Women in Medieval Life (Penguin Classic History S.) - Softcover

Labarge, Margaret Wade

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0141390468 ISBN 13: 9780141390468

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 2001

Synopsis

This thoroughly researched and superbly readable study of the feudal societies of France, England, the Low Countries and Southern Germany from 1100 to 1500 brings the varied textures of women's lives to light for the first time. Ranging from queens and noblewomen to nuns, mystics, recluses, peasants, prostitutes and felons, Women in Medieval Life describes the reality of daily life for these largely unknown and uncelebrated women who have left us intriguing traces of their lives.

About this title

Synopsis:

What was daily life like for mediaeval women? Much of what we know applies to exceptional women, such as Joan of Arc or Eleanor of Aquitaine, both extraordinarly powerful in their own way, while the lives of the majority have been overlooked. Margaret Wade Labarge redresses the balance, giving us an insight into ordinary women's lives in France, England, the Low Countries and southern Germany between 1100 and 1500. From queens, including Marguerite of Provence and Queen Blanche of France, and noblewomen like the wealthy Isabella de Fortibus and Elizabeth de Burgh, to peasants, nuns, mystics, prostitutes and felons, the author shows that women, despite their inferior social and legal status, could exercise power either within the family, within the church, or as rulers or healers. She looks closely at the works of Mahaut of Artois, France's greatest lady of the 14th century, Hildegard of Bingen, the abbess and scholar, and Christine de Pizan, the only professional women writer of her day. These contemporary viewpoints along with the scholarly, yet highly readable, narrative bring the lives of these largely uncelebrated women vividly to life.

About the Author:

Professor of History at Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada is a holder of the Order of Canada and is the author of six books on the Middle Ages.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0141390468
• ISBN 13: 9780141390468
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288