The film also demonstrated a clear departure from Davis’s historical evidence when Bertrande is not presented as a plaintiff for long in the trial against the imposter Martin. In the film trial, unlike Davis’s account, Bertrande’s double role is not depicted. Instead, Bertrande always backs the imposter as her true husband throughout the trial. “Bertrande never once accuses Arnaud during the trail and she accepts Martin only at the last minute.” What were the motifs then behind backing the imposter? This is regrettably a clear divergence from Davis’s thoroughly researched historical account. Further, this position is a legal impossibility as the case would not have stood on trial had Bertrande not supported the complaint. Instead of sticking …show more content…
Because Davis was conducting a historical monograph she was also able to demonstrate concerns with identity formation. This was so much the case that identity and truth formed the overall motif of Davis’s monograph. The film version, on the other hand, emphasized the roles played by the characters, rather than revealing and depicting their actual identities. Davis’s task of achieving her monograph’s focus – identity – was complex as she was handling a micro-history: the local history of an insignificant event and the biography of unknown, inconsequential peasant, Martin. The local truths of this community, then, must also be considered a significant object of the monograph. A major reference in Davis's work is an article written by Jean de Coras providing a written account of Martin’s trial, which he presided over. Davis stated that she was obliged to write the story after reading the article published by de Coras, as it had a flawless narrative of the events with an added bonus of dramatic appeal. One could not ask for a better primary source. While Davis gave suggestions to Vigne as a historical consultant, he intentionally failed to take her suggestions into account. Most of these suggestions were crucial to a successfully portrayal of the story. One of her remarks was to begin the film “with Coras saying that he had written this story.” In addition, the film completely ignored the presence of Protestant Reformists, a major historical event during Martin’s trial; this is a movement one cannot ignore if looking into the history of the time and place the story is set. Davis’s asserts that “it is possible, even probable, that the new Martin and Bertrande De Rols were becoming more interested in the new religion.” From the monograph, it was clear that the imposter’s fate was influenced by the judge’s
The main focus of the story is on Bertrande de Rols and her place in sixteenth century society, especially as a wife. At the age of nine, Bertrande was married to Martin Guerre who was a young peasant of Basque heritage. For several years, the two have trouble consummating their marriage. In 1548, Martin runs away from his village of Artigat, France to join the Spanish army, leaving his twenty-two year old wife Bertrande and a young son. After eight years of living in quiet desperation, an imposter Arnaud du Tilh nicknamed "Pansette," shows up in the village in 1548, in the guise of Martin Guerre. It is no wonder that Bertrande would finally find fulfillment of her hopes and dreams of a better life with the new Martin. The couple's marital bliss unravels the day Arnaud argues with his uncle, Pierre Guerre, over his desire to sell off some of his ancestral land. Under Basque tradition and custom, a man is never to sell his ancestral land this causes Pierre to be suspicious of the identity of his nephew and he decides to sue Arnaud as an imposter.
Jeanne de Jussie, a dedicated Catholic nun, recorded events that took place in Geneva during the Reformation as the official chronicler for the Saint Clare convent. Although littered with biases, Jeanne de Jussie’s experiences reflect broader trends during the Reformation; therefore, The Short Chronicle is a valid source and not merely a personal attack against the Protestants. Her experiences and beliefs, including those concerning celibacy, reflected those of many members of the Catholic Church during the Reformation. Also, her categorization of Protestants as ‘heretics’ was consistent with the practices of the Catholic Church. Although biased, her fears about Protestant views on celibacy and marriage were legitimate and consistent with
The notion of Bertrande de Rols in The Wife of Martin Guerre as having good intentions suggests not only that she was mindful of her own feelings in her pursuit of the truth, but also of the feelings of others. However, Bertrande’s intentions were to cleanse her soul and absolve herself from sin by indicting the impostor, Arnaud du Tilh. Yet, she undertakes this task considering the despair it would inflict upon the mesnie. These actions also are detrimental to Bertrande in causing her perhaps the most anguish and grief of all. Bertrande intends to uphold the status quo, yet she has due knowledge that pathway to the greater good will be harmful to her and the Mesnie.
There are many things in history in which may relate to one another but have happened in different times and eras. From the begging of Jamestown, to the Salem Witch Trials in Salem, Mass., all things in history have a relation. In this essay, we will be linking Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformation, the Salem Witch Trials, the Puritans, and the term 'ethnocentrism '. While these may seem like they will not connect with each other, but there is always a way to colligate these events in history.
Kittelson effectively composed the book and created the biography to be an interesting look into the life of Martin Luther. His successful usage of primary source documents and information compounded with his personal literary explanation of Luther’s journey toward reformation and peace with God. Kittelson’s book is not without humor either, he includes direct quotes and dialogue between Luther and Zwingli debating the Lord’s Supper. The insults and demonstrative behavior show Luther as he was, a reformer, who wished to convince others of the power of the gospel. This engaging study is both informative and engaging. Luther the Reformer is a good biography for anyone interested in Martin Luther’s life and interested in learning more about why his journey impacted not only the Roman church then, but the entirety of the Christian Church to this
The main character of The Laramie Project is the town of Laramie, Wyoming. The subject matter is how the murder of Mathew Shepard impacted this small American town. “We could be on any main drag in America...As we passed the University Inn, on the sign where amenities such as heated pool or cable TV are usually touted, it said: HATE IS NOT A LARAMIE VALUE” (Jacobus 1632). The identity of many ordinary people was affected by a single unimaginable event. There is an emphasis placed on how the compilation of individual attitudes shape the identity of a community and how identities are altered in the wake of tragedy. “As in any work assembled from found materials, the creative choices of what to include, what to omit and how to juxtapose the pieces were guided by the creators' attitudes and the project's goal of understanding why the crime occurred and how it influenced community attitudes”(Evans). The Laramie...
