The Chaste Passions: Defining Women Through Feminist Practice

ISBN-13: 9780801435690 / Angielski / Twarda / 2000 / 224 str.

Winstead, Karen a.

Opis

Virgin martyrs make up one of the largest categories of medieval saints. To judge by their frequent apearances in art and literature, they also figure among the most venerated. The legends of virgin martyrs, retold in various ways through the centuries, illuminate trends in popular piety, values and literary tastes. This volume contains 18 English virgin martyr legends, each of a different saint and each translated in its entirety into colloquial, modern English prose. Aiming to remain faithful in tone and meaning to the originals, Karen A. Winstead's translations allow contemporary readers to appreciate why virgin martyr legends thrived for hundreds of years. Winstead presents the tales in chronological order, tracing the effects of the composition and tastes of the audience on the development of the genre. stereotypes - demure maiden or disruptive shrew - prevalent in writings of the period. Because nearly all of the texts were written by men but addressed to women, they exhibit a fascinating interplay between male views of so-called women's literature and the demands of their intended audience.