Your Class Notes for ENGL 310H

Thanks to Hallie, Jade, and Amy for this start. I've just clumped them together by date. Haven't had time to straighten them out yet.--Dr. K

8/26/2001 (Ovid and Juvenal)

• The ownership of knowledge in the medieval world is a contested issue.  Education was not for everyone.  More hoops to jump through to get it.  Education was owned and controlled buy the church. 
• Tablets were wax coated—you could write in wax, remelt it and then write on it again.  Nearly everyone learned their ABCs, but not everyone learned to read/write.  Boys in upper merchant classes learned reading and writing and all they needed to know to become a property owner.  Girls of property owners may learn some, especially math.  Lower middle classes and below probably didn’t learn much.  You learned what you were told. 
• Auctoritee is approved knowledge.  The opposite of auctoritee is experience—you learn it yourself instead of learning it form someone else.  This isn’t as trusted as auctoritee.  Auctoritee was passed on in Latin.  You studies snippets from others, that the others chose to teach you.  So these were used to teach grammar, history, etc.  The auctoritee sunk through the culture.  Valued texts ended up being the values and virtues of the time. The auctoritee became what people thought at the time—they became the publicized norm, until around the end of the 11th century.  Toward this time, and the early 12^th century, women are no longer allowed to study.
• The auctoritee was more retold imitation of another work, like storytelling.  Imitation more valued that creativity.  As knowledge became more controlled by the church, creativity became more of a sin—making something up is something that is false. That’s a lie, thus it is sin.  So, dreams became okay in fiction, you had to lie and say you got the info in your book from somewhere, then it was more trusted. 
• Characteristics of Women in “Defamer” Literature
  • Lustful, sinful, manipulative, deceitful, teases.  They exist for sin. 
  • Can outsmart/manipulate men. 
  • Educated women are worse—man can all ready be outsmarted naturally, even more with education. 
  • Using your brain is more respected that using your body.  Since women are more “lustful”, then they are less likely to use their mind.  Men more human than women because they can use their minds more, instead of females who use their bodies—animalistic. 
  • Women have periods, and thus are unclean and imperfect.  Men’s bodies are perfect. 
  • To make women seem bad, Ovid uses extreme, prominent case that everyone knows about to defame even the average women. 
  • Even women who were good were too good to be believed.  She will change.
• Culture
  • Lopsided view of the world
  • Women are property; subservient
  • Fear of women (getting power, money, education and intelligence)
• The fact that they keep reiterating all of these ideas means that women are probably rebelling against it. 
• Before Christianity, gods and goddesses rule the world.  Women had some power through that. Afterwards, the goddesses are replaced with one “goddess”—the Virgin Mary, which is a false ideal for people to live up to—both virgin and mother. 
• The preoccupation with wives loyalty could be because the sons given by the wives are who the inheritance goes through.  If the son wasn’t the husband’s, then the inheritance would go to a bastard. 
• There’s a lot of selective quotation. The Catholic bible is not the King James’s version.  The Vulgate became the Catholic Bible (the Rheims-Douay).  It’s not identical to the KJV. 
• The words for most virtues are feminine in nature. 

8/26/04  Defame

 •Auctoritee vs. Experience

•Reiteration vs. Originality

•Baseline attitudes toward gender – ownership of knowledge then contested – control issues and access

•Christian era – church controlled education – 3 and 4 ABCS for most children

- board with wax and stylus, melt to erase – basic ABS=Cs for all pretty much – better edu. for higher up, royal writing but how much did it stick? – upper merchant sons and property owner sons needed more edu. for business – some daughters did bookkeeping – lower classes had no control of own learning

•mostly learned knowledge, received knowledge (auctoritee) – approved knowledge taught by those with the right to know

•Experience was in one’s own learning and not as trusted as Auctoritee – elder for experience

•church father himself not auctoritee but what he taught was (Latin), snidbits of classics – principles of culture in Latin to 6 yr.-old-boys -> snidbits used to teach grammar and such – soaks thru culture

•valued texts tended to be copied – accepted and passed on norms – even common man thought this was way it should be/ to be

•11th century double convents, 12^th century no double convents and no women over men

•ending of 11^th, beginning of 12^th century, strengthening of antifeminist and women not allowed in universities – around this time, knowledge moved into the secular realm more

•reiteration and imitation valued, high tribute- as church took over, harder to add new norms – distrust of new, got around with dreams (highly valued), crumbled books, someone import. told them – some challenges still

•assumptions of women in late classical period: lust, deceitful, greed, materialistic, complain a lot, nagging, manipulation, witty, flirts, blame for all evil simply b/c they existed, educated women were a worse threat (they were reaching for auctoritee)

•pretty one-sided, man in control, widowed and fatherless called femme souls (dangerous), thus highly encouraged to remarry (fear reiterated b/c probably some rebellion against it

•what was this world like?

•prior to this, gods and goddesses – powerful women – disconnect in this society – Virgin Mary bought in with Christianity – AVE/EVA, virgin/sinner – Gabriel said AVE to Mary when announcing Christ’s birth - complex baseline

•wife vessel by which inheritance passed on (econ., social, and moral) – how know son is theirs?

•why mind use more valued?  Equal there despite bodies – intellectual, body animalistic – any animal can do – men more perfect b/c less lust and no menstruation (cleaning impurities)

•worse is women won’t accept this

•exs. from classic, prominent and extreme cases – if woman is good, will change or is sneaking

•watch out for selective quoting on both sides of the argument

•Vulgate Bible -> Rheims-Douay Bible does and neither equal King James Version – “Apocrypha” (that which cannot be believed)

•Greek Christian women more power than Roman Christian women

•wisdom, virtue, and charity feminine words in ancient text

•suicide huge sin, women asked for it, doing womanly duties worse possible way, animalistic (classic stories of women fighting back or killing self over lover)

•some still hardwired into our culture

•next time, how prevalent are these still in our culture?

