Essays on Marie De France

Introduction

Even though her works were exemplary, she was little known to the world; after all, Marie de France was not her original name. All her fame came from her distinct poetic works. Information about her birth place remain scanty, however, there is a strong belief that she was French born but raised up in England; all this is disputed for one reason or another (Bloch 160). It is believed that Marie lived in the 12th century. Putting her debatable biographic information aside, her poetic works remain iconic; in fact, they are an everyday inspiration for upcoming poets. Through her ...

Italian Women Writers

An Antique’s Period Bias Amongst Women The Medieval Period dating 476 AD until 1000 AD was one of the most degrading times for women in any class. Men had it simpler than they did because they ended up dominating all of society and they looked down upon women, for example they were able to get jobs unlike women. Men and their accomplishments were noticed and women were not recognized for their hard work, whether it be taking care of the children or being a housewife. Their hard work wasn’t sophisticated like men being painters or architects, but ...

The medieval times or the middle ages witnessed the inception of the ‘Romance’ literature. This kind of literature was inspired into being by the knights’ usually idealistic courtly love of the noblewomen they interacted with on occasion.

What was model knightly behavior in the 12th and 13th centuries?

Using Chretien as an example, knights were held very highly and they were expected to solve dilemmas, which ranged in nature from psychological to ethical dilemmas. A typical knight had a good grip of combat tactics as well as the ability to display martial prowess in rescuing ladies from monsters, giants, and wicked knights (Greenblatt, 8). Knights, such Alexander’s knights accompanied the ...

A werewolf is a person presented in folklore, superstition or in mythical stories as a human being who is capable of changing into a wolf, at the complete rising of the full moon, while retaining human intelligence. Throughout the history, the myth of the werewolf was used in a lot of stories having different interpretation of the creature. For a better understanding of this evolution, I will pick two different stories regarding werewolf, in different historical periods, medieval and modern and, I will discuss how time passing influences the aspects of the werewolf. For the medieval period I have chosen one of the ...

__ July 2013

Since time immemorial, the issue of gender has been subject to much debate. Literature captures gender perceptions of people in the past and the widespread sentiments of gender roles and equality back then. More often than not, women and men were boxed into the same set of roles in many classical literary pieces. Women were always portrayed as frail, gentle, submissive and passive. They obeyed their husbands and fathers without question. Men in classic literature always took on roles that characterized them as brave, strong, aggressive and initiator. Decision-making was their turf and they occupied positions of ...

Realities of Love and Adultery in Christian Courts

Within the Christian world view, much has been discussed about adultery. The Ten Commandments include a direct condemnation--Thou shalt not commit adultery--and indirectly--Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife. However, adultery is common throughout history and throughout society. In the Christian world, although frowned upon by the church, consensual adultery is a common sin amongst Christians. In several of the Lais attributed to Marie de France a theme of romantic love and adultery exists. Marie shows us that even in the middle ages, at least at the courts of nobility, there was a reality of adultery. However, like all sins, even if they ...