Joan Of Arc: The Role Of Women In The Late Middle Ages

A woman in medieval times was not considered a person, but property. A woman would be forced to wear layers of drab clothing, the style determining their social class ranking. A woman of wealth would wear decadent gowns and women in poverty would wear plain spun dresses. Their goal in life was to find a husband, to give in to his whims and be the epitome of submission. Sometimes, peasant girls would be forced to take up a trade prior to marriage. After the marriage, she was forced to give up this trade, the skill she possessed, and either maintain the lifestyle as a housewife, or help her husband with his trade. In regards to whom a woman married, there was little to no choice in the matter. Often, girls were married to strange men, men they

Life was not easy for women and children in the middle ages. We have abusive spouse and such in today’s time period, but in the Middle Ages abuse was even encouraged “as a way to keep women under control” (Lawler). The children had it worse. The children of the Middle Ages, were abused by men, women and even servants to make them behave. In the Middle Ages, the law did not intervene. If you were a woman of upper class then you were lucky! They typical did not go through the abuse that the lower-class women did. As long as a man didn’t kill his wife during the abuse, he wasn’t doing anything wrong according to the Canon law. (Lawler)

The lives of the women in the Medieval Times, for the most part ,did not belong to them. Choices such as marriage, intimacy, childbirth and household responsibilities were thrust upon them by the elder family members and the men that became their husbands. How did these women survive? Did the hardships inflicted on them day after day on a continuous basis lead to mental illness or a religious awakening? Perhaps the women of the Medieval Times were more intelligent and capable than one was lead to believe. What lengths would a person go through in order to survive an unbearable situation? Did the women of the Medieval Times truly go mad or in some cases find God and religion in the lowest point of their lives or did they, in fact, find their inner strength in order to gain their freedom and pursue their rights to happiness?

Marie de France lived in a time when social graces were paramount to a good reputation, lordships and to securing good marriages. A woman was considered less valuable if she lost her virginity; a wife was subjected to her feudal lord, father, brother or son after her husband’s death. According to Angela Sandison’s article “The Role of Women in the Middle Ages”, this was because in the Middle Ages the Church and the aristocracy controlled public opinion and the legal system. These authorities of the times believed a woman’s place was in a submissive role to a man. In The Lay of the Nightingale, we will see how this social and religious hierarchy will impact the behaviors of the three people involved.

Joan of Arc was born in Domremy, France in 1412. She was born into a very poor family during the medieval age of France. Raised as a peasant girl, she was never taught to read or write, but had a passion for the Roman Catholic Church and its teachings. In this paper, I show how Joan embodied bravery, leadership and courage throughout her life. Also how she helped France believe they could win and how she changed the lives of many people around her.

Many people in medieval Europe lived in small rural communities, living off of the land. The women had many responsibilities such as: including caring for children, making food, and taking care of livestock. During the times of the year that were the busiest they would: join their husbands in the yard to bring in the crops and harvest. Women often worked in cottage industries, they would bake and brew and manufacturing textiles.

During the High Middle Ages, the population of Europe increased greatly which allowed trade to prosper and the Medieval Period climate to change. The political structure where knights and lower-status nobles owed military service to their overlords in return for the right to rent from lands and manors, were two of the ways society was organized in the High Middle Ages. Men during this time was seen as this prestige figure versus women, they are seen less. Women were taught to be a “good wife” to their husbands by cleaning, cooking home food, and taking care of the children. Once a woman is married, they would have restrictions on what to do and what they are expected to do in the house which is usually cooking and cleaning. Women, even those in privileged lifestyle, had little control over the route of their lives. Women in general, had arranged marriage by their families and this also goes for the husbands. Depending on the woman’s status, they had different responsibilities when it comes to being in the kitchen. Medieval women played an active role in this society. The three major groups of women that contributed a lot to the society are Royal/Noblewomen, Religious women (Nuns), and Peasants/Serfs women.

Why were medieval women looked at with disdain, and why was their freedom restrained? This is a question perplexing many historians. What is known of Medieval women of the Middle Ages is very nebulous and self-contradictory. The traditional view for a long period of time was that women were very much reliant on men and rather helpless without the male-dominated political, clerical, and economic aspects of society. Women also seemed to be seductive creatures that did not have self-control, unlike men. However, these ideas proved to be biased, since most of the records kept at the time were written by men; therefore, not many women were able to share their point of view, since many of them were uneducated or did not have the opportunity to share their beliefs, especially because of the male-dominant society. As a result, society at this time, especially in Europe, was a misogynistic, anti-feminist community. During the middle ages, many works were written by men that evidently portrayed their anti-feminist perspectives; additionally, women in this society possessed virtually no independence and consequently were at the mercy of their husbands or male counterparts, as depicted in medieval works such as Sir Gawain and the Great Knight, “The Story of Sheikh Sam’an,” and The Canterbury Tales.