•(I had one more garbled note on Jerome and Augustine’s different views or approaches to women being redeemed or redeemable (?) Hope someone else has clearer note of this or you all can find it on your own  =o(  sorry)

August 26, 2004

·        Auctoritee v. Experience

o       Auctoritee-received knowledge, what you are told, “approved”

o       Experience-from 5 senses, own pathway of life, not trusted as much as auctoritee

·        Reiteration v. Originality

·        Ownership of knowledge a contested issue

·        Education not for everybody

·        Christian era-education becomes tool of the church

·        Board w/ wax coating-wrote with stilus

·        Access to basic knowledge available to many, but beyond basic must be in a protected class

·        Nobility received education

·        Boys of upper merchant classes-some reading and writing

·        Boys and sometimes property girls of property owners received education

·        Lower-middle classes and below not much access to knowledge

·         Most knowledge is received knowledge

·        Auctoritee-teaches grammar, history, soaked through culture

·        Auctoritee hand-copied on velum-valuet texts

·        Auctoritee of culture is foundational

·        Beginning of 12^th century-strengthening of anti-feminism-corresponds with the universities movement

·        Women don’t receive degrees until 1920s

·        Auctoritee-value of restating what is known (reiteration)

·        Reiteration valued over originality

·        Ability to add new things to culture becomes harder and harder

·        Distrust of original stories

·        High value placed on dreams

·        Characteristics of women

o       Lusty, deceitful, manipulative, materialistic, witty, “teases,” root of all evil, educated women are worse and will be reaching for ‘auctoritee’

·        Women-some rebellion against laws, domestic warfare

·        Virgin Mary-false ideal for women

·        AVE/EVA = virgin/sinner

·        If wife cheats, makes man look bad and son may not be his

·        Mind valued over body-homo sapiens: creature who thinks

·        Women’s bodies imperfect: menstruation

·        Women refuse to accept

·        Strategy in writing: find woman as example: from auctoritee

o       Messiliena: empress: night of sex but no orgasm

·        If wife appears perfect, must be sneaking around

·        Selective quotation

·        Vulgate: in Latin or ppl’s tongue

·        Vulgate=Rheims-Douay, not the same as the KJV—‘apocrypha’-that which cannot be believed

·        Virtue=feminine gender

·        Acquired v. innate beliefs

8/30/04

•dominion very small – pneumono/ultra/microscopico/sillico/volcanico/coni/osis –lung, sick, very, small, grain/sit, lining, condition, disease – Mt. St. Helene disease - longest word in the English language; floccinaucinihilipilification (look in Oxford English dictionary for this one)

•how material circulated and got amplified – authority to comment, early criticism, comments in margins from church fathers and such

•lay books for household with women, payers, start and you remember and finish – margins for decorations

•authorized text

•scripture:  lustful women, dumb, fall makes her less of a person, servant like status, above children – change power situation

•good women hiding something, all humanity flawed but some more flawed than others – Jesus speak to lowest theory – was Mary Magdalene a prostitute?

•Paul was taught Ovid, Greco Roman tradition

•women to have children, no pleasure in act, and no more sex after children – women learn from men and learn in silence

•one lie produces many lies – different views on scriptural text, be aware of

•how do women take this?  Watch literal meanings, can’t question it (authorized texts/”known” views and accepted beliefs); selected quotation

•all perfected bring rapture or not all conquer lust

•Jerome stays true to message but not consistent logic – creates own president

•women not have domination over men – hence women have it in sex, power to be taken – if men corrupt, how can they teach women right

•Augustine – women fall b/c man not teach right

8/31/2004 (St. Jerome and St. Augustine)

• In Genesis, men have dominion over everything, including women.  Before the fall into sin, women and men bound by love.  Afterward, women were servile. 
• All women are wicked—remember that.
• Mary Magdalene apparently a prostitute (might not be—never says).  The Christ speaks to the lowest of the low.  Jesus comes to her first when he rises. 
• Jerome: if we all become perfect, it would bring on the Rapture, and we could all live in heaven, being perfect. 
• Sex is a tool that gives women power.  Women shouldn’t have power.  Thus, sex=bad.

9/2/2004 (Response to Antifeminism)

·        By allowing for women to be weak, even in the defense, you diffuse the argument from the other side, because they all ready agree with you on some points.  They don’t have as much to argue about. 

·        Defenders of women don’t bash men, in contrast to the defamers who bash women. Ironic—men are supposed to be the more rational, less emotional of the two, yet the argument that is proposed to them is an emotional one. 

·        Still comes off as slightly submissive—they often tell opinions rather than tell what they believe.  Comes off as telling their opinion, but telling it very softly and subtly. 

·        The defamers use the same evidence to refute the opposition, but they interpret it different than the defamers do.

9/2/04  Defense

•double-edged often, maybe b/c common bridge, opposition may listen to more – argumentative technique –start with what they acknowledge

•not bashing men, just what we think of women- often written by men – sneaky about it? – submissive – listen to advice but not have to take (women to man in reading; piece we read written by a man most probably, though)

•familiar texts and legends for bashers – defense, lots of biblical – turn around what the defamers said – same evidence reinterpreted – more eloquent, getting to the pt. – not as hostile – pt. by pt. approach/ more organized – arguing emotion or logically? – men claim rational but argue emotion, but for females (still by men, though), argue logic

•why defend – Mary, w/o women there would be no men, women take care of things – pg. 230, men’s fault if women bad since teach them; pgs. 228 + 229 similarities, women above dumb animals and admire jewelry, why not women?  embarrassing them into liking women- beauty good or bad?  How used? – women made in paradise, man outside

•pg. 236 – where Christ come form, virginity theory and Mary stay? – two version of women – Hebrew tradition of Lilith

•behavior modification on Melibeus takes awhile – defenders both sides; - tinting writing with your opinion (writer’s opinion showing up in work despite efforts for non-bias) – writing someone else’s perspective, is possible? – women’s more subtle to get it read; virgins stil called out as good ex. – complex argument to make