“And the court had strong reason to believe in this judgment that the prisoner was Martin Guerre, not only because of what was said, but in addition because this opinion favored the marriage, the children, the issue of it, and the cause of the accused. De Coras calls out the court favored the societal construct of marriage, and the wish to have everything settled, was willing to settle in favor of the imposter, even with the lack of evidence to support such a
In this paper, I will argue that Douglas Coupland in "Player One", incorporates storytelling to highlight the loss of personal identity. This is evidently shown by appearance of Player One, also know as Rachel, technology becoming one, and the lack of rationality with time and setting.
The “beautiful young woman” began to show her stubborn ways early. According to the reading, Bertrande was concerned more about putting aside her wifely duties than to ruin her reputation and independence (27-28). When Martin abandoned Bertrande, she was left without a defined position in the village social structure. Being the honest women that Coras said she was, Bertrande would not separate from Martin, and under Catholic law she could not remarry unless there was strong proof of death. The values that Bertrande grew up with showed that she never saw herself leaving village customs (32). Though the devastating experience of Martin leaving left her weak and yearning for a husband, she lived “virtuously and honorably” through her “stiff-necked sense of herself and her reputation” (34).
In the end, although they come from two very different ends of the spectrum, free will and the secular state are places of common ground for Machiavelli and Luther, which is supported by their similar views of human nature and the order of how things should be. It is interesting that when each of their viewpoints is applied to the Catholic Church, it reveals a very different view of the Catholic Church; although Machiavelli would view it positively and Luther negatively, the juxtaposition truly emphasizes the success of Machiavelli's strategies. Although Luther's work did have an impact on the Church, it still continues to thrive. It is interesting that for two authors who have many similar views there would be a serious conflict in this area.
However given the anonymity of the source, it is hard to distinguish between this piece being a private journalistic entry or an intended piece of publication, if a personal audience was intended, this would reduce the reliability of this source, as there would be too great a risk of subjective exaggeration in events. Yet as Foxe, who used this source in his written criticism, ‘Acts and Monuments’, towards the Catholic church and the Marian-movement in England, has not credited an original author, the message of this source and the literal text would have easily been changed to ‘fit in’ with Foxe’s argument, which biasedly exonerated protestant martyrs as ‘virtuous’ and catholic believers as
The aim of this paper is study the same primary sources that other historians have studied and see what conclusions if any can be drawn from them. The primary sources that will be used in this paper include but are not limited to online transcripts of the trial records, and other material written by the many historians of the years.
During Luther’s early life he faced a severe inner crisis. When he sinned he looked for comfort in confession and followed the penance, the fasting, prayer and observances that the church directed him. But, he found no peace of mind and worried about his salvation. But reading St. Paul’s letters he came to believe that salvation came though faith in Christ. Faith is a free gift, he discovered, it cannot be earned. His studies led him to a conclusion that, “Christ was the only mediator between God and a man and that forgiveness of sin and salvation are given by god’s grace alone” (Martin Luther, 01). Historians agree that, “this approach to theology led to a clash between Luther and the Church officials, precipitating the dramatic events of Reformation”.
Five hundred years ago, an obscure German monk published 95 theses for debate and unwittingly set off a revolution that continues to shape the church and the world to this very day (Christian History: Luther and the Reformation). In 2003, there was a movie released about a German monk, named Martin Luther, which depicted his life and journey during the time of the protestant reformation. The movie Luther was not made to be a history lesson, but was to portray the life of Luther, and the events leading up to the protestant reformation. Ever since the movie Luther, critics continue to debate whether or not the movie accurately communicates Martin Luther’s life and the issues revolving the Protestant Reformation?
Finlay strikes a claim that Davis’ statements about Bertrande’s recognition does not derive from “an interpretation based on sources” but from her “unsubstantiated insight.” (“The Refashioning of Martin Guerre”, p559). Finlay believes that Davis thinks there is “inevitable sexual recognition” because the touch of each man is different (“The Refashioning of Martin Guerre”, p559). Davis then counteracts this statement by showing us her source, Jean d’Arras, a fifteenth century author about marriage faithfulness through the protagonists Raimondin and Melusine. Jean d’Arras, describes the unique touch, trust, and look of two lovers when their marriage bed was blessed; for the ceremony, they were naked save their headdresses. With the use of this information, Davis applied Jean d’Arras’ words to Bertrande and Arnaud’s physical relationship, “she[Bertrande] was feeling a body unlike the one she had lain next to...clothed or unclothed.”(“On the Lame”, 578). Davis utilizes Jean d’Arras as a respectable source to prove that a woman would know the difference of touch between men despite being clothed or not. Davis did not outrightly call out Finlay, but she does provide evidence against his claim proving that she fabricated an accurate account with the use of Jean d’Arras’ source. Ultimately, Davis indirectly proves that Bertrande