After re-reading chapters nine through thirteen, I came to the conclusion that women made very few significant contributions to culture in the Medieval West. This is not the case for lack of trying, though. It was tough for women to do much contributing in this time period.Men of the Medieval ages already had a “hostile attitude toward womankind, intensified perhaps by women’s increasing participation in some of the commercial activities traditionally dominated by men” (274). Thomas Aquinas went as far as to question “whether woman should have been made” in the first place (296).

Joan of Arc, Born in Domremy in Lorraine France in 1412, was the daughter of a poor tenant farmer. England and France had been in a civil dispute. “The kingdom of France had been deeply divided by civil war” (The Real Joan of Arc). She believed god gave her a mission to save France by demolishing its enemies. “I am not afraid…. I was born to do this” (Joan of Arc). Joan faced difficulties because her mental and physical courage were being tested. (Vale and Lanhers)

Throughout history, women in power have made an uneasy combination, especially in the middle ages, when a king was a worrier they had to fight to gain power and battle to keep it. but despite such, there was a handful of exxtraordinary women who have stepped up to power. when they pursuid power like kings, they wre critisized or condemned, even villified as wolves. only from this we find out how far we have come. Since she was young, she was thrown into a dysfunctional country amist conflict with England. As her life unfolds she begoms driven to take control of the kingdom. it was her violent pursuit of power that inspire such minds as shakespeare and Thomas Gray. She had understood the circumstances in which she was being married, and

The medieval community was primarily composed of religious beliefs of which the people lived by. Women in medieval times were considered lower ranked than men. They treated women as despicable outcasts in society. The fate of the woman was ultimately decided by the wealth and power of the man who she was going to marry. This would mean that she has now been deprived of all of her individual human rights. To the rest of society, women were generalized as powerless, illiterate, and useless. With the exception of the rich, women were nothing more than merely objects in the eyes of society. In the poems of the Beowulf and The Canterbury Tales, three female characters portrayed women in a complete opposition to how women lived in medieval times. Their actions, attitudes and how their society thought of them gives a clear illustration of how these women challenged the idea of the female role in medieval society. In The Canterbury Tales and Beowulf, the three main examples of women that will be discussed are: the Old Woman, Grendel’s mother, and the Wife of Bath. These characters showed a different view on how most of the females were generally perceived. In these poems, women were depicted as powerful, dangerous, disparages the law of the

One part of chapter 8 that stood out to me was the section on Women in Medieval Society. It mentions how the image and relatiy of the women are two different things. The chapter mentions on page 252, "This image of medieval woman suggests two basic options: either to become a subjected housewife or confined nun. In relatity, most medieval women became neither". When the chapter talked about women and working it made it clear that they were a houswive or a nun. The women during this time were doing similar work to their husbands. Women have always been depicted to be 'weaker' than men. I enjoyed reading about the women in medieval society because it shows that just because women are said to be weaker than men or are assumed to be a housewive/nun,

Bringing an end to the Dark Ages, the Renaissance brought societal change and new beginnings for everyone, especially women; who had very few opportunities in a male-dominated world. Over this period of time, strong female leaders arose, and made gigantic strides towards gender equality. Oppressed by society, women welcomed such change, slowly gaining societal status through the feminist and women educators of the time. The Renaissance ideology created more opportunities for wealthier women through education, increasing their influence throughout parts of Europe.

The role of women in literature undergoes a change between Old English literature in the Anglo-Saxon period into literature in the romantic genre from the Anglo-Norman period. Marie de France’s work “Lanval” and the Old English epic “Beowulf” are pieces of literature that demonstrate this alteration in the literary representation of women in medieval literature. “Beowulf” portrays women in as minor characters throughout the story, generally adhering to the constricted roles of wives, mothers, and most importantly peace weavers, such as the character of Hrothgar’s wife Wealhtheow. On the other hand, Marie de France portrays women in a different role, as in the romance genre, women are often portrayed as prominent characters in a relationship