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Influence of the catholic church during the medieval times
Influence of the catholic church during the medieval times
Women's rights in the 17th century
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Hi, I think was so disrespectful that medieval women were obligated to held unwanted attitudes such as the Common law and the Cannon law. The common law visualized married women as properties.So, the fact was that women' properties trespassed to their spouses right after getting married. So, medieval married women had no authorities over their own properties. Even more they could not dispute about this law because that was a social norm in the Middle Ages and it must be respected. In the case of the Canon law this affected women societal attitudes due to regulations established by the Cristian authorities and gave power to husbands.For instance, according to the Cristian church's position on this matter was followed the Biblical texts of
Women during the medieval period had certain role with their husbands, depending on his social status. The wives were placed into a class according to their husband’s line of work or social status (Time Traveler’s 54). This social status may be favorable, but not all wives were able to make it into the elite social status. Once the woman was committed, and married to her husband, she was totally controlled by her husband. Even though the wife was able to maintain the same social status of the husband, she lost a lot of rights after she married. Women during the medieval period not only lost a lot of their rights, but also became somewhat of a slave to the husband in many ways.
The Classical Period was from 600 B.C.E. to 600 C.E. During this time women were treated differently than men, sometimes it was positive but sometimes it was negative consequences. The treatment was different in not only religious practices, but in different societies too. Even though some the treatment was not very negative, but seen as protection to women from certain things, even though the way they were treated was in very negative according to most. Some other cultures gave women more responsibilities such as freedom, rights, and respect. The varieties of documents are from multiple societies backgrounds, but anyone could say that a certain view about the subject after the classical period, towards
It was a difficult life for women in the 14th century. The women were not valued as much as men. They did not receive much respect and did not have many rights. They were treated like objects by men. Women were not educated as they weren’t allowed to go to school. Three of the main things women in the 14th century did not have were the right to own property, the right to take part in a job, and respect.
The Wife of Bath is, without a doubt, one of the most carefully studied characters in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, and certainly one of the most seemingly contradictory. She has been described as both proto-feminist and a stereotype of Medieval misogynist ideas. This controversy has perhaps arisen due to a confusion over the definition of Medieval female stereotypes, namely how women are perceived to act, and how those stereotypes differ from Medieval ideals about how women should act in order to be deemed moral by society. Indeed, some commentators have seemed to see no distinction between the two, and therefore claim that the Wife of Bath, as a character, serves as a negation of St. Jerome and Theophrastus' antifeminist ideas of what constitutes medieval stereotypes of women. The Wife of Bath, it is clear, lives up to few, if any, of the ideals held by medieval society, in particular the Church, concerning how women should behave. This essay, however, will aim to show how she in fact does live up to many of the stereotypes concerning women and thus reinforces, rather than challenges them.
From the Classical age through the medieval age, women were greatly disrespected. They did not have any say in anything and were not appreciated. In Classical texts such as The Odyssey, the women were treated as if they were animals. They did not have the respect of others and some were thought of as whores. In the stories of Erec and Enide, Lancelot, and Perceval, we see a dramatic change in this, due to the system of government that Arthur entails giving them the freedom and rights they deserved. The new man to woman relationship brought about in these stories is very different then the past stories we have read from the classical age. This system gave great honor and respect to women, which became part of the chivalric code that was followed by the knights and royalty of that time. The courtly relationship between man and woman is the theme created throughout the stories in the Arthurian Romances. The ideas of courtly love and chivalry are summarized in these stories. We see many instances where knights go out of their way to please their woman. Once a knight chooses his woman, she thought of as his chattel, or property. He can do what he pleases with her and she must listen to him or possibly be killed. He respects and loves her as long as she is loyal and faithful to him. If someone were to interfere in his or her relationship, they would fight ‘til death or until someone begs for mercy.
In the past of humanity, women's status have always been ambigious. Either they were worshipped as goddesses or despised as unworthy workers. In this research I will analyze closely what it means to be a female in our age and in medieval period by means of two sagas: The Saga of The Volsungs and The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki.
Although society has advanced dramatically technologically, I feel that we still have a long way to go when it comes to how we view one another. It amazes me that in a society such as ours, that bases its existence on the equality of all people, that misogyny (as it occurred in medieval times) still takes place. A timeless example of misogyny is the objectifying of women, which suggests that a woman's sexual beauty is her only worth. In dealing with this misconstruction, some women, as in the case of Bercilak's wife in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and Alisoun in "The Miller's Tale" from The Canterbury Tales, use their sex appeal to deceive, lure, and, manipulate men. A small part of me shamefully admits that I respect, and even appreciate, the way in which a woman can outsmart a man by entertaining his sexist views; however, as a whole, I strongly feel that if a woman uses her sexuality for her own advancement, then she is contributing to her own misogyny.