•more positions available than we may be discussing

September 2, 2004

Reponses to Anti-Feminism

• Start w/ accepted notion that women are weaker-makes hard for opposition to argue
• Use the Bible for arguments
• Turns argument around, reinterpretation of evident
• Women and defenders of women-rational arguments
• Defamers-emotional arguments
• Contentions/Claims
  • Women in image of Mary
  • No women, no men
  • Hasty generalization-fallacy
  • p.230-man supposed to teach woman, so really man’s fault if bad
  • p.228-229-women placed above animals/jewels
  • p.236 creation of woman-made in paradise but man outside it
  • Woman’s body not inferior-brought Christ into the world

9/7/04

•Brut’s stuff put together by people who later had him burned at the stake – know little about lawyers, section out of Oxford, protection of powerful nobles

•concept of : grace -> priest -> listener

                     grace ->bad priest (not) -> listener

-1350 to 1390, anxiety over individuals’ souls sine lesser trained priests – Lollards come up after this: if priests lazy, set up things not in Latin (underground club) – men and women went around and taught each other about the Bible and salvation – standardized texts of Bible in English

•burn heretics to discourage other heretics, public trials with little chance for defense

•arguments in book – note at this pt. Catholic = Christian – mother teaching child with Mary and Christ

•Bible women teach, responsibility to share knowledge, similarities between men and women, Mary Magdalene teaching

•Southern passion worth rereading – by anonymous

9/7/2004 (Walter Brut’s Trial)

• Walter Brut: burned at the stake for being a heretic.
• In the middle ages, they believed that if you had a corrupt person giving the sermon, you didn’t get the message that they tried to tell you.  It was a bad message.  In particular, because of the Black Death (1350s-1390s), there was a crisis of spirituality because “real” priests were dying.  Pretty much anyone could become a priest.  So, laymen tried to get people to read the Bible themselves.  Men and women went around and taught each other religion and salvation. Needless to say, bishops and the church weren’t happy about that.  Burned some of those people publicly.
• Brut’s argument: women prophesized and taught in the Bible.  Because women and men are both human, then they both have souls, so they both have the ability to teach and to preach. 

September 7, 2004

• If preacher flawed, no benefit in baptism
• The Plague-preachers especially affected and “unqualified” were teaching
• People should be able to read Bible themselves-translated to English
• Men and women taught each other about salvation and the Bible
• Men saying women as capable of men, can teach, can baptize in emergency
• Trial of Walter Brut
  • My mother taught me
  • Mary teaching Christ
  • Everyone who has wisdom and knowledge is obliged to share it
  • Male and female same species and both may be absolved

9/9/2004 (Romance of the Rose)

• In the middle ages, only Dante’s Divine Comedy was more popular than the Romance of the Rose.  Written at the end of the flowering of the romance movement, roughly around the first half of the 13^th century.  Very influential on Europe, and the manuscripts are beautiful and high quality.  Because it is not in Latin, more people could read it and be exposed to it.  The university were full of clerks—men who were supposed to be priests and whatnot, but never did become one. 
• Was a “dream” vision—in other words, complete fiction.  It was fin amour. The lover sees a beautiful rose bud in the garden and can’t get to it.  In the end, the lover gets into the garden and gets his rose. 
• At the end of the 13^th century, learning is shifting from the monasteries to universities.  University of Paris teaches philosophy, theology, etc. the theologians get a hold of the Romance of the Rose.  Not happy—immediately becomes a satire, criticized, etc. 
• The Jean de Meun continuation circulated wildly and becomes just as popular as the original, though it was completely changed.  So, one person could read the beginning of Romance of the Rose, and think it celebrates love. Another could read the end for cynicism. 
• The last half is told from the perspective of the jealous husband—very over the top and venomous.  The first half (149-159)—a man talking to another man about women.  The second half (159-166)—a man telling another man in the voice of an older woman talking to a younger woman and telling her how to deal with men. 

9/9/04

 •allthesites.com – fairly high priority for edu.; altavista.com – put quotation marks – not prioritized by .com; turnitin.com – try preferences for similarity report; Library – Infotrac and Lexis Nexis

•Romance of the rose was Medieval best seller, only other vernacular surviving so many copies is Divine Comedy (Dante) – first half of Romance of the Rose written 1230 end of big explosion of flowery writing and romance (not so bad) – no fiction, sin, thus dream vision – straight fwd. romance vision, fena more (sp?), aka courtly love – rose in garden and love and wants to get to he, admitted to garden, how sweet – all pagan ideas over laid

•”Green colorless ideas sleep furiously” theory

•Rose very popular and beginning circulate widely, 1270s or so learning shifting out of monastery and into universities – University of Paris center of logic and philosophy and theology – professors get and satirize, critique, and deconstruct

•2^nd part Jean De Mane (sp?) – brought in every cannon to attack loving women – new version circulates widely esp. in university areas – Jealous Husband, ravished rose bud – early soft core porn (22 yr. old men) – changed old version totally

•2 audiences read 2 different parts – how you want to read and how want to interpret - pics in front

•Italy, Portugal, France, England, and very little in Germany together circulate – 1300 Part A + B – very potent test – heavily decorate, high quality printing

•men wrote, Jealous Husband and old woman – man to man, woman to woman, but man telling man this from what women talk about

•(how know some couples worked) material culture – buried together, same bedroom, fewer complaints than marriages – later marriages in mercantile and middle class – people from same social sphere tend to meet – Christine’s father professional civil servant – commodities to resale from nobles – Christine copyist and illustrator 1^st (house scripter and painter)

•1/3 endowment jointure if widowed deal

•this Rose in France/vernacular – some power – more read and exposure, takes away from church – to become clerk to go to university, one day take holy oaths to become priest but instead lawyer and gov’t. often (called elsewhere)

•more conversation about it in tavern – not have to seek someone to explain it, not burned at the stake –

•experience moderating Auctoritee, book/poem takes on authority of its own

•how got away with it (Christine writing and arguing against Romance of the Rose) – not in Latin (vernacular), powerful allies, and she says poor, country girl can’t say much – Pres. Of University – debates big – doing her job, not doing Auctoritee (odds are she knew Latin) – right circumstances and right environment

•down and dirty fighting, shock value, guy talking and guy saying what he says to his wife (yeah right)

•how passionately these beliefs felt and held and why – fashionable?

