Middle Ages Lit project notes from 3rd/4th period

Dante’s Inferno Canto XXIX: Contrapasso and Alchemy

Contrapasso: suffer the opposite

HISTORICAL ASPECTS / PEOPLE MENTIONED / places mentioned / Use of Literature
Minos=jury for Hell and deciding which level spirit would go to / Minos-former king of Crete, judges the damned into hell now in Dante’s inferno / Arezzo: Province situated in eastern Tuscany / Similes- lots of it, helps with imagery and describing Hell to the readers
practices of alchemy was highly banned and illegal-8th circle of hell=fraud, which includes alchemy / Capocchio-burned at stake for alchemy in 1293 / Siena:Province situated in central Tuscany / Bringing in real world places, making it more connectable
Arezzo: a free city where the interests of the Ghibellines, rivals of nearby Florence, often prevailed
Siena: one of Europe’s largest cities and a major military force, in a class with Florence, Venice and Genoa.
Aegina: an island state with a large commercial fleet, major naval power. / Niccolo, Stricca, Cacciad’Asciano, Abbagliato- the Spendrift Club- group of rich young Sienese nobles who waste money and time on unecessary things / Aegina: an island near Greece / Contrapasso- (suffer the opposite) a principle of retribution, came from the expression: “an eye for an eye” used in the form of a simile or a casual phrase
Dante’s inclusion of historical people in layers of Hell/purgatory/ Paradisio, this shows how the places are immortal and God is powerful (The placements also reflected Dante’s personal political opinions and beliefs) / Daedalus-a master craftsman and artisan who created the Labyrinth for King Minos’s Minotaur. / Imagery- Use of grotesque imagery defines the mood and setting
Albero-son of the Bishop of Siena, had Grifolino of Arezzo burnt for a necromancer / terzarima- 3 lines per stanza
rhyme scheme= aba bcbcdc
stanza = terzina
Reflects Holy Trinity
Virgil- ancient Roman poet who guides Dante through Hell, he resides in the first circle of Hell / Use of Ancient Mythology- establishes author’s skill/expertise and shows profound knowledge
Pope Boniface III- Pope who Dante used to support but then thought he was bad and was exiled / Allegory:
Beatrice- Dante’s “beloved” that Dante was obsessed with. She died in her 20s and Dante was filled with grief. Dante placed her in Paradisio as Dante’s guide

Wife of Bath’s Tale

Literary elements in the text:

Allusion: one of the women the knight talks to tells him the old story of Midas, and how his wife could not keep one of his embarrassing secrets.

irony: if god had commanded maidenhood then with that same word had he condemned marrying. - section 76 (since before he supposedly said they had to increase and multiply)

Meaning of Literature (why was it written?):

- “The tale does, however, give a woman’s perspective on how romance should be. In the time of Chaucer’s writings this tale may have been a bit controversial. Nonetheless, it was a perspective for women to appreciate, and maybe give men pause in their wives wants and needs. The Wife of Bath’s tale is all about the woman being in control of their husbands”.

- “the true moral is that marriage is a partnership. The husband should obey and work with the wife to give her what she wants”.

- focuses on women’s point of view on marriage/love

History of Women in Medieval Times:

- Usually had lower occupations than men such as artisans, peasants, wives, or mothers

- Women who were peasants shared similar rights as their male counterparts because the both shared the poverty. However, women of higher classes had fewer rights than their male counterpart but were in an overall better situation than the peasant women.

- Women were mostly expected to reproduce.

- Women were expected to engage/help with their husbands work such as farming and crafting.

- Women could gain power by becoming an abbess, queen regnant, or a prioress in a nun convent -Christianity allowed women to escape marriage and get an education

- Women lost rights as the Middle Ages progressed (history goes backwards during many different periods of time)

-almost all religious, political, and social authority figures were men

-men saw women as inferior

-women were expected to behave quietly and modestly (like a lady)

-many medieval marriages were arranged by parents, guardians, or the local overlord at puberty or earlier (married at very young age)

-church strongly forbade divorce

-society supported man’s right to abuse his wife; if women did not obey their husbands, they were beat into submission because disobedience was considered a crime against God.

-most women of lower economic means

-duties: spinning, weaving, making clothes, preparing/cooking food, harvesting crops, feeding farm animals, buying and selling goods at markets, managing and hiring servants, performing first aid

-man of house was usually the manager of the home or farm

-common professions: spinning, weaving, making clothes, laundering, cleaning houses, waiting table at taverns

Quick Notes:

Symbolism in Canto 1:

●She-Wolf: greed, and she is also a symbol of Rome and the evil qualities (greed and corruption) that happen there.

●Leopard: envy, lust

●Lion: violence, pride

●Dark woods: the setting that represents sin and leading a sinful, lost, God-less life

●Right path: the way to salvation and God, the life everyone has to lead, the right way

●Virgil wrote Aeneid (political propaganda for emp. Augustus) and part of it takes places in hell, which Dante used for inspiration for his own inferno.

