Medieval Europe was a place of tremendous upheaval. Power balances were shifting, cultural norms were evolving and social dynamics were transforming 鈥 changes that still sound familiar more than five centuries later.
That鈥檚 why Senior Lecturer Charity Urbanski, the history department鈥檚 Joff Hanauer Endowed Faculty Fellow, sees the medieval period as a lens we can look through to understand the present, especially when it鈥檚 focused on the experiences of women.
In her course History 340: Medieval Women, Urbanski dives into what life was like for women in the Middle Ages, including how gender stereotypes developed and how early feminist thought emerged in response.
鈥淲e look at things like women in religion, women in work, and marriage and family,鈥 Urbanski says. 鈥淚t ends up being a really interesting exploration of culture during the medieval period.鈥
To paint a more complete picture of women鈥檚 lives, Urbanski includes as many primary sources by female writers as possible 鈥 which sets her class apart from others about the same era.
鈥淣ever accept anything at face value just because it鈥檚 in writing. Scrutinize it more because of that.鈥
鈥 Charity Urbanski
Centering women鈥檚 voices
Because finding female sources from the Middle Ages can be tough, many educators may inadvertently favor men who were writing at the same time.
鈥淥ne of the big challenges is that I have to teach the class with a dearth of voices,鈥 says Urbanski. 鈥淏ut we do have some, like Christine de Pizan, and I try to bring them in whenever I can.鈥
The works of only a few prominent women have survived: for instance, those of de Pizan, a 15th-century French political thinker who wrote about women鈥檚 rights. But there were almost certainly more medieval female authors than the ones we know of today.
It鈥檚 likely that their writings have disappeared because men largely controlled which works were published, circulated and archived. Of the surviving texts by women, many are still with us because they were correspondences with prominent men, says Urbanski.
When she can鈥檛 present women in their own words, Urbanski provides as much cultural and historical context as possible.
鈥淣o text is a transparent window into the past,鈥 she says. 鈥淪o one of the things you need to do as a historian 鈥 and, frankly, as a human being 鈥 is assess whatever you鈥檙e reading.鈥
That includes looking at the larger context in which a text was written, such as where the author lived, who the intended audience was and whether the writer was trying to prove a particular point.
Given how many people get their news from social media and other barely vetted sources, this skill has become more necessary than ever.
Reading between the lines
Consider Fredegund, a Frankish queen from the sixth century.
While there are no known writings from the queen herself, an account by her contemporary Gregory of Tours has survived. He portrays her as ruthless and conniving compared to male rulers of the time, who engaged in the same political scheming that Gregory criticizes Fredegund for.
But since it鈥檚 our only depiction of the queen, 鈥淲e have to painstakingly piece things together to pull her into view,鈥 says Urbanski. 鈥淲e know Gregory doesn鈥檛 like Fredegund. So if you just look at her actions logically, how do you think she actually did as a ruler?鈥
Lessons for the 21st century
By studying the past, Urbanski鈥檚 students learn how they can be more engaged thinkers and citizens today.
鈥淭his class challenges you to think about who has been left out of the historical narrative 鈥斅燼nd why,鈥 says senior Izzy Matlick, who took Medieval Women in 2018.
鈥淚t amazes me how much in the way of law, attitudes and cultural habits we still retain from the medieval age,鈥 says junior Alexander Clark. 鈥淵ou can really see how far we鈥檝e come and where we need to go next.鈥
Over the past few years, the class has grown in both the number of students interested and the scope of majors represented. In fact, many of Urbanski鈥檚 students come from engineering, computer science and other STEM fields.
Urbanski is happy about the range of students who enroll. Given the timely lessons offered by the class, they鈥檙e developing skills that will be useful in any field. 鈥淚f nothing else, never accept anything at face value just because it鈥檚 in writing,鈥 she says. 鈥淪crutinize it more because of that.鈥
鈥淭his class really challenges you to think about who has been left out of the historical narrative 鈥 and why.鈥