Medieval Considerations Of Incest, Marriage, And Penance (the New Middle Ages)

Medieval Considerations of Incest, Marriage, and Penance focuses on the incest motif as used in numerous medieval narratives. Explaining the weakness of great rulers, such as Charlemagne, or the fall of legendary heroes, such as Arthur, incest stories also reflect on changes to the sacramental regulations and practices related to marriage and penance. Such changes demonstrate the Church's increasing authority over the daily lives and relationships of the laity. Treated here are a wide variety of medieval texts, using as a central reference point Philippe de Rémi's thirteenth-century La Manekine , which presents one lay author's reflections on the role of consent in marriage, the nature of contrition and forgiveness, and even the meaning of relics. Studying a variety of genres including medieval romance, epic, miracles, and drama along with modern memoirs, films, and novels, Linda Rouillard emphasizes connections between medieval and modern social concerns. Rouillard concludes with a consideration of the legacy of the incest motif for the twenty-first century, including survivor narratives, and new incest anxieties associated with assisted reproductive technology. "Medieval Considerations of Incest, Marriage, and Penance focuses on the incest motif as used in numerous medieval narratives. Explaining the weakness of great rulers, such as Charlemagne, or the fall of legendary heroes, such as Arthur, incest stories also reflect on changes to the sacramental regulations and practices related to marriage and penance. Such changes demonstrate the Church's increasing authority over the daily lives and relationships of the laity. Treated here are a wide variety of medieval texts, using as a central reference point Philippe de Rémi's thirteenth-century La Manekine, which presents one lay author's reflections on the role of consent in marriage, the nature of contrition and forgiveness, and even the meaning of relics. Studying a variety of genres including medieval romance, epic, miracles, and drama along with modern memoirs, films, and novels, Linda Rouillard emphasizes connections between medieval and modern social concerns. Rouillard concludes with a consideration of the legacy of the incest motif for the twenty-first century, including survivor narratives, and new incest anxieties associated with assisted reproductive technology."--Publisher's description Acknowledgements......Page 6 Contents......Page 8 1 Introduction: Too Close for Comfort......Page 10 References......Page 19 2 Kinship Matters: An Immodest Proposal......Page 21 2.1 Medieval Definitions and Examples of Incest......Page 27 2.2 Incest from Antiquity to the Middle Ages......Page 38 2.3 Anthropological Definitions of Incest......Page 48 References......Page 78 3 Heroines, Villains, and Barbarians in Other Medieval Incest Narratives......Page 85 3.1 La Manekine and Medieval Hungary......Page 99 References......Page 110 4 Medieval Marriage, Misogamy, Misogyny......Page 114 4.1 Elements of Marriage......Page 127 4.2 Monstrous Marriage......Page 136 4.3 Contaminated Rhetoric......Page 142 4.4 Containing Desire: Ritual Abstinence......Page 148 References......Page 168 5 The Hand of Forgiveness......Page 175 References......Page 218 6 Regurgitation, Restitution, Resurrection, and Relics......Page 223 References......Page 246 7 Spirit and Letter: Speech Acts in Selected Medieval Texts......Page 250 References......Page 277 8 Conclusion: The Legacy of the Incest Motif......Page 280 References......Page 299 Index......Page 304