Search results for ""Author Jacques Le Goff""

In this ground-breaking new study,Jacques Le Goff, arguably the leading medievalist of his generation, presents his view of the primacy of the Middle Ages in the development of European history. "[A] superb and necessary book. This provocative assessment from a lifetime of scholarship might help us to place ourselves, not just territorially, but in that other precious element of history: time."—The Guardian "A book that never fails to be informative, readable and provocative. Le Goff... has been the bravest and best of champions for medieval history. This book... is in every sense an inspiration."—BBC History Magazine Praised by prominent figures in Europe and history including: Rt Hon Christopher Patten, CH, Former Member of the European Commission, and Neil Kinnock, Vice-President, European Commission.

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Heroes and Marvels of the Middle Ages is a history like no other: it is a history of the imagination, presented through two celebrated groups of the period. One group consists of heroes: Charlemagne, El Cid, King Arthur, Orlando, Pope Joan, Melusine, Merlin the Wizard, and also the fox and the unicorn. The other is the miraculous, represented here by three forms of power that dominated medieval society: the cathedral, the castle and the cloister. This imaginative history is a continuing story that presents the heroes and marvels of the Middle Ages as the times defined them: venerated, then bequeathed to future centuries where they have continued to live and transform through remembrance of the past, adaptation to the present and openness to the future.

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En este sintético y aclarador ensayo, el eminente medievalista Jacques Le Goff explica cuál fue la suerte de la moneda o, más bien, de las monedas en la vida, la economía y la mentalidad medieval.En la Edad Media es la Iglesia quien establece la actitud que el cristiano debe tener para con el dinero y el uso que le ha de dar. El dinero ha de tener un valor superior, no mundano; la verdadera riqueza, se insiste, no es de este mundo y, por ello, donar el dinero es tan importante como ganarlo.Sin embargo, la presencia del dinero gana terreno no sólo en el espíritu de los hombres, sino también en su mente. Aun a pesar del lento y limitado desarrollo de la economía medieval, el dinero multiplica su presencia en todos los espacios, desempeñando un papel primordial en el crecimiento de las ciudades y el comercio, y en la constitución de los Estados a lo largo del Medievo.

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En " Mercaderes y banqueros de la Edad Media " , el gran historiador francés Jacques Le Goff estudia una de las figuras más características y atractivas de la Cristiandad medieval, mostrándonos la actividad del mercader-banquero del Occidente europeo entre los siglos xi y xv, desde su trabajo en el mercado hasta sus relaciones sociales, sus ideas políticas, creencias religiosas y gustos artísticos. En este ejercicio modélico de la nueva historia ??cuyo objetivo es integrar lo individual con lo colectivo, lo político con lo social, económico y cultural, en pos del ideal de una historia total?, y al reclamar el derecho a la historia de los mercaderes y banqueros medievales, Le Goff reivindica una imagen distinta de la Edad Media occidental, no sólo hecha de campesinos, monjes y caballeros, sino también de otros personajes, precursores indiscutibles de la modernidad.

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To write this history of the imagination, Le Goff has recreated the mental structures of medieval men and women by analyzing the images of man as microcosm and the Church as mystical body; the symbols of power such as flags and oriflammes; and the contradictory world of dreams, marvels, devils, and wild forests. "Le Goff is one of the most distinguished of the French medieval historians of his generation ...he has exercised immense influence."--Maurice Keen, New York Review of Books "The whole book turns on a fascinating blend of the brutally materialistic and the generously imaginative."--Tom Shippey, London Review of Books "The richness, imaginativeness and sheer learning of Le Goff's work ...demand to be experienced."--M. T. Clanchy, Times Literary Supplement

