It is well known that in several of her works, Christine de Pizan actively sought to valorize and empower women; she notably made the case for women’s education, argued for the protection of widows, and famously attacked the misogyny of the all-pervasive Roman de la Rose. Whilst numerous examinations have shown that Christine sought to empower women through her texts, this book demonstrates that the visual programmes of her works offer further evidence of Christine’s championing women in their role as educators and activists, whilst challenging some assumptions made about gender in Christine’s works. It also examines the conduits and structures by which power is conferred upon women within them. When read together, the text and image across Christine’s œuvre reveal a consistent picture: one in which women educate and empower one another.
- Front Cover
- Front matter
- Half-title
- Series information
- Title page
- Dedication
- Copyright information
- Table of contents
- List of Illustrations
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Note on Translation
- Body
- Introduction
- Christine de Pizan, Gender, and Image
- The Status of Imagery
- Reading Text and Image
- Women, Authority, and Power in the Middle Age
- Christine de Pizan’s Construction as an Authority
- Plan and Scope of this Study
- Chapter 1. Conventions, Collaboration, and Craft: Representing the Author in Christine de Pizan's Author-Manuscripts
- Envisioning Authority in Christine de Pizan’s Author-Portraits
- Authority and Portraiture
- Consistency and Diversity in Christine de Pizan’s Author-Portraits
- Christine de Pizan’s Collaboration with the City of Ladies Master
- Empowerment through Association with the Virgin Mary
- The Symbolic Power of the Colour Blue
- Blue in the Works of Christine de Pizan
- The Direct Influence of Marian Iconography
- Marian Influence on Christine de Pizan’s Writings
- Conclusion
- Chapter 2. Wisdom, Chastity, and War: The Power of Female Didactic Figures
- The Queen’s Manuscript’s Women in Blue
- Didactic Figures in Text and Image
- The Multifaceted Figure of Minerva
- L’Epistre Othea
- La Mutacion de Fortune
- La Cité des dames
- Les Fais d’Armes et de Chevalerie
- Minerva, Multiplicity, and Power Dynamics
- Conclusion
- Chapter 3. Female Creation and Education in Le Livre de la mutacion de Fortune
- The Case for Reassessing Motherhood and Fatherhood
- Cristine’s Parents
- Nature and Fortune as Joint Mothers
- Cristine’s Absent Father
- Conclusion
- Chapter 4. Assessing the Gender of Christine’s Audiences
- Understanding medieval audiences
- Le Chemin de Lonc Estude
- La Cité des dames
- Le Livre de l’epistre Othea
- Three Diana Stories
- Conclusion
- Conclusion
- Back matter
- Christine de Pizan’s Illustrated Author-Manuscripts
- Bibliography
- Manuscripts
- Printed Sources
- Primary Texts
- Secondary Material
- Online Resources
- Index
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