Name: Women of the Twelfth Century, Volume 1
ISBN: 9780226167800

Georges Duby

Focusing on medieval notions of women and love, Georges Duby examines the lives of prominent 12th-century French women, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine and Heloise, as well as popular female literary figures like Iseult--beloved of Tristan. Informative and entertaining, the book offers new insight on courtly love and the representations of women under medieval patriarchy. 50 photos.

Eleanor of Aquitaine and Six Others

Women of the Twelfth Century, Volume 1

In this volume, Georges Duby studies the relationship between the Church and women in twelfth-century Europe. By that time, the Church had begun to see the evolving roles and expectations of women as serious matters, resulting in a wide range of clerical writings addressing "the woman question." Drawing on these writings, Duby describes how women were thought to embody particular sins, such as sorcery, disobedience, and licentiousness. He evaluates Eve's role in man's fall from grace in the Garden of Eden and analyzes the reasoning behind the view that women are unstable, curious, frivolous creatures. He also notes that these charges are leveled against women, even as praise is heaped upon them for the conventional virtues they exhibit in their roles as wives and mothers. As the final installment in Duby's three-volume study of French noblewomen of the twelfth century, Eve and the Church is the last work of this superb historian. It will be of interest to scholars of medieval history and women's history as well as to anyone interested in current debates about women and religion. Georges Duby (1919-1996) was a member of the Académie française and for many years held the distinguished chair in medieval history at the Collège de France. His books include The Three Orders; The Age of Cathedrals; The Knight, the Lady, and the Priest; Love and Marriage in the Middle Ages; and History Continues, all published by the University of Chicago Press.

Women of the Twelfth Century, Volume 1 Eleanor of Aquitaine and Six Others