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Canonized in 1297 as Saint Louis, King Louis IX of France (1214-1270) was the central figure of Christendom in the thirteenth century. He ruled when France was at the height of power; he commanded the largest army in Europe and controlled the wealthiest kingdom. Renowned for his patronage of the arts, Louis was equally famous for his choice to imitate the suffering Christ as a humbly attired, bearded penitent. Armed with the considerable resources of the nouvel historien, Jacques Le Goff mines existing materials about Saint Louis to forge a new historical biography of the king. Part of his ambitious project is to reconstruct the mental universe of the thirteenth century: Le Goff describes the scholastic and intellectual background of Louis’s reign and, most importantly, he discusses methodology and the interpretation of written sources—their composition, provenance, and reliability. Le Goff divides his unconventional biography into three parts. In the first, he gives us the contours of Louis’s life from birth to death in the usual context of family dynamics and genealogy, courtly and regional politics, and shifts in economic, social, and cultural life. In sifting through the historical accounts of the king’s life, Le Goff determines that it is Louis IX’s profound sense of moral and religious purpose—his desire to become the ideal Christian ruler—that colors his every action from boyhood on; it is also, for Le Goff, what renders contemporary accounts problematic and what necessitates further scrutiny. That dissection of sources occupies the second part. Le Goff’s intention is to pare away the layers of homily and anecdote produced by the king’s early biographers to discover the true St. Louis. Questioning whether St. Louis was merely the invention of his eulogists, Le Goff penetrates beyond the literary and hagiographical evidence to the human behind the legend. He brilliantly analyzes Louis’s progression toward his unique self-creation and its subsequent mythologizing. In the third part, Le Goff highlights the contradictions within Louis and his historical image that previous chroniclers have elided and overlooked. In the end, he leaves us with the saint, rather than the king, with all the paradoxes embedded within that dual role. A prolific medievalist of international renown, Jacques Le Goff (1924- ) is the former director of studies at the L'École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Paris. Among his honors is the Dr. A. H. Heineken Prize for History, bestowed in 2004 by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences to Le Goff for “fundamentally changing our view of the Middle Ages.” He was also among the recipients of the 2007 Dan David Prize in recognition of contributions to his discipline. of Louis’ life from birth to death in the usual context of family dynamics and genealogy, courtly and regional politics, and shifts in economic, social, and cultural life. In sifting through the historical accounts of the king’s life, Le Goff determines that it is Louis IX’s profound sense of moral and religious purpose—his desire to become the ideal Christian ruler—that colors his every action from boyhood on; it is also, for Le Goff, what renders contemporary accounts problematic and what necessitates further scrutiny. That dissection of sources occupies the second part. Le Goff’s intention is to pare away the layers of homily and anecdote produced by the king’s early biographers to discover the true Saint Louis. Questioning whether Saint Louis was merely the invention of his eulogists, Le Goff penetrates beyond the literary and hagiographical evidence to the human behind the legend. He brilliantly analyzes Louis’ progress toward his unique self-creation and its subsequent mythologizing. In the third part, Le Goff highlights the contradictions within Louis and his historical image that previous chroniclers have elided or overlooked. In the end, he leaves us with the saint, rather than the king, with all the paradoxes embedded in that role.

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How The Golden Legend shaped the medieval imaginationIt is impossible to understand the Middle Ages without grasping the importance of The Golden Legend, the most popular medieval collection of saints' lives. Assembled in the thirteenth century by Genoese archbishop Jacobus de Voragine, the book became the medieval equivalent of a bestseller. In Search of Sacred Time is the first comprehensive history and interpretation of this crucial book. Jacques Le Goff, who was one of the world's most renowned medievalists, provides a lucid and compelling account that shows how The Golden Legend Christianized time itself, reconciling human and divine temporality. Authoritative, eloquent, and original, In Search of Sacred Time is a major reinterpretation of a book that is central to comprehending the medieval imagination.

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It is impossible to understand the late Middle Ages without grasping the importance of The Golden Legend, the most popular medieval collection of saints' lives. Assembled for clerical use in the thirteenth century by Genoese archbishop Jacobus de Voragine, the book became the medieval equivalent of a best seller. By 1500, there were more copies of it in circulation than there were of the Bible itself. Priests drew on The Golden Legend for their sermons, the faithful used it for devotion and piety, and artists and writers mined it endlessly in their works. In Search of Sacred Time is the first comprehensive history and interpretation of this crucial book. Jacques Le Goff, one of the world's most renowned medievalists, provides a lucid, compelling, and unparalleled account of why and how The Golden Legend exerted such a profound influence on medieval life. In Search of Sacred Time explains how The Golden Legend--an encyclopedic work that followed the course of the liturgical calendar and recounted the life of the saint for each feast day--worked its way into the fabric of medieval life. Le Goff describes how this ambitious book was carefully crafted to give sense and shape to the Christian year, underscoring its meaning and drama through the stories of saints, miracles, and martyrdoms. Ultimately, Le Goff argues, The Golden Legend influenced how medieval Christians perceived the passage of time, Christianizing time itself and reconciling human and divine temporality. Authoritative, eloquent, and original, In Search of Sacred Time is a major reinterpretation of a book that is central to comprehending the medieval imagination.

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In this fascinating book, which takes the form of a series of edited interviews with noted journalist Jean-Maurice de Montremy, Jacques Le Goff offers us a synthesis of his work. In the course of these conversations he explains how he came to write his books and how an overall view of the civilisation of the Middle Ages gradually emerged; a civilisation which shaped 'western' culture both for better and for worse. Each conversation touches upon one of the major themes of his work and the book as a whole presents the reader with a fascinating attempt to recover, define, and understand the Middle Ages.

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