•some wrote both ways, defense and defame – how well and what survived

September 9, 2004

• Romance of the Rose
  • Medieval bestseller
  • Written in two parts
    • Part 1: End of Romance Movement (1230)
      • Lover sees beautiful rose in garden he can’t reach
      • Genius becomes guide
      • In end garden received by rose and allowed in garden
      • End of 13^th century: 1270s-learning shifting from monasteries to the university
      • Roman de la Rose-became target for satire
    • Part 2: Dream Vision, Courtly Love, Refine Amour
      • Even more popular, circulates widely in university settings
      • Early porn
      • Circulates all of Europe: Italy, England, France, not as much in Germany
      • Written in French instead of Latin: more people read it and are exposed to it: removes some power from Church
      • Clerk: takes holy orders, one day would be a preacher
      • Don’t have to seek someone out to explain it

9/14/04 Holy Women Notes (warning, depending on e-mailed stuff more heavily than took notes with these projects)

☻  stuff in slides bulleted on notes

☻  Mary interceded on behalf of Christ but not control later – chaste, pious, forgiving, and help to those in need

☻  reverence instead of protection – as moved through art, changed and thus what women should be changed

☻  triple moon goddess and sun king and church may not see this (? What did I mean by this?)

☻  Female saints – 3 biggies – Hildaguide dictated visions, very smart – makes unique b/c visions so fantastic and with Pope Eugene – (“kickin’ butt and savin’ souls”)  saint but not official – 1179 composure, wax writing (maybe I meant was a composer and wrote in wax)

 ☻  St. Catherine of Sienna:  Bride of Christ – drinking from wound and getting goods from wound in his side – only bread and wine as women should be recluses – visions of honeymoons with Christ (not cool) – was in fact sainted – stigmata:  any wounds like Christ’s

☻  Joan of Arc (The Maid) – proved self by saluted right king instead of other servants – keep her in military instead of go home as she wanted – became sainted in 1920

☻  Nuns – really isolated – copied history to show God’s plans, medical to help, and general to improve writing – very little conversation (like about religious stuff)

☻  orders – Bengines, Carmelize, Dominican, and Franscians

☻  could not leave often b/c no where else to go – Pope or Bishop must release after vows

☻  some miracles may have been mad up

☻  Hildagoge’s own words in Theodore and other guy write (rare her own words)

☻  wanted people to imitate them (women saints), but men just want them to be admired

Noble Women

☻  food way and eat it was dictated by church, spices, wild game – white bread only to royal

☻  chef make exotic (look) – gold and silver foil, food in animal shapes and spun sugar confections, decorated, St. George (?) – saffron and parsley turned dishes colors

☻  women blond hair, slim figure, white teeth, red lips (small), long neck, smooth skin, and so on

☻  medieval make-up spackle face blood for freckles (of hare or bull)

☻  all classes enjoyed tennis, bowling, and chess – women beating men in chess in manuscripts – noble women did hawking, hunting with hawk – women often led hunt (figure head) and men did the killing – women supposedly resembled hawks – tombs often in holiest places in church/effigies with reading – book of hours to learn how to be, reading, music, and sewing only literature to help husband

☻  hired wet nurses to care for child first 18 mths. in another house (wet nurse’s) – a lot of criteria to be a wet nurse

9/16/04 Marginal Women

☻  gypsies – full of stuff, not saw self as this, Romani – all continents, thought Egyptioan, short, lightly built, dark skin – really originally from North India – adopted religion of country – fix it jobs, staling, and begging as well

☻  witchcraft – not big blame until 15^th century – associated b/c of traditional roles (fertility, cooking, ect.) – France, England, Germany – Euguerrand de Marigny big in 1300 - ?; 1330-1375, small trials or less officials involved – trial increase from plague 1375-1435; 1435-1500 more well known trails and more frequent  - Jacob Springer 1486 – witch hunter guide – professional jealousy against healers

☻  See Shannon’s hand outs for prostitutes

9/21/2004 and 9/23/2004 (Marie de France’s Lais)

·        Marie de France was probably upper class or in a convent.  She knows their language, how they do things.  She probably knew Latin, but choose to write in the vulgar tongue.  So, the Lais don’t threaten the church as much as it would if she was writing in Latin.  Also, the prologue is protective—she doesn’t want to write anything that is rebellious or threatening to anyone.  She’s humble and strategic in dealing with her audience. 

·        The Lais deal with a not necessarily traditional moral value and beliefs, instead it has more of a karmic justice feel to them (you do bad things and bad things happen to you).  There is some mercy, but first they have to amend for their sins in order to get it.   

·        There’s an appeal to both men and women—she doesn’t stoop to bashing either sex.  She questions the stereotypes without making a big deal of it. 

·        Marie’s view on love—love isn’t that great and could leave people to ruin. Sex reverse: the men are the ones over come by their emotions and both sexes are allowed to be reasonable.  She defends women by leveling the playing field. Same with class—she allows both the upper and lower classes to mess up and be the worse person.  In Le Fresne, the lower class is more virtuous than the upper class person.  Also, in Bisclaret, the wife is the sinful one, but the husband (the beast) is the good one.  Opposite of what normally happens—beauty=bad, ugly=good. 

·        In Equitan, the wife puts up some resistance, but gives in.  A part of courtly love—any love must be worked for; you need to put up a fight; marriage doesn’t matter in the case of love. 

·        Think about the difference between Church and faith.  Church was a social function, as well as spiritual function—you were at church to be seen.  There were particular places that you had to sit in for each class, what you wore, etc.  Sunday was the one day that you stopped doing normally household stuff.  They normally didn’t have anywhere else to go. 

·        Marie’s character’s talk of religion, but it’s a slippery slope religion—some things count more than others. 

