The 'Mester de Clereci­a': Intellectuals and Ideologies in Thirteenth-Century Castile (Monografias A)

In the thirteenth century, profound changes in Spanish society drove the invention of fresh poetic forms by the new clerical class. The term mester de clerec?a (clerical ministry or service) applies to a group of narrative poems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity. These clerics, like Gonzalo de Berceo, understood themselves as cultural intermediaries, transmitting wisdom and values from the past; at the same time, they were deeply involved in some of the most contentious and far-reaching changes in lay piety, and in economic and social structures. The author challenges the predominantly didactic approach to the verse, in an attempt to historicize the category of the intellectual, as someone caught in the duality of the worlds of contingency and absolute values. The book will have a broad appeal to medievalists, in part because of the topics covered (feudalism, gender, nationhood, and religion), in part because many poems are either adaptations from French and Latin or have counterparts in other literatures (e.g., the romances or Alexander and Apollonius, the miracles of the Virgin Mary). JULIAN WEISS is Professor of Medieval and Early Modern Spanish at King's College London. A fresh approach to the mester de clerecía, a group of narrative poems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed in thirteenth-century Spain by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity.In the thirteenth century, profound changes in Spanish society drove the invention of fresh poetic forms by the new clerical class. The term mester de clerecía (clerical ministry or service) applies to a group of narrativepoems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity. These clerics, like Gonzalo de Berceo, understood themselves as cultural intermediaries, transmitting wisdom and values from the past; at the same time, they were deeply involved in some of the most contentious and far-reaching changes in lay piety, and in economic and social structures. The author challenges the predominantly didactic approach to the verse, in an attempt to historicize the category of the intellectual, as someone caught in the duality of the worlds of contingency and absolute values. The book will have a broad appeal to medievalists, in part because of the topics covered (feudalism, gender, nationhood, and religion), in part because many poems are either adaptations from French and Latin or have counterparts in other literatures (e.g., the romances or Alexander and Apollonius, the miracles of the Virgin Mary). JULIAN WEISS is Professor of Medieval and Early Modern Spanish at King's College London. In the thirteenth century, profound changes in Spanish society drove the invention of fresh poetic forms by the new clerical class. The term mester de clerecía (clerical ministry or service) applies to a group of narrativepoems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity. These clerics, like Gonzalo de Berceo, understood themselves as cultural intermediaries, transmitting wisdom and values from the past; at the same time, they were deeply involved in some of the most contentious and far-reaching changes in lay piety, and in economic and social structures. The author challenges the predominantly didactic approach to the verse, in an attempt to historicize the category of the intellectual, as someone caught in the duality of the worlds of contingency and absolute values.
The book will have a broad appeal to medievalists, in part because of the topics covered (feudalism, gender, nationhood, and religion), in part because many poems are either adaptations from French and Latin or have counterparts in other literatures (e.g., the romances or Alexander and Apollonius, the miracles of the Virgin Mary).

JULIAN WEISS is Professor of Medieval and Early Modern Spanish at King's College London. In the thirteenth century, profound changes in Spanish society drove the invention of fresh poetic forms by the new clerical class. The term mester de clerecia (clerical ministry or service) applies to a group of narrative poems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity. These clerics, like Gonzalo de Berceo, understood themselves as cultural intermediaries, transmitting wisdom and values from the past; at the same time, they were deeply involved in some of the most contentious and far-reaching changes in lay piety, and in economic and social structures. The author challenges the predominantly didactic approach to the verse, in an attempt to historicize the category of the intellectual, as someone caught in the duality of the worlds of contingency and absolute values. The book will have a broad appeal to medievalists, in part because of the topics covered (feudalism, gender, nationhood, and religion), in part because many poems are either adaptations from French and Latin or have counterparts in other literatures (e.g., the romances or Alexander and Apollonius, the miracles of the Virgin Mary). JULIAN WEISS is Professor of Medieval and Early Modern Spanish at King's College London. CONTENTS 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 9 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 10 Introduction 12 The movement 12 Didacticism 15 Intellectuals 19 Ideologies 22 A marvellous reality 25 1. Pollution and Perception in Gonzalo de Berceo’s Milagros de Nuestra Señora 37 Finding an angle 37 ‘El sacristán fornicario’ 40 ‘El clérigo y la flor’ 46 El labrador avaro’ 53 ‘El pleito de Teófilo’ 59 ‘El judezno’ and ‘Los judíos de Toledo’ 66 The overarching miracle 76 2. Female Associations: Three Encounters with Holy Women 78 Writing, Sanctity, and Gender in Berceo’s ‘Poema de Santa Oria’ 79 The Polluting Body in the ‘Vida de Santa María Egipciaca’ 93 The Authority of Berceo’s ‘Abadesa preñada’ 106 3. Dreaming of Empire in El libro de Alexandre 120 Measured by time 123 ‘A single sovereign authority’ 134 The cleric and the Jews, inside and out 143 4. The Birth of a Nation: Feudal Fictions in El poema de Fernán González 154 Structures of freedom 154 Homeland security 160 Feudal logic 170 Symbolic violence: the horse and the hawk 183 5. The Cleric, in Between 190 Between Church and Court: Allegory or ‘Othered Speech’ in ‘Elena y María’ 191 Between Court and Town: The Mercantile Morality of ‘El libro de Apolonio’ 209 Between Town and Church: Berceo’s ‘El mercader fiado’ 220 AFTERWORD 237 WORKS CITED 242 INDEX 262 Profound Changes In Thirteenth-century Spanish Society Drove The Invention Of Fresh Poetic Forms By The New Clerical Class. The Term Mester De Clerecia (clerical Ministry Or Service) Applies To A Group Of Narrative Poems (epics, Hagiography, Romances) Composed By University-trained Clerics For The Edification And Entertainment Of The Predominantly Illiterate Laity. These Clerics, Like Gonzalo De Berceo, Understood Themselves As Cultural Intermediaries, Transmitting Wisdom And Values From The Past: At The Same Time, They Were Deeply Involved In Some Of The Most Contentious And Far-reaching Changes In Lay Piety, And In Economic And Social Structures. The Author Challenges The Predominantly Didactic Approach To The Verse, In An Attempt To Historicize The Category Of The 'intellectual', As Someone Caught In The Duality Of The Worlds Of Contingency And Absolute Values.--book Jacket. 1. Pollution And Perception In Gonzalo De Berceo's Milagros De Nuestra Senora -- 2. Female Associations : Three Encounters With Holy Women -- 3. Dreaming Of Empire In El Libro De Alexandre -- 4. The Birth Of A Nation : Feudal Fictions In El Poema De Fernan Gonzalez -- 5. The Cleric, In Between. Julian Weiss. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [231]-250) And Index. The term mester de clerecía (clerical ministry or service) applies to a group of narrative poems (epics, hagiography, romances) composed by university-trained clerics for the edification and entertainment of the predominantly illiterate laity. These cleri