ENGL 301: Sex and Gender in the Middle Ages (HC)

See the Temporal Index p. 447 to identify texts that come from the Middle Ages.

"Included are extracts from literary and theological works, medical and legal writings, conduct books, chronicles and letters. They range from well-known texts such as the letters of Abelard and Heloise, Beowulf, and the Canterbury Tales to less familiar sources such as Church legislation or court proceedings."--BOOK JACKET.

"...biographies, poetic compositions, works that are mystical, prophetic, visionary, or meditative. All of the writings here reflect the developments in medieval piety, particularly in the link between female spirituality and the body."--BOOK JACKET.

Long considered to be a definitive and truly groundbreaking collection of sources, Women’s Lives in Medieval Europeuniquely presents the everyday lives and experiences of women in the Middle Ages. This indispensible text has now been thoroughly updated and expanded to reflect new research, and includes previously unavailable source material.

This new edition includes expanded sections on marriage and sexuality, and on peasant women and townswomen, as well as a new section on women and the law. There are brief introductions both to the period and to the individual documents, study questions to accompany each reading, a glossary of terms and a fully updated bibliography. Working within a multi-cultural framework, the book focuses not just on the Christian majority, but also present material about women in minority groups in Europe, such as Jews, Muslims, and those considered to be heretics. Incorporating both the laws, regulations and religious texts that shaped the way women lived their lives, and personal narratives by and about medieval women, the book is unique in examining women’s lives through the lens of daily activities, and in doing so as far as possible through the voices of women themselves.