One of the most important roles for women was the act of alliance between nobles, to avoid a conflict, for instances, Charles the Simple gave his daughter to Rollo the Walker to elude a fight with the Vikings. Moreover, monasteries became very powerful during this period. They created foundations that provide accommodations to males as well as females. The monasteries became ruled for women. Females in the monasteries had power over their bodies and minds. During the Charlemagne governance, he made the Capitularies , a series of documents that everybody follow. On document said “If anyone rapes the daughter of his lord, he shall die”. It is reflected that the women of the noble families were very important and they should be respected. Medieval Women were subject to their men. People believed that because the men is the image of God, and women were a creation from the men, the men should rule the women, and women should not have the right to be a witnesses or have justice. People blamed the women for the wrong of the world, because of Eva seduced Adam to eat the apple. As is reflect, people in the medieval period believed several things about men and women
During the Middle Ages and Renaissance period marriage and love were idealized, divine and celebrated. Weddings were large events that included the entire families of both the groom and the bride. Reality was different; women were viewed as being fickle, inferior to men and a possession of men. Women had very little, if any, choice in who they would marry. Marriages were arranged so that both families would benefit in gaining wealth or power. Even though the ruler of England for over 4 decades was female, women were still not respected. Women were kept at home and not allowed to take place in public events. In Shakespeare’s Richard III, male and female relationships are displayed as deeply cynical and are based on lies, lust and political gain.
Though women were subordinates by both the eye of the church and the government, women found ways to express authority both intentionally and unintentionally. Women began to act independently in patriarchal society. In 17th century Euro-America Puritan society believed that men played a patriarchal role upon women, and that this role was instituted by God and nature. The seniority of men over women lay within both the household and the public sphere. The household, immediate family living in the same dwelling was subject to the male as head figure of the house. The public sphere also known as the social life within the Puritan community consisted of two echelons. These echelons consisted of formal and informal public. The formal public consisted of woman and indentured servants. Women were to stay within the informal public and stay in the shadows of the men.
In the area of religion the “emphasis of religious based subordination suggested that, for a woman to be virtuous and serve God, she must follow the lead of her husband […] this gave men the impression that they had a God given right to control their wives, even if this mean through the use of physical correction” (Nolte 1). Due to the fact that religion is claimed to be an important Victorian ideal, men believe that for women to lead a virtuous life, she must follow the wishes of her husband. Even if these wishes allow her to be beat.
Understanding the way women both were controllers of and controlled by social, political and cultural forces in the medieval period is a complex matter. This is due to a number of factors- the lack of documentation of medieval women, high numbers of illiteracy amongst women, especially lower class, medieval sources being viewed through a contemporary lens and the actual limitations and expectations placed upon women during the period, to name a few. The primary sources: The Treasure of The City of Ladies by Catherine of Siena and Peter of Blois’ letter to Eleanor of Aquitaine concerning her rebellion, highlight the restrictions women were expected to adhere to, and the subsequent reprimanding that occurred when they didn’t. Women were not passive victims to the blatant patriarchal standards that existed within medieval society, even though ultimately they would be vilified for rebelling.
Women had never had it easy, and that is obvious in the treatment of women throughout time. In the Middle Ages, the medieval times were completely run by men and women had to follow what rules were set by men and do as they were told. The traditions of the time made it so women had no role in the society of the times. The towns the women lived in decided the jobs a woman could have, even the wages women made at the time were affected because of her gender. A women could have done many of the tasks men did however, they would still be paid less regardless of how well done the job was. Women of the time were paid usually about three or four pence less than what a man might have been paid. The laws of the time were also equally restricting, because of the fact that they were set by men. Some of the laws of the time included that women were “not allowed to marry without their parents' consent, could own no business with special permission, not allowed to divorce their husbands, could not own property of any kind unless they were widows, and could not inherit land from their parents' if they ...
Abelard and Heloise’s discussions had many references to the role of women in medieval society. As stated before, society treated women less important than men. It was the wife’s duty to always make her husband happy. Abelard said many Biblical quotes such as “a good wife makes a happy husband” (60) to further this point. Society also made it seem as though a wife was property. Abelard also states from the book of Proverbs “A capable wife is her husbands crown” (60). Society in this time believed women should serve men by staying by their side, making them happy, and having intercourse with them.
Throughout the world women have been considered second class citizens, especially in British culture. However, were women in absolute subjection to men in reality or only in tradition? Women were treated unfairly to men, referring back to the Bible with Adam and Eve. Eve was tempted by the serpent to eat the fruit from the tree, even though God ordered her not too. Women were considered weak and foolish to men because Eve did not obey the Lord. In the Bible it clearly states that “for Adam was first formed, then Eve. / And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression” (1 Timothy 2:13-14). Men were created before women; also that Eve was at fault for the downfall because she was the one deceived. In the book of 1 Timothy, it states, “let the woman learn in silence with all subjection / But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence” (2:11-12). Women in the Bible were considered not to have any type of power, or even speak at that. Men, as the stronger sex, have responsibilities to women; however, they do not follow through with them. As a result, men establish that women must be seen not heard, weak, hold no power, hold no rights, pure, etc., yet they are the ones who tempt women into attempting to attain such things. Then, whether or not the woman succeeds or fails at getting power or fulfilling her natural urges, she experiences a downfall, therefore showcasing that women should “remain in their place.” However, as years pass more and more female writers emerge, the stories start to change; they still display women falling victim to a variety of men’s temptations, but they also demonstrate how a woman can rise above that and saver herself, or another. M...