Readings and Schedule:

  • SST = Margaret LaBarge, A Small Sound of the Trumpet: Women in Medieval Life (textbook)
  • WLME = Emilie Amt, ed., Women's Lives in Medieval Europe (sourcebook)
  • GOOD WIFE = Good Wife's Guide (primary source)
  • KARRAS = Ruth Karras, Sexuality in Medieval Europe (monograph)
  • HISTORY MATTERS = J. Bennett, History Matters.

Each class has its own page with any handouts, notes, images, and so forth. It will be password protected. Use your Dominican login and password to access. Contact the professor (dperry@dom.edu) and I.T. Helpdesk if you have trouble.

DQs (Discussion Questions) will be collected on a semi-weekly basis as indicated in the schedule. If it seems that no one is prepared for class, however, they may additionally be collected at any time. The role of the DQ assignment is to work with you in developing your ability to prepare a text for discussion.

Week I: Introductions and Intellectual Traditions

  • T 8-30 Introductions to the course
    • Introductions to each other and to the course, go over the syllabus. Then discuss the following questions for the day:
      • Why study women? Why have a minor "study of women and gender?" Why don't we have a major "study of women and gender?" Why don't we have a "men's studies" program? Why study medieval women in particular?
      • Those who have never taken a medieval studies class - what do you know about the Middle Ages? What do you need to know?
    • Concepts: Social construction of "place" in society. Transcend. Transgress.
  • R 9-1 Intellectual Traditions - click this link for discussion question assignments and more details. Each week you'll find relevant questions and links from the calendar.
    • M 1/18 Pre-Medieval Traditions
      • Primary Source Reading:
        • WLME 9-32.
      • DQ 1 - Only on the primary source reading. Click "Intellectual traditions" above for questions. But do all reading below too!
      • ALSO READ - History Matters 1-29.

Week II: What do we know about the early medieval women and families?

Week III Land, Family, and Power - Elites

  • T 9-13 Queens of the Central Middle Ages
    • Lecture - Queens of the Central Middle Age
    • Secondary Reading
      • SST Chapters 3-4
      • DUE DQ 3
  • R 9-15 Early medieval elite women
    • Primary Reading
      • A page on Dhuoda.
      • An extended translation of her text. Print this (it's about 20 pages).
      • Gregory of Tours on Fredegund.
      • Alvild
    • DUE DQ 4
    • DQ's 1-4 will be collected today.

Week IV: Land, Family, and Power - Continued

Week V Women and Work I

  • T 9-27 NO CLASS. You must register and attend at least two events at the Caritas et Veritas symposium. Register by 9/9 for lunch! Report on your activities via this form.
  • R 9-29 Working Women - Excerpts
    • DQ 7 - What is Hanawalt's main thesis? What is her evidence for the thesis?
      • In class we will discuss
        • Primary Readings
          • Margery Kempe excerpt (handout)
          • WLME 181-214.

Week VI - Prof in London. The Good Wife's Guide

  • T 10-4 Read The Good Wife's Guide
  • R 10-6 Read The Good Wife's Guide

Week VII Women and Work II

  • T 10-11 "Working" Women
    • Reading: Karras article, "Regulation of Brothels in Later Medieval England." This includes, ESPECIALLY, the sources in the appendix
    • Discuss Good Wife's Guide and Essay due on the 13th
    • DUE DQ 8. Collecting DQs today!
      • Read the article, then look at the laws in the appendix. Write a page or so on what you find there. Do the laws mostly protect prostitutes, customers, brothel-keepers, or the "state?" What else can we learn about the lives of prostitutes, perceptions of prostitutes/prostitution, and issues of agency/power/patriarchy/oppression from these sources?
  • R 10-13 Women and Medicine

Week VIII Women and Work III/Religious Women I

  • T 10-18 Primary Source reading
    • WLME, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 61, 62. (pages 161-180).
  • Due DQ 9 - As previously, come to class with a brief summary of each text and an assessment of the major issues as related to our course themes: gender roles, power, patriarchy, etc. Just a few sentences for each.
  • R 10-20 Overview on religious women
    • SST 5-6
      • Come to class with an outline of each chapter (2-3 pages total).

Week IX Religious Women II

  • T 10-25 Abbesses
    • Primary Readings
  • R 10-27 Catherine of Siena
    • Excerpts from her letters.
      • Read a letter to: A layman, a lay-woman, a pope, a king, a queen, a religious man (not the pope), and two others!
    • Excerpts from her Dialogue (skim the "Treatise of Divine Providence," then read the first paragraph of the other three treatises.).
    • Write DQ 11 on the primary sources.
      • For each letter, make or note or two on what she says, why she says it, and how she tries to persuade or exhort. Think about how, in all her writings, she's an exemplar of the themes of this section of the class?

Week X Religious Women III

  • T 11-1Hildegard von Bingen
    • DQ 12 - What is the core thesis of each article article? How does Newman support her thesis?
    • Powerpoint here.
  • R 11-3 Holy Feast, Holy Fast
    • Print out and bring to class (and read!)
    • Fast, Feast, and Flesh: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Women
      Caroline Walker Bynum
    • Turn in all DQs today.
    • We will read mystical excerpts today in class, after we discuss the article.
    • Summary of Scivias.

Week XI Love and Marriage?

Week XII

  • T 11-15 Life outside marriage - Read Karras, 87-160.
    • Also finish reading:
      • Abelard's "Historia Calamitatum"
      • Letters between Abelard and Heloise
      • Discussion Questions:
        • Read the first text to get the narrative, then turn to the letters.
        • On what subject is each letter written? What questions does Heloise ask, how does Abelard answer, and how does she rebut his conclusions? What does she want? How does she argue?
  • R 11-17 Heretics, Jews and Outsiders
    • Outsiders
      • Primary Reading
        • Jewish Women - WLME, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81
        • Heretic Women - WLME, 85, 86, 87
      • Come to class with a few thoughts on each document. What does it say about the marginal status of these women?

Week XIII Heretics, Jews and Outsiders

Week XIV Leaders and Rebels II

  • T 11-29 Joan of Arc, "Trial of Joan" - Sessions 1-5. Skim down until you find "Session 1," then read through 5. Come to class with detailed notes on each session, what was asked, and what you think about it.
    • Read this commentary.
    • REPEAT - NOTES! YOU MUST HAVE NOTES! :)
  • R 12-1 Recursive assignment due. Continue Joan of Arc.

Week XV History Matters

  • T 12-6 History Matters, pages 30-81
  • R 12-8 History Matters 82-156

Final Paper - On History Matters and your reading. Paper will mandate using some material from final weeks. Paper will be due on Tuesday, December 13. Please turn in a paper copy to Lewis Annex 2C by 5:00 P.M. If you must be out of town, you may email the assignment instead.

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This site last updated: 1/10/10
Course Professor: David Perry
Homepage URL: http://domin.dom.edu/faculty/dperry/hist350women/
© 2010 by David Perry and Dominican University. All rights reserved.