Women in Frankish Society: