In this study, I explore how Christine de Pizan challenges misogamist thought through the use of exemplarity in her works. Christine's defense of women in the late medieval period has been well-documented by scholars. Yet, she also addresses the criticisms of marriage prevalent in contemporary literature, which are founded on the principle that women are inherently immoral. In keeping with Christine's stated belief in the moral responsibility of authors, she directly condemns misogamist authors and their works that appeal to medieval readers. During approximately the same time frame that Christine records her opinions as a literary critic of these works, she features positive marital exemplars in her own writings that support her point of view. I first examine the autobiographical elements of Christine's works that highlight her personal marital experience. Christine draws authority from her first-hand knowledge of marriage, which supersedes the flawed assumptions of scholars lacking this life experience. She creates an intertextual memorial to her late husband's good character and recounts her story as a wife and widow. Christine's exemplary narrative promotes the idea of a perfect friendship in marriage, a notion that upholds marriage as a religious and natural union. Furthermore, her close marital relationship contests the veneration of extramarital affairs as seen in the renewed interest in courtly love literature. To further substantiate her views on marriage, Christine recalls the exemplary stories of legendary wives and widows from France's cultural memory. Through these exemplars, Christine promotes the communal benefits of marriage. In particular, I analyze the advantageous impact of marriage in political, domestic, and spiritual contexts. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2009. / March 3, 2009. / The Romance of the Rose, Jean de Meun / Includes bibliographical references. / Lori J. Walters, Professor Directing Dissertation; Anne E. B. Coldiron, Outside Committee Member; Reinier Leushuis, Committee Member; Nancy Warren, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_175714 |
| Contributors | West, Anne Marie (authoraut), Walters, Lori J. (professor directing dissertation), Coldiron, Anne E. B. (outside committee member), Leushuis, Reinier (committee member), Warren, Nancy (committee member), Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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