{"product_id":"uncertain-refuge-9780812253443","title":"Uncertain Refuge","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo seek sanctuary from persecution by entering a sacred space is an act of desperation, but also a symbolic endeavor: fugitives invoke divine presence to reach a precarious safe haven that imbues their lives with religious, social, or political significance. In medieval England, sanctuary was upheld under both canon and common law, and up to five hundred people sought sanctuary every year. What they found, however, was not so much a static refuge as a temporary respite from further action—confession and exile—or from further violence—jurisdictional conflict, harrying or starvation, a breaching of the sanctuary.\u003cbr\u003eWhile sanctuary has usually been analyzed as part of legal history, in \u003ci\u003eUncertain Refuge\u003c\/i\u003e Elizabeth Allen explores the symbolic consequences of sanctuary seeking in English literary works—miracle collections, chronicles, romances, and drama. She ponders the miracle of a stag''s escape from the hunt into a churchyard as well as the account of \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA splendid, exemplary, important book. Its erudition puts it on the same level as some of the field-transcending, encyclopedic work of medievalists of past generations. But its sense of the stakes of its argument, particularly its extended engagement with the urgency of sanctuary and care for the marginalized, make it a crucial book for this moment. * D. Vance Smith, Princeton University *\u003cbr\u003eElizabeth Allen's \u003ci\u003eUncertain Refuge\u003c\/i\u003e is an important, indeed necessary, intervention in the scholarly conversation about medieval concepts of sanctuary and the power they continue to hold today. By considering its cultural meaning and power, Allen brings a substantially different perspective to sanctuary in medieval England than others, greatly deepening our understanding of its significance. * Shannon McSheffrey, Concordia University *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNote on Translation\u003cbr\u003e Introduction. Medieval Sanctuary: Legal History and Symbolic Action 1\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 1. The Miracle of Cuthbert's Stag\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 2. The Flight of the King's Man: Hubert de Burgh in the \u003ci\u003eChronica Majora\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 3. Breaches at Westminster and the Making of a Sanctuary King\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 4. The Dark Sanctuary of \u003ci\u003eSir Gawain and the Green Knight\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 5. Robin Hood and the Limits of Sanctuary\u003cbr\u003e Chapter 6. Kingship and the Politics of Pity in the Histories of Perkin Warbeck\u003cbr\u003e Coda. Sanctuary in Southwest Georgia, 1962\u003cbr\u003e Notes\u003cbr\u003e Bibliography\u003cbr\u003e Index\u003cbr\u003e Acknowledgments\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University of Pennsylvania Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49405747069271,"sku":"9780812253443","price":45.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780812253443.jpg?v=1730493470","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/uncertain-refuge-9780812253443","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}