·        The Lais are preserved for people to learn from—fables and morality tales. You take away from the story and apply it to yourself.  In sermons, they would start with a verse, then say what it meant and how it could be applied.  Then they did an exemplum (or exempla)—a story that illustrated the points and used the verse.  The Lais may be Marie writing exemplum that illustrates certain kind of behavior.  Deliberately takes them out of sermons and religion and asks us to think about rather or not something is wrong.

·        The defamers are mostly writing in the 5^th and 6^th century, whereas the defenders are writing in the 12^th and 13^th century.  So, the social climate has probably changed enough to accept the defenders by that time.

·        Culture Details

o       Remember, king and queen are constantly moving around from place to place. So you broke up the household to be seen as many people as possible.   

o       Bathing is very rare in the Middle Ages—you were stripping yourselves of your protective layer, could let bad humors in if you were totally emerged.  Bathing was only taken several times a year. This is why the bathing scene in Equitan so important—the husband was vulnerable to their plotting as well as to humors. 

Marie

• Knows the ways of the upper classes
• Humility (self protective, tongue-in-cheek)
• La Fresne: justice, mercy
• If sleep w/ vassals wives will be boiled in own bathtub (Equitan)
• Bathing an important thing-considered dangerous, exposing self to humors, attendance @ Royal Bath; “social event”: bathed 3-4x a year
• Anti-Fem tradition: telling stories and letting audience interpret them
• Le Surplus: what the reader brings to it
• Appeal to female reader but not men-bashing, may be toward same people writing women defended literature
• Symbolic value: La Fresne: wrapped in robe in tree, indicates social status: becomes mistress after being raised in convent
• Vocation v. religious devotion
• Marie’s attitude toward love
  • Arranged marriages for dynastic/political reasons
  • Men more likely to give into lust
  • Neither gender behaves reasonably
  • Love based on looks, family reputation
• Bisclavret: children born w/o noses
• Love and marriage have two different sets of value systems
• King and Queen rarely lived under same roof: political reasons
• Progress: traveling kingdom
• 2 households too expensive to maintain together so the queen often has own court
• Often women’s contact restricted w/husbands: pragmatic terms
• Women stay in bedrooms with attendants

9/21/04

☻  31 rules for courtly lovers

☻  Marie – ambiguous, CC pretty good on pinning her down – upper class, knows ways of upper class – Bisclavert werewolf/ two-natured one – do something bad, it comes back to you or say (Medieval times twins thought from 2 men) – if you don’t amend you ways, gruesome things happen (vassal’s wife’s theory)

☻  bathing big thing in middle ages, prepared for it – night before becoming a night bath and pray for God’s protection (stripped earthly protection) – full emergence bathing only 2 or 3 times a yr.

☻vernacular advantageous – knew Latin b/c what translated from – hiding behind (?), read what want into it – protection – tongue in cheek (?) (not going for Auctoritee) Marie strategic writer

☻  audience – upper class women – male and female relationships of the upper class – not men bashing so women defending literature writers might want to read

☻  love conquers all not always so, kaleidoscope theory – love affair vs. marriage, loyalty and its bounds, what to tell people and what not to

☻  social status with blanket of baby, mistress, baby girl in tree and convent

☻  inheritance factors big deal in her stories – different reason for convents – convents less $ and land for dowry – not same econ. base as churches or monasteries

☻   attitude toward love:  it brings reason to ruin – lust and arrange marriages, men giving into it in these stories – reason in authority but in Marie’s stories not gender bound

☻  Equitan mistress (pay attention)

☻  class and gender not as strictly bound and rules in there- noisy

☻  intellectual pun games

☻  Eve and snack and shape shifting

☻  playing hard to get, got to work for love – love and marriage separate and rules, socio-econ. situation

☻  progress theory with Kings and Queens – seen by as many people a often as possible

☻  audiences in bed chambers and such make hard to have lovers

☻  Marie plays in both worlds, courtly love and justice

☻  cont. to copy thus being used allegorically

☻  how often was king encouraged to marry? – esp. big in France

☻  how long women lived? – young wife desired – iron important in cookware to help with surviving pregnancies

☻  rape was a property crime – rapports (to seize) – misread theory? – rapists reputation was tarnished and some physical torture might be implemented, but mostly property damage awarded - Chaucer rape charge politically motivated – later retraction – better witness theory – juries witness and judges bought often, politics and class motivations

(Some of these notes get sketchy, esp. towards the end.  I apologize.  I think this is one of the days after I had not had much sleep.)

September 23, 2004

• Church: religious and social function
• For entertainment
  • Market: Wed. aft’noon
  • Religious festivals
  • Feasts
• Yonec
  • Knight first had to take communion to validate was sent by God
  • Ethical/moral without being religious
• Supernatural functions as part of the natural world
• If women considered source of sin, should they be locked away?
• Communication
  • Laustic
    • Symbolic
    • Castration of bird
    • Dead nightingale sent to lover
    • Bird kept in box for preservation
    • Represents preservation of love
  • Chaitivel
    • 4 knight lovers
    • Memorialized them
    • Sends out artistic dilemma
  • Chevrefoil
    • Learn from art: to be spread around
    • Art should be preserved
    • Learn from the past and don’t repeat mistakes
• Exemplum: story illustrating what has just been told
• Lais
  • Marie working out in a vernacular genre
  • Exemplum that may or may not illustrate certain behavior
  • Based on sermon tradition
  • Series of exempla asking us to critique, to discuss
  • Question of a double standard
  • Both sexes made human instead of one being morally better: avoids censuring
  • Plays the system to be able to question system

9/23/04 

☻  useful links on calendar – check it

☻  speaking out against adultery – happens, confusion of lust and love – social critique – problems with arranged marriages – marriage away to avoid displeasure of the church – ties and binding situations – unhappiness and what that drives you to, emotional richness – sacraments taken seriously so harder to get divorce – business relationship for marriage – social interaction challenges with various ages

☻  church vs. religion/faith – social function, services long, sitting and kneeling – daily prayers in household overseen by women – amusement market (afternoon once a week) and festivals

☻  slippery religion – sometimes things count more than others and 2 sets of laws – interesting – ethical and moral w/o being religious – but covering so not anti-Christian – supernatural functions in realistic realm – set dressing of genres

☻  antifeminist – lock women up to prevent temptation(?)

