Incest and the Medieval Imagination

Incest and the Medieval Imagination

Incest is a remarkably frequent theme in medieval literature; it occurs in a wide range of genres, including romances, saints’s lives, and exempla. Historically, the Church in the later Middle Ages was very concerned about breaches of the complex laws against incest, which was defined very broadly at the time to cover family relationships outside the nuclear family and also spiritual relationships through baptism. Medieval writers accepted that incestuous desire was a widespread phenomenon among women as well as men. They are surprisingly open about incest, though of course they disapprove of it; in many exemplary stories incest is identified with original sin, but the moral emphasizes the importance of contrition and the availability of grace even to such heinous sinners. This study begins with a brief account of the development of medieval incest laws, and the extent to which they were obeyed. Next comes a survey of classical incest stories and their legacy; many were retold in the Middle Ages, but they were frequently adapted to the purposes of Christian moralizers. In the three chapters that follow, homegrown medieval incest stories are grouped by relationship: mother-son (focusing on the Gregorius legend), father-daughter (focusing on La Manekine and its analogues), and sibling (focusing on the Arthurian legend). The final chapter considers the very common medieval trope of the Virgin Mary as mother, daughter, sister and bride of Christ, the one exception to the incest taboo. In western society today, incest has recently been recognized as a serious social problem, and has also become a frequent theme in both fiction and non-fiction, just as it was in the Middle Ages. This interdisciplinary study is the first broad survey of medieval incest stories in Latin and the vernaculars (mainly French, English and German). It situates the incest theme in both literary and cultural contexts, and offers many thought-provoking comparisons and contrasts to our own society in terms of gender relations, the power of patriarchy, the role of religious institutions in regulating morality, and the relationship between life and literature.

Incest and the Medieval Imagination

The Godwins

The Godwins

‘[for] those who like their early Middle Ages replete with murder and mayhem… Frank Barlow has an epic tale to tell’ History Today

The Godwins

The Measure of Woman

The Measure of Woman

By the end of the Middle Ages, the ius communethe combination of canon and Roman lawhad formed the basis for all law in continental Europe, along with its patriarchal system of categorizing women. Throughout medieval Europe, women regularly found themselves in court, suing or being sued, defending themselves against criminal accusations, or prosecuting others for crimes committed against them or their families. Yet choosing to litigate entailed accepting the conceptual vocabulary of the learned law, thereby reinforcing the very legal and social notions that often subordinated them.

The Measure of Woman

Witch Beliefs and Witch Trials in the Middle Ages

Witch Beliefs and Witch Trials in the Middle Ages

In 1901 a rich collection of extracts from documents relating to witch beliefs and witch trials in the Middle Ages – Hexenwahns und der Hexenverfolgung in Mittelalter – was published in Bonn. Most of the original documents are in Latin, with some in medieval German and French, and it has been left largely untranslated, making the material inaccessible, and neglected. This new translation of the key documents will enable students and scholars to look afresh at this crucial period in the development of attitudes towards witchcraft. Through the translated extracts we can see the beliefs and activities which had been formally condemned by ecclesiastical and secular authorities, but which had not yet become subject to widespread eradicating pogroms, start to be allied with heresy and with changing conceptions of demonic activity. The extensive introductory essay gives the reader the historical, theological, intellectual and social background and contexts of the translated documents. The translations themselves will all have introductory notes. This volume will contribute significantly to our understanding of the witchcraft phenomenon in the Middle Ages.

Witch Beliefs and Witch Trials in the Middle Ages

The Reformation

The Reformation

In this wide-ranging volume, Heiko A. Oberman traces threads of continuity flowing to and from the Reformation. The often denied and generally misunderstood ‘continuities’ between theological directions of the later Middle Ages, the theological reformation of the early sixteenth century, and subsequent developments are constantly illuminated through exacting detail and compelling insights.

The Reformation

Living Feminism

Living Feminism

In this rich, evocative and challenging book, Chilla Bulbeck examines the impact of feminism on ordinary Australian women. She argues that this has been significant, even for those women who shun feminism. The lives of sixty women of various ages and backgrounds, whose own words make up much of this book, are set against broader changes in society since the 1950s. Bulbeck explores: growing up, education, work, marriage, motherhood and sexuality. Partly a history of feminism, the book also considers feminism’s relevance beyond the white middle class.

Living Feminism

A Guidance Approach for the Encouraging Classroom, Fifth Edition

A Guidance Approach for the Encouraging Classroom, Fifth Edition

A GUIDANCE APPROACH FOR THE ENCOURAGING CLASSROOM, 5/E, easily functions as a primary reference for professionals or in classes that address group management, the learning environment, child guidance, child behavior, challenging behavior, conflict management, and peace education topics. The book addresses ages 3-8 years in three parts. Part 1 explores the foundation of guidance in early childhood education and covers key concepts such as conventional discipline versus guidance, mistaken behavior, the guidance tradition, and innovative theories about child development with guidance. Part 2 focuses on building and organizing an encouraging classroom, as well as providing key elements of an encouraging classroom, including daily schedule, routines, use of thematic instruction, importance of working with parents, and leadership communication. Part 3 addresses problem solving and challenging behavior in the encouraging classroom, including a practical illustration for how to use and teach conflict management and coverage of the ‘five-finger-formula.’ The book also covers nontraditional families as well as the effects of societal violence in the classroom. Throughout, this experience-based resource includes tips, techniques, and real-life anecdotes that help professionals make the shift from conventional classroom to developmentally appropriate guidance.

A Guidance Approach for the Encouraging Classroom, Fifth Edition

The Post-Historical Middle Ages

The Post-Historical Middle Ages

This collection of original essays repositions medieval literary studies after an era of historicism. Analyzing the legacy of Marxist and materialist theory on medieval literary criticism, the collection offers new ways of reading texts historically. Drawing upon aesthetic, ethical, and cultural vantage points and methods, these essays demonstrate that a variety of approaches and theories are ‘historical’ and can change what it means to historicize medieval literature. By defining our post-historical moment in medieval English literary studies in terms of new possibilities, this collection will have broad appeal to those interested in the English Middle Ages, history, culture, and reading itself.

The Post-Historical Middle Ages

School Discourse

School Discourse

Writing development has been a key area of research in applied linguistics for some time but most work has focused on children’s writing at particular ages, for example, at the early primary, late primary or secondary stage.? Christie and Derewianka draw on extensive research in both primary and secondary years to trace the developmental trajectory from age 5 or 6 through to 18.? Using a systemic functional grammar, they outline developmental changes in writing in three major areas of the school curriculum – English, history, and science – as children move from early childhood to late childhood and on to adolescence and adulthood.? The book considers the nature of the curriculum at various stages, discussing the interplay of curriculum goals, pedagogy and developmental changes as children grow older.? It also explores how emergent control of the different subjects requires control of various subject specific literacies and considers the pedagogical implications of their findings.? It will be of interest to anyone involved in the writing performance of children in schools, particularly applied and educational linguists.

School Discourse