Medieval Women Writers edited by Katharina M. Wilson

Sunshine for Women
Book Summaries | Home

Medieval Women Writers
edited by Katharina M. Wilson
U. of Georgia Press, 1984

Medieval Woman Writers contains short (5-10 page) biographical sketches of a woman writer followed by 10-20 pages of excerpts from her works. I only read the section on Hrotsvit of Gandersheim. So many books, so little time . . . .

The Saxon Canoness: Hrotsvit of Gandersheim by Katharina M. Wilson

1) "She is the first known dramatist of Christianity, the first Saxon poet, and the first women historian of Germany. Her dramas are the first performable plays of the Middle Ages, her epics are the only extant Latin epics written by a woman, and, finally, she is the first medieval poet to have consciously attempted to remold the image of the literary depiction of women." page 30

2) "By the mid tenth century under the rule of Gerberga II, Gandersheim, a wealthy imperial abbey, was recognized as a center of intellectual and religious activity." page 31

3) "The canonesses followed the Benedictine rule - they were bound by strict regulations and were obliged to observe the canonical hours - but they did not take one of the three monastic vows, that of poverty." page 31

Return to Booknotes Menu

Thanks for visiting Sunshine for Women at http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/main.html

e-mail

sunshine@pinn.net

Sunshine for Women encourages you to support our feminist sisters by purchasing their books, reading them, disseminating the ideas they contain, but most especially, by making their book available to our sisters, our daughters, and the community at large by requesting your school library, your public library, and area bookstores to carry their books. Remember it is not enough to write literature, history, and theology, we must pass these works on to future generations. Help us to preserve these works for a new generation by putting them on library bookshelves.

last updated