☻  artistic and literary – fairly common (adultery) but documentation of it difficult

☻  how lover communicate – symbols like nightingale – more severe as go – wishing people there

☻  Chaitivel – preserving love with song and memorialized bird in jeweled box – harp music

☻  preserve love affair in art and characters go on in life – but we keep talking a/b and debating

☻  preacher start with Bible verses and elaborates to life, then exemplary stories – stories that illustrated what just told, usually not biblical

☻Marie working out in vernacular exemplas and sometimes good and sometimes not – seems to take out of religious tradition and ask us to think and to discuss what is right and wrong- what responsibilities to husband and ones pledged loyalty to – look at customs of time and question - levels the playing field for double standard of men – system is catalyst – social commentary in general  - women have feelings too and thoughts – makes males realize this, not male bashing – both sexes human – not bringing church in or male bashing or Latin, helped her get away with, plays the system to get to questioning the system

☻  Last lais – love survive if not lust or one-sided, love and marriage ends up taking them to God

☻  Lanval has skewed king again

☻  jury system then – friends and putting up $ and such – best jury convinces judge – who you know and buying

☻  defamers and defenders in her audience – balanced on both sides

☻  defender who takes new ground – aesthetic and human level

☻  defenders tend to be 12^th century and later – earlier defamers – climate to allow defenders to come out (?)

☻  importance  of women writing be sure not ambiguous – publicity technique – show women are capable of putting out these complex ideas in organized fashion – intellectual capacity of women

9/28/2004 (Hali Meiohad and St. Margaret)

• Both are from the Katherine Group—written for women who had became professional virgins and chosen to remain virgins for life. Came out of the sermon tradition.
• Sort of a Catch-22 situation for women—having kids is bad, not having kids is bad; being beautiful is bad, being ugly is worse; being a virgin is good, not being a mother is bad. 
• Almost rebellious that they gave us getting married and having a husband (social expectations) to stay a virgin. 
• St. Margaret, St. Katherine (who may have existed) and St. Julianna (probably didn’t exist) are three virgin saints that are supposed to be models for women and virgins. 

September 28, 2004

Virginity

• Katherine Group: group of texts about women that appear to be living as professional virgins
• Heroic virgin contradicts idea of female sexuality
• Tempting: made beautiful by God
• Don’t participate in marriage: how could you live in such a community?  Convent, St. Margaret: time in heaven as bride of Christ
• Literature that encouraged virginity as natural instinct
• SM
  • Bride of Christ in afterlife
  • Overcomes demons w/ prayer and words
  • Is it rebellious to reject notion of procreation and angels?
  • Models/heroes for women to admire
  • Women who resist delights of the body
• A Letter On Virginity
  • Gender of author?
  • Anonymous: religious reasons
• Margaret: medieval patron of childbirth: ahistorical
• Katherine: historical
• Juliana: historical evidence unclear

9/30/2004-10/5/2004 (Ancrene Wisse, parts 7 and 8)

• Background Info on Anchorites: A guidebook for living the spiritual life of a recluse—becoming an anchoress.  Written for three sisters about to abandon the world.  Never a sense of anything but support for their choice.  Anchors choose to leave the world and had to pass tests (you had to be ready for it spiritually, ready to take on the vocation of praying for everything and everyone, had to have the money to support yourself, have an intermediary and the church had to want you).  There was service for you, they basically did the Death Rites for you, then block you in the anchorhold.  The cell was 12 by 12, you could see the services through a window.  There was a second window for light, and a third window for the servant to get donations, etc for the anchoress.  Less than 500 anchorites in medieval Europe.  More women than men did it.  Spent their time writing, praying, making clothing, embroidery.  They can be release from their vows, but it’s not likely.   This tradition dies out when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries. 
• Ancrene Wisse is written in the Vernacular, with Latin quotes.  It was a popular texts.  It gets expanded, and they add brothers where it once only said sisters.  Books 2-7 have to do with prayers and inner life. Book 7 is the discussion of love, the culmination of everything.  Ancrene Wisse is written one generation after Marie de France—they use courtly love in their language and use it as a way to help women understand their spiritual duty.  Also, a way to propagate the tradition, make it more appealing and romantic. 
• The writer assumes that these women are learned—know a lot about religion, warfare (know about the Greek fire—basically napalm of the middle ages). 
• With the defamers, men to men, they are bashing women.  The defenders—men to men—they’re excusing the women.  In this, its in support and encouragement of the woman’s choice.  These women are about to give up their life, and they are doing something valuable, they’re dong something heroic and becoming spiritual models for the community. 
• There’s a validation for these women in love—they have a purer love than women who are bound to early love and people. 
• Makes a distinction between two types of chastity—not just sexual, but chastity as a kind of philosophy.  You shouldn’t just stay a virgin, you should also be very virginal in thoughts and action.  Don’t be in the competitive beauty business—just be neat and chaste in dress.  Don’t give into cosmetic beauty. Not pursuing physical attractiveness gives you dignity. 
• Defamers say that women are going to be sex objects anyways, without making themselves up.  If you give up trying to be beautiful, you’ll be more spiritually beautiful.  By being undesirable, you become spiritually desirable.  It is wrong to try to be beautiful?  God gave us the ability to do these things and be beautiful.  But that’s how God made us, so why should we try to change ourselves? 
• Has a mixed theme.  You can see it from both the defaming and defending perspectives. 

