In 1401, Christine de Pizan (1365-1430?), one of the most
renowned and prolific woman writers of the Middle Ages, wrote a
letter to the provost of Lille criticizing the highly popular and
widely read "Romance of the Rose" for its blatant and unwarranted
misogynistic depictions of women. The debate that ensued, over not
only the merits of the treatise but also of the place of women in
society, started Europe on the long path to gender parity. Pizan's
criticism sparked a continent-wide discussion of issues that is
still alive today in disputes about art and morality, especially
the civic responsibility of a writer or artist for the works he or
she produces.
In "Debate of the "Romance of the Rose,"" David Hult collects,
along with the debate documents themselves, letters, sermons, and
excerpts from other works of Pizan, including one from "City of
Ladies"--her major defense of women and their rights--that give
context to this debate. Here, Pizan's supporters and detractors are
heard alongside her own formidable, protofeminist voice. The
resulting volume affords a rare look at the way people read and
thought about literature in the period immediately preceding the
era of print.
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