Sex, Dissidence and Damnation: Minority Groups in the Middle Ages [Paperback]

Jeffrey Richards (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 12, 1994 | ISBN-10: 041507147X | ISBN-13: 978-0415071475 | Edition: Reprint

For the authorities in medieval Europe, dissent struck at the roots of an ordered, settled world. It was to be crushed - initially by reason and argument, eventually by torture. Jeffrey Richards examines the wretched lives of heretics, witches, Jews, lepers and homosexuals and uncovers a common motive for their persecution: sexual aberrance.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`fascinating study ... brilliantly illuminated by Richards with the help of excellent illustrations.' - Sunday Telegraph

About the Author

Jeffrey Richards is Professor of Cultural History at the University of Lancaster. He is the author of Visions of Yesterday (RKP, 1973), The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages (RKP, 1979), and Consul of God: The Life and Times of Gregory the Great (RKP, 1980).

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; Reprint edition (December 12, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 041507147X
• ISBN-13: 978-0415071475
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,854,121 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Premise, June 12, 2002

By 

Renee L. Goethe "hroswitha" (Iowa City, Iowa USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sex, Dissidence and Damnation: Minority Groups in the Middle Ages (Paperback)

Much about this book intrigued me. The premise -- that a link exists between descriptions of outsiders such as heretics and Jews -- and sexual immorality. Certainly the gendered aspects of heterodox movements in the Middle Ages, such as the Beguines and the Lollards, have been explored in other texts. Often, those who existed outside the limits of the norm were characterized as sexually deviant in some way. Jewish men were believed supernaturally endowed; Lollard women were allowed to preach; non-Christian women were sexual viragos. However, the linguistic links between prostitutes, homosexual men, heretics, and those with leprosy (which in retrospect would seem obvious) have not been part of the parlance in medieval intellectual circles.

My only criticism of this text is that I'm not sure who the audience was intended to be. The first two chapters are elaborate -- if surface -- reviews of the historical context, much of which would be apparent to anyone who had had even a basic review course in medieval history. All of that information seems gleaned from secondary accounts, and little of it offers a unique or interesting perspective. Yet from the elaborate nature of the thesis, one would assume that the text was intended for a scholastic audience, one he could have reasonable expected to know this material.

To sum up, while the argument is interesting and novel, and very well proven, this is generally a text for a lay audience, not for those with a strong background in the field. I am considering using it for an undergraduate course text, as the writing style and contextual buildup are appropriate for that level, but I would double check the translations and use of primary sources.

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a light Read but very Interesting, May 28, 2011

By 

AJoyW "-2wrongs != right" (Colorado) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Sex, Dissidence, and Damnation: Minority Groups in the Middle Ages (Hardcover)

This was actually a required reading for my class "Tolerance and persecution in the Middle Ages". Sadly I loaned my book out to a friend and he has never returned it. Unlike our other texts this book was very interesting taking the ideas of persecution through sex. Though I don't agree with everything it at least brought issues of the middle ages through a different persecutive. It has been awhile since I read this book, but for a required reading, it wasn't bad at all.

1.0 out of 5 stars Nothing to write home about, January 4, 2010

By 

Scruffy1 (Jerusalem) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex, Dissidence, and Damnation: Minority Groups in the Middle Ages (Hardcover)

The author has produced a wide-ranging and attractive format for presenting his views. The material presented is very concise and crisp however Richards is often too compact and his arguments often shallow. This is an acceptable introduction however my greatest criticism lies in the sad absence of any footnotes and while the accompanying bibliography appears extensive and is frequently mentioned in the text-most entries date from the mid-1070's while the latest entries are dated from 1988-for others who are mathematically challenged 22-30 years ago. Good but outdated.