Ancrene Wisse, Part 8

• Applies to the lives that the anchoresses will be leading.  A sequence of instructions to guide their lifestyle.  Set up in six sections.
  • Section One:  about eating and entertaining.  They are only to take communion on special dates on the church calendar—it makes them appreciate it more than those who have it every Sunday.  They are supposed to fast on only bread and water, the minimal amount need to survive.  No meat, etc.  Not much different from the peasant diet—nobles were the only ones to have hunting rights.  Peasants only had fish if they could catch it.  So, basically you need to be on a peasant’s diet, except on church feasts, holidays and Sundays. 
    • You’re trying to get to the lowest class of life—most of them were upper class, yet gave it up for spiritual reasons.  You give up everything that you know in order to become the servant of the servants of God. 
    • You’re not supposed to accept rich things.  You’re dead to the real world. 
    • You’re not supposed to have visitors, unless they are in dire need, then for two days and with permission.
    • So, people are going to want to help the anchorites because it helps their own soul, but they can’t give into it because they are supposed to be dead to the world. 
  • Section Two:  about economic sustenance.  What you can and cannot do, economically.  Do not keep anything from your old life.
    • Mary vs Martha—Mary just worships God, while Martha (her sister (is a housekeeper, trying to get everything taken care of.  The anchoresses need to be Mary and leave Martha (their housekeeping days) behind.
    • They were allowed cats.   
  • Section Three: dress and wardrobe.  Anchoresses were not supposed to mortify their flesh.  No masochistic tendencies in wearing hair shirts or hurting themselves. They weren’t supposed to pay attention to their bodies (hurting it or making it look better), just pay attention to spiritual matters.  They’ve left the physical world behind.  They’re not supposed to do anything without permission of their confessor.  
  • Section Four: how anchoresses should occupy their time.  They should stay busy, for idle hands do the devil’s work, but they are limited in what they do.  They aren’t supposed to write letters, make beautiful things, or do anything for the community.  They were pressured by the community to teach—they had education and were pious.  There was a pressure to have communication with the outside community and do things for the community, but they were supposed to resist because they are detached from society.   
  • Section Five: Heath.  They could let blood in order to keep their humors balanced. On those days, you pretty much get a vacation from doing what you would normally do for your health.  Also, they could cut their hair in order to alleviate their temperatures.   
  • Section Six: how to deal with servants.  Anchoresses were supposed to have two servants—one can go in and out of the community while a younger one would stay as a chaperone for the anchoress.  The anchoress should never be left alone.  Servants shouldn’t consort with men, have family over, or tell gossip.  Maids had to say prayers all the time, like they do in the monastic order. If the maids couldn’t read, the anchoress could pray with them, and read the Bible to them.  They basically had a kind of life that the anchoress had—they prayed a lot, ate what and when the anchoress ate. 
    • Because it is assumed that she knows how to deal with servants in the book, the anchoresses would have been of a higher class.  But she was supposed to keep away from the temptation of acting like she was the head of the house again.   

9/30/04

☻  look for connections w/in readings

☻  possible paper topics:  courtly love, animal imagery, various classes of women relating to each other, depictions of women in medieval drama, symbolism of  inner realities vs. outward appearance, women med., women and music (women troubadours), physical beauty in that time – be percolating a/b ball park ideas – literature very broad concept –  ex. medieval idea of Eve, women in the Bible – probably find good sources for and in depth paper

☻  Ancre Wisse guidebook for living as recluses – early 1200s (prior to 1215) fairly anonymous– as spiritual director guiding them, nothing  but support for these women’s choice – popular in part of England (Bible belt of England) – if pass examine for this, servant intermediary, church wanted, dependants, not running away, not widespread but hose who did it highly admired – usually near alter – brick it up, symbolic funeral – servant with who could go in and out  - early 20s usually and live to 60s/70s – window for food, donation, and light (each) – not many surviving

☻  church records, wills, any given time 20 to 30 anchorites – symbolic position in community – more women than men seem to have don it – men could be hermits, but it was not safe for women – lived to pray to God for people

☻  not suppose to be in contact  with other people much – made clothes for church, garments to be sold, wrote and taught spiritual stuff (Juliana esp.) – kids in maid’s room – conditions for physicians, case in 14^th century where one too sick and removed – bribes to get out, considered permanent choice, vows involved and why examination so intense – cut off from family and inheritance - servants of anchorites examined to a degree – if not support, no go – endowments for certain cells

☻  Christian’s situation:  hid from father and husband – married but not consummated – anchorite after hiding 2 yrs., other anchor’s room, then nunnery and abbess

☻  book written for 3 sisters maybe biological, maybe not – maybe in same room – 3 women literate, vernacular w/ Latin references in Bible

☻  multiple copies traveled to countries  - gets expanded - French version – has circulation – pass around copies, esp. among anchorites and anchors (males doing this)

☻  sleep tight theory – bed bugs – cloth with stuffing (straw) mattress, little table and stool – maybe kneeler and crucifix, 1 person bench with place for book

☻directions for everything

☻  dies out when Henry the 8^th dissolves monasteries in 1530s

☻  some had already taken religious vows – why this choice?

☻  books 2-7 inner world/spiritual life – 7 accumulation – needle expensive present – needles often dowry presents

☻  metaphors – courtly love – not for noble women – written by a man – 1 generation after courtly love metaphors and language become popular – explosion of Arthurian legend in-between Christine and Ancre Wisse – using to help people understand religion – justifies romantic feelings but for right reasons

☻  Medieval Ages God more real factor in everyday life

☻  explosions b/c alternative reading w/ Arthurian

☻  close to death, more mysterious, less distraction, less allowance for own ideas on God

☻  assumes women know a good deal a/b religion and interpretations of it (references)

☻  anchorites chose not duped there, shoes this life, dedicated

☻  defamers – man to man, undercut – defenders – man to man ,excuses them – here: different, support of women – good for them and all Christianity – positive encouragement doing something valuable – heroically spiritual – models for community –shows how free you are yet how bound to earth

☻  oaths and vows taken very serious in this time – effected entire community of divorce or give up anchorite position

☻  war techniques – Greek fire like Napalm

☻  how long take to be approved?  Mth., yr., yrs.

