Description
Book SynopsisThis volume traces some of the specific manifestations of virginity in late medieval culture. It shows how virginity is represented in medical, legal, hagiographical and historical texts, as well as how the seductive but dangerous figure of the virgin affects the aims and objectives of these texts.
Trade Review'One notable characteristic of this volume is its consistent engagement with key methodological and interpretative concerns. All of the essays show clear signs of participation in a coherent critical conversation; it is refreshing, and a credit to the editors, to see this degree of conceptual as well as topical coherence in a collection of essays.' Modern Language Review '...fascinating and scholarly volume, well presented...a must for all libraries.' Analecta Cartusiana
Table of ContentsIntroduction - Anke Bernau, Sarah Salih and Ruth Evans; 1. When is a Bosom not a Bosom? Problems with Erotic Mysticism(Sarah Salih; 2. The Sheela-na-gig. An Incongruous Sign of Sexual Purity? - Juliette Dor; 3. Virginity and Chastity tests in Medieval Welsh Prose - Jane Cartwright; 4. Four Virgins' Tales - Sex and Power in Medieval Law - Kim M. Phillips; 5. The Labour of Continence - Masculine Clerical Virginity - John H. Arnold 6. Virginity in the Construction of Edward the Confessor as a Saint - Joanna Huntington; 7. Alchemy and the Exploration of Late Medieval Sexuality - Jonathan Hughes; 8. The Jew, the Host and the Virgin Martyr - Fantasies of the Sentient Body - Ruth Evans; 9. Can the Virgin Martyr Speak? - Robert Mills -10. Saint, Witch, Man, Maid or Whore? Joan of Arc and Writing History - Anke Bernau; 11. Afterword - Jocelyn Wogan-Browne.
