Story and Philosophy for Social Change in Medieval and Postmodern Writing: Reading for Change (The New Middle Ages)

This book bridges medieval and contemporary philosophical thinkers, examining the relationship between fiction and philosophy for bringing about social change. Drawing on the philosophical reading and writing practices of medieval author Christine de Pizan and twentieth-century philosopher Luce Irigaray, and through an engagement with Hans-Georg Gadamer’s work on tradition and hermeneutics, it develops means to re-write the stories and ideas that shape society. It argues that reading for change is possible; by increasing our capacity to perceive and engage tradition, we become more capable of positively shaping the forces that shape us. Following the example of the two women whose work it explores, __Story and Philosophy__ works through philosophy and narrative to deeply transform the allegorical, political, and continental tradition it engages. It is essential reading for students and scholars interested in medieval studies, feminist studies, and critical theory. Preface and Acknowledgements 7 Contents 10 Chapter 1 An Introduction 12 1.1 Why This Feminist Reads Gadamer 15 1.2 Situating My Work on Christine and Irigaray 29 References 36 Chapter 2 Changing the Story: Christine’s Construction of Difference 38 2.1 Changing Bodies 43 2.2 Translating Stories 52 2.3 Compilation, Commentary, and Construction 59 2.4 Women of Intellect and Invention 70 2.5 Invention of Integumenta: The Strange Case of Semiramis 79 2.6 Aristotle and Nature, Naturally 95 References 101 Chapter 3 This is Not the Same: Irigaray and Difference Through Story 105 3.1 Imagining Elemental Knowledge 108 3.2 Male-Order Stories 117 3.3 Generating Worlds by Answering “What Ifs...?” 131 3.4 Divinely Different Sexual Relations 134 3.5 It Takes (More Than!) Two 140 References 147 Chapter 4 Reading Stories into Action: Christine on Memory, Politics, and Learning 149 4.1 Christine, Boethius, and Dante: Philosophy and Stories 149 4.2 France’s Story: Libera and the Sabine Women 168 4.3 What the Imagination Tells 178 4.4 Presenting One’s Memory and the Reading of Integumental Stories 185 References 192 Chapter 5 Changing the Story: Tradition, Imagination, and the Interpretive Work of Possibility 196 5.1 Comparing Natures 200 5.2 Social Relations 204 5.3 Gadamer and the Movement of Tradition 210 5.4 Transformative Art 212 5.5 Tools for Reading and Building 220 5.6 Poetic Possibilities 223 References 231 Epilogue: A Tale of Seeds and Fruit 233 Bibliography 246 Index 258 Front Matter ....Pages i-xii An Introduction (Allyson Carr)....Pages 1-26 Changing the Story: Christine’s Construction of Difference (Allyson Carr)....Pages 27-93 This is Not the Same: Irigaray and Difference Through Story (Allyson Carr)....Pages 95-138 Reading Stories into Action: Christine on Memory, Politics, and Learning (Allyson Carr)....Pages 139-185 Changing the Story: Tradition, Imagination, and the Interpretive Work of Possibility (Allyson Carr)....Pages 187-223 Back Matter ....Pages 225-255