☻  subject of religion is love in a very pure sense – flesh is sinful – competing binaries – don’t be attached to bodies – body transitory, should what matters and goes to heaven – understand and feel – not trying to explain God as much, feel religion – more emotionally rich than ours may be today

10/5/04

☻  societal evaluations, classes, econ. status, - Tertulain: 2 kinds of  chastity – fake or just physical and actual chastity in action, thought, and dress (as a philosophy) – don’t lead others astray – don’t want to be competitive in beauty – women use to making themselves look beautiful (make-up, hair extensions, fine thin cloth, ect.) – not pursuing physical attractiveness gives dignity

☻  defamers:  women not do anything and tempt men (daughters of Eve) – Tertulian:  can avoid it and spiritual desirability and spiritual beauty – transcendent of physical nature – walking reminder of self-control and better spiritual, chase life – elevate women by being chase – sarcastic defamer to a degree and somewhat a defender – finery for those who chose to live in world (pg. 57 )– defamer sounding to sneak it in maybe more defender?

☻ some defamers not hate women just looking to save soul – Jerome not so sure, not like women sometimes – surplus can really play into it

☻  Ancrene Wisse, part 8  - 1215is, applied Teut. To women’s lives for these people – set sequence of 8 sections to guide them

☻  1^st sect. begins pg. 131 – certain foods on certain days – fasting means minimal to survive – not eat dairy not custards – more vegetables, not much different from peasant diet – poultry for eggs, lent, milk and cheese give protein – basically peasant diet – avoid indulgence of former life or nobles, suppose to let others be about you – servant of servant of God’s – avoid taking nice gifts b/c in food, others need, sneak it out, you are suppose to be dead

☻  woman to tend – alone, women and child if need up to 2 nights, permission for all but Dominican friars and then chaperoned

☻  people want to help anchoress to help their souls – diplomacy in dealing with nobles – your job is to pray, not be involved in community

☻  midway in (pg.135) econ. sustenance sect. – watch vanity and fashion if sewing, cattle and livestock cause trouble – Mary and Martha story, Mary’s virtue – not being Mary anymore – Martha concerned w/ everything

☻  aristocratic women – birds and little lap dogs, monkeys, exotic animals – cat not much work and kills mice, lap cap might add warmth

☻  pg. 137 – garments, avoid mortification of flesh – leave body natural way God gave you – simple clothes to not worry – can stay out of world now w/o all this – discuss with confessor – oversee priest or director to make sure not overdoing it – stay covered

☻  pg. 139 next sect. – not make anything fancy if can and not visit with earthly family much – no idle hands – nothing draws away from chastity- don’t do letters or copy religious books – memoirs with permission – may teach girls in maid’s chamber (5 and 6, children taught together, but after this separated) – pressure to teach pious ex. was strong – not so much self-promoting, testifying to religious message - lots of social press from outside – community to support yet leave you alone

☻  pg. 141 next sect. on health  - blood letting to balance humors – get break after this – shave hair for fever and lighten and such – take around cup to half a cup of blood

☻  pg. 143 next sect. how deal with servants – 2 – older travel and younger stay with anchorite (chaperone) – rules here such as no gossiping – temptation to report to her as mistress of the house, have to say prayers – monastic rule (while work thank God for it) – teach them Bible and prayers if they cannot read – no snacking, same meal plan, no talking while anchorite is praying, no fighting – assumes knows how to handle servants (upper class or middle) and avoid temptation to be woman of manner again – she can read, daily routine that can include pious reading

☻  read backwards into their life – see what classes did this – think of women in community and how they see anchorites/what they get from them – how to resist temptation – worldly things not import. – balance to community – give to her – to sit and pray – invest community to pray for them – pay church to teach them

☻  both sides feed each other – value for both Marys and Marthas – why community needs professional virgins in Tert. Way – complicated pic. – net pic together

10/7/04

☻  chapters in Ancre Wisse set up so chaps. 1 and 8 deal with outside world and inner chaps. deal with inside world getting more intense as go toward the middle – today’s discussion on chap. 4, essence of spiritual duty, most fussing w/ their positions and danger – obvious pitfalls and perils to start w/ - men may harm you or your may harm them w/ unintentional temptation (even holy men) – men falling into pit less use of reason land owners worry, give clues their background again – still blame woman and she still deals with/ cleans up mess

☻  penance for lust even if not know caused someone – almost have to be reigned back from too much penance and too extreme punishment – too much sin vs. too much pride

☻  lock away to remove temptation from the world/ out of world – give other people chance to be more solid in faith – take away occasion of sin – help remove catalysis to sin – 400 women over 200 or 300 yrs. – ideal and not all – put in place for reason, fulfills position (3 part – pray, fight, work) – 3 estates (from Latin for status) – estate French

☻  circle:  fighters defend those who work and pray and often donate to those who pray in order to gain spiritual favor; those who work support the others with material means of survival and often donate money to pray in order to gain spiritual favor – pray dedicate themselves to helping others spiritual lives; pray people also take care of sick and aged and schools for children and maintain the church

☻  anchoress supposed to remove self to most isolated part of pray – dead to world, min. demands on community – classes get wrapped in – fight tended to be aristocratic, work was lower to business, and pray could be from all

☻  2 not about your sense, guarding others

☻  4 weaknesses of spirit and mind – women named reason, but difficult for them to be, women watered down men (from men) – women’s impurity once a mth. (less rational then) – soul will not be safe with female reason guarding

☻  reason in Latin is feminine, wisdom same

☻  don’t let guard down for one second! (super womanly) – go against essence of being woman according to medieval view – think 7 deadly steps downward – desire outruns reason – heart of spiritual life

☻  understanding guide, not ignorance of what they face

☻  pg. 270 – collection of about 100 stories, approx. 3 generations after Ancre Wisse – explems (instructional stories)

☻  no identity in and of herself – token character, figurehead, stereotyped

☻  take care of house while husband gone is first responsibility

☻  plot – compassion and willing to forgive victory – not hard enough in thinking – hind (white deer), nothing good happens symbol – torture and hang her – palfrey is lady’s riding horse – earl, convenient hunter, ect.

☻  getting involved in the world leads to trouble for her and the part with the fancy dress

☻  good woman, deal compassionately w/ people, screwed over by the world – go to nunnery, safe

☻  he lived out his life well…?  - she has to go to God in order to end all the sin