●This is way Dante chose Virgil to be his guide in his book

Terza Rima:

  • The rhyme scheme, meter, and poem structure of the Inferno in its original Italian version
  • Three lines in a stanza
  • Rhyme scheme of ABA, BCB, CDC, DED, etc.
  • The three lines are often thought to represent the Holy Trinity of Christianity
  • Iambic pentameter (alternating stressed syllables)

Why does the book matter?

  • Shows people where they will go based on their actions in this life.
  • Sinners- based on how bad the sin is ( goes with above )
  • Shows how innocent sin can lead to intentional sinning, going against god
  • Also wrote to get back at political enemies ( puts them in hell )

Dante (Person):

  • born in Florence Italy 1265
  • heir of a poor but noble family
  • Age 9 met the love of his life
    ( central inspiration for his major poems )
  • 1285-1302 married, began a family , & was exiled from Florence
  • Exile gave Dante his perspective on corruption of the 14th century papacy, a view he would clearly describe in the Inferno.

Canto XXVIII – Islam and Dante’s Inferno

Role of Islam in Middle Ages

  • Europe was greatly influenced by Islam in the Middle Ages through both culture and politics.
  • Islam's cultural influence in the Middle Ages was with the education of medicine , philosophy and mathematics
  • Islam's political influence in the Middle Ages was that Muslims were in partial control of Spain from the 8th through the 15th century.
  • Dante (the author) believes that Mohammed and Ali are responsible for the schism that occurred in Christianity (the Great Schism).
  • The Medieval view of Islam was based off of fear and prejudice that Islam will end the existence of Christianity.
  • Islam was regarded as a heresy in the Middle Ages because Christians thought Mohammed was a false prophet.

Role of Islam in Dante’s Inferno

  • Muslims were not respected in the text. Muslim mosques were placed in hell and were the dominant type of architecture seen during Dante’s adventure through Hell.
  • Mohammad and Ali, who were both major religious Muslim leaders, were placed in one of the deepest Circles of Hell for divisiveness.
  • Mohammad, who built up the Muslim religion, was guilty of making man fight man in Christian vs. Muslim conflicts.
  • Ali was guilty of making Muslim brother fight Muslim brother over the Sunni vs. Shiite conflict (which continues to this day)

Ali and Mohammad

  • Controversy over whether Ali (who married Mohammad’s daughter) should succeed Mohammed as the caliphate or not led to the division of Islam into two groups, the Sunni and the Shiite after the assassination of Ali.
  • Shiites believe that their leader should be a descendant of Mohammad
  • Sunnis believe that leader should be a respected elder

Notes

Dante:

  • Dant Alighieri was born in 1265 and his family had a history of involvement in the complex Florentine political sense
  • Wrote the Divine Comedy which is comprised of three canticas: Dante’s Inferno, Purgatorio(Purgatory), and Paradiso(Paradise)
  • He wrote this when he was exiled and traveling
  • In 1314, Dante publishes Inferno
  • Dante’s Inferno was a profound Christian vision of his temporary and eternal destiny
  • Italian poet and moral philosopher
  • Dante is seen as the father of modern Italian, and his works have flourished since before his death in 1321

Structure of Hell:

  • A funnel that extends all the way to the center of the Earth
  • It is underneath the city of Jerusalem
  • the center of the northern hemisphere
  • Opposite of Jerusalem, at the center of the Southern Hemisphere, is the mountain of Purgatory
  • Lucifer is immobilized at the bottom of Hell, where he fell after the defeat in his rebellion against God
  • Nine circles of hell:

Upper Hell: The Incontinent-

  1. Limbo-Souls that never knew Christ, died without baptism (mostly babies), and never committed a sin
  2. The Lustful
  3. The Gluttonous
  4. The Avaricious and Prodigals
  5. The Wrathful and Sullen

Lower Hell: Violence and Fraud-

  1. The Heretics
  2. The Violent
  3. Fraud
  4. Treachery
  • Some of the circles have separate pockets called bolgia’s in Greek

The Eight Circle- Bolgia 9: Sowers of Discord

  • Thrown in hell for causing a great division among people, in return they are torn apart as they so did to other people
  • Characters such as Bertram de Bornio and the prophet Muhammad are present in the readings
  • All people in there are being punished according to their certain sin
  • There is an image of people being forced to walk in a circle and be split again and again by a demon with a bloody sword
  • Contrapasso is the idea that you will be punished according to your sin

The Lay of the Were-WolfMarie de France

SummaryThe protagonist, Bisclavaret, is a knight that turns into a werewolf. After he tells this werewolf secret to his wife, she betrays him by stealing the clothing that turns him human again and runs away with her illicit lover, leaving Bisclavaret stuck as a werewolf. One year later, the king encounters Bisclavaret on a hunting trip. Bisclavaret, in turn, shows the king compassion and loyalty even as a beast. As a result, the king takes him back to his castle and loves him like a constant companion. When the new husband of Bisclavaret’s ex-wife comes to the castle for a feast, Bisclavaret does not hesitate to unleash his rage on him. Later, the wife is attacked by Bisclavaret as well, resulting in the loss of her nose. Seeing the similarity between the two assaults, the king finds out that his werewolf is actually his favorite knight who went missing a year ago. Eventually, Bisclavaret returns to his human form and lives a successful life.

