were sup posed to observe, and the responsibilities they had to fulfill. The images presented are not always realistic but are sometimes ideal ized. The authors often had a polemical purpose and would exaggerate to convince women of the value of a particular way of life. Writers sometimes ignored or criticized developments of their time, such as the in creasing economic role of women, rather than reporting them. At times the courtesy books reflect their age, and at times they resist it: even so, they illuminate the mental climate of the period. They are one of the most valuable sources available for information about the lives of women and, more particularly, attitudes (continued on back flap) The Lady in the Tower Reason Leading Secular Women into the City of Ladies BRITISH LIBRARY, HARLEY MS 4431, FOL. 323 The Lady in the Tower Medieval Courtesy Literature for Women Diane Bornstein A rchon Books 1983 © 1983 Diane Bomstein. All rights reserved. First published 1983 as an Archon Book, an imprint of The Shoe String Press, Inc. Hamden, Connecticut 06514 Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Bomstein, Diane, [date] The lady in the tower Bibliography: p. Includes index. I. Women—History—Middle Ages, 500'1500. 2. Women in literature—History—Middle Ages, 500'1500. 3. Courtesy in literature—History—Middle Ages, 500' 1500. 4. Didactic literature—History—Middle Ages, 500'1500. I. Title. HQ1143.B67 1983 305.4V9V2 82'20649 ISBN 0'208'01995'2 Contents Acknowledgments 7 I. Images of Women in Medieval Literature versus Images in the Courtesy Books 9 II. Woman as Virgin 15 III. Woman as Coquette 31 IV. Woman as Wife and Mother 46 V. Woman as Ruler 76 VI. Woman as Worker 94 VII. Ideals in the Courtesy Books as Related to the Lives of Medieval Women 114 Notes 123 Appendix: A Chronological List of Treatises by the Church Fathers and Medieval Courtesy Books for Women 133 Bibliography 135
The list of books you might like
