Medieval Women: Texts and Contexts in Late Medieval Britain: Essays for Felicity Riddy by Jocelyn Wogan-Browne , Rosalynn Voaden , Arlyn Diamond (review)

Abstract

Denis Renevey begins the re-evaluation of Watson, proposing as subcategoriesof vernacular theology 'vernacular spirituality' (p. 5) and, most pertinently here, 'female vernacular theology' (p. 2). In her introduction, Christiania Whitehead situatesthis collection in relation to recent work on gender and spirituality,and to other work in the book's principal area of interest: 'the relation of women to religious books, both as writers, as receivers, and as often contentious objects of representation within them' (p. 7). Although the editors are wise enough not to labour the puns in their title, their book is concerned both with women who write and with women who are written, and with righting some of the neglect they have suffered. The book is divided into four parts. The first, rather oddly, contains only one essay, in which Bella Millett situatesAncrene Wissealongside the firstbooks of hours at the 'breakdownof the sharp early medieval distinctions between religious and lay, litteratus and illiteratus' (p. 28). Both the influence of Ancrene Wisseand the via media between religiousand lay are recurrentthemes of the collection. PartIIlooks at 'CarthusianLinkswith Female Spirituality'throughMarleen Cre's examination of the Amherst manuscript as a context forJulian's Short Text and the Mirrorof Simple Souls,and two essaysthat drawattention to workswrittenby Carthusiansfor women that deserve to be betterknown:Rebecca Selman on the Speculum Devotorum and Anne McGovern-Mouron on the ps.-BernardLiber demodo bene vivendi adsororem. PartII reminds us that there is more than one vernacular involved in vernacular theology, with a pair of essays that use contrasting texts (ChristianiaWhitehead's choice is Grosseteste's Chateau d'amour while Karin Boklund-Lagopoulouexamines a range of Middle English lyrics) to show how female empowerment frequently comes at the expense of disembodiment,while the most powerfullymaterialbody in the lyricsis the fleshly,maternal, 'female'body of Christ.These strandsare brought together in Partiv in the person of MargeryKempe. Essaysby Samuel Fanousand Naoe Kukita Yoshikawaoffer some substantial analysis of the oft-repeated claim thatMargery'wantedto be a saint',Fanousthroughexamination of hagiographical models and KukitaYoshikawavia the liturgy.Denis Renevey sees Margery'stext as a commentary on her body's public performanceof (with a nice recollection of the themesof Millett'sopening essay)anchoriticdiscursiveand lay devotionalpractices. Richard Lawes'scontributionoffersfascinatinginsightsfromcontemporarypsychiatric medicine into Hoccleve, Kempe, and Julian. Although on one hand his primary focus on Hoccleve might seem at odds with the rest of the volume's concerns, Lawes'sessayprofitabysuggestsyet anotherlens (thistime of life-writing) throughwhich we might refocusour attentionon late medieval literature. To these consistentlystrongcontributionsthe editors have added a consolidated bibliography and index and this, together with the frequent cross-references between the essays,addsto the impressionof an unusuallywell-conceived, coherent, and valuable collection. UNIVERSITY OF EXETER E. A.JONES Medieval Women. Texts andContexts inLateMedieval Britain.EssaysforFelicity Riddy.Ed. by JOCELYN WOGAN-BROWNE, ROSALYNN VOADEN, ARLYN DIAMOND, and others. (Medieval Women: Texts and Contexts, 3) Turnhout: Brepols. 2000. xv + 436pp. 2o07 BEF. A festschrifton this scale, comprising twenty-three essays by well-known scholars covering 390 pages, is more than a glowing tributeto its dedicatee, more even than a multiple contributionto the interdisciplinarygender-sensitiveinvestigationof the Denis Renevey begins the re-evaluation of Watson, proposing as subcategoriesof vernacular theology 'vernacular spirituality' (p. 5) and, most pertinently here, 'female vernacular theology' (p. 2). In her introduction, Christiania Whitehead situatesthis collection in relation to recent work on gender and spirituality,and to other work in the book's principal area of interest: 'the relation of women to religious books, both as writers, as receivers, and as often contentious objects of representation within them' (p. 7). Although the editors are wise enough not to labour the puns in their title, their book is concerned both with women who write and with women who are written, and with righting some of the neglect they have suffered. The book is divided into four parts. The first, rather oddly, contains only one essay, in which Bella Millett situatesAncrene Wissealongside the firstbooks of hours at the 'breakdownof the sharp early medieval distinctions between religious and lay, litteratus and illiteratus' (p. 28). Both the influence of Ancrene Wisseand the via media between religiousand lay are recurrentthemes of the collection. PartIIlooks at 'CarthusianLinkswith Female Spirituality'throughMarleen Cre's examination of the Amherst manuscript...