Author Biography Not much is known about Marie de France, although she is the earliest recorded French female poet. Her greatest works, including The Lay of the Were-Wolf were written around the year 1170 (Shoaf).

Literary AnalysisThe prevalent themes we found in the text were betrayal, particularly of the family, and the importance of chivalry. When his wife betrayed Bisclavaret, she sealed his fate in a kiss to her covert lover, symbolizing the kiss of Judas in the Christian faith. Much like most texts of the period, this important section shows the link to Christianity. Bisclavaret attacks his adulterous wife and cuts her nose off with his claws, portraying revenge and betrayal. The nose is important, because it is a physical representation of beauty, which was possibly one of the best qualities of women at the time. Finally, the imagery in this medieval work is fantastic, depicting violence, darker tones, and chivalry. These reflect the dangerous society of the Middle Ages and the respect put on chivalry and proper conduct.

Historical Analysis A knight was forbidden to ever harm a woman or child, and the fact that Bisclavaret ignored everything society said about the way he must act and attacked his wife and her new husband showed that the wrong had been tone to him was beyond being chivalrous about (Abels). Knights were absolutely forbidden from having excessive pride, engaging in adultery, breaking oaths, faking oaths, or committing any act of treason (Abels). Bisclavaret shows the opposite of all these traits, remaining a perfectly humble and honest knight of his king and lady.

Abels, Richard. "Chivalry."Usna.edu. The United States Naval Academy, n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2013.

Shoaf, Judith P. "The Lais of Marie De France." College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.University of Florida, n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2013.

Sarah Fan, Noela Lu, Ivory Randle, AmulyaBhattarai, Dylan Hay

Author Background:The author was named Geoffrey Chaucer. He was born in London, England sometime around 1343. His came from a wealthy family who developed much of their wealth during the time of the Black Plague. Chaucer was a soldier in the 100 years war, and he traveled to many countries so he knew French, Latin, and Italian (Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1343-1400)).

Historical Context of Book: It was written in the 1380-1390’s. (The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue & Frame Story). Bubonic plague era hit England in 1348-1350. 1/3 of Europe’s population was wiped out so expansion stops and society falls as peasants turn away from the church (Notes on the Fourteenth Century). They started looking for God by themselves as they thought the clergy and pope were too worldly (The Late Middle Ages).

Literary Analysis:

  • Mode: Prose because it was free verse
  • Work was shared: originally as manuscripts that Chaucer shared with his friends> manuscripts weren’t known until after death
  • Figurative language: a lot of similes, metaphors, and allegories to the Bible, Church, and Christianity
  • Translation: the book was translated from Old English into Modern English

Summary:Priest Sir John begins telling the tale of a widow with two daughters, who has prize cock named Chanticleer praised for his timekeeping. Chanticleer has a nightmare of a beast coming and killing him and confronts Pertelote, his wife. Pertelote tells him to take no heed and to be less of a coward. Chanticleer tells many stories of men dying because they ignored the warnings in dreams. However, he let it go because he loved her so much. Months later, a fox tricks him with flattery and snatches him. Chanticleer tells the fox to boast, and as the fox opens his mouth, the cock escapes.

The Nun’s Priest’s Tale Relation to Church’s Role Within Society:

  • The dreams that Chanticleer have are warnings. If he took heed to them, it would have led him to safety and success. This by symbolizes listening to the church because it leads to heaven and salvation. When Chanticleer doesn’t listen, it is disobeying/ignoring church, clergy. This parallels with the time period after the Bubonic Plague, where there were many peasant uprisings and people turned away from the church to seek their own salvation and spiritual fulfillment.
  • Chanticleer falls into the trap of flattery by the wolf, which ultimately leads to his capture. Pride and vanity are sins, so giving into this is like disobeying God and His intentions for you. By disobeying, there will be consequences (Chanticleer’s capture)
  • Pertelote makes Chanticleer defy God’s warning, he chose lust over God’s will. By this he was turning away from God.Pertelote was at fault for she lured Chanticleer away. Women are the temptations, representing the fall of man. The story is an allegory to Adam and Eve when Eve disobeyed God and created sin. Story is symbolic to the birth of sin.

**The point of the story was to teach a lesson about the will of God and resisting worldly temptations as vanity and pride are sins.

Works Cited

Butler, Chris. "The Black Death and Its Impact."Flowofhistory.com, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.

"The Canterbury Tales: General Prologue & Frame Story." Shmoop.Shmoop.com, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.

Forgeng, Jeffrey L., and Will McLean.Introduction.Daily Life in Chaucer's England. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1995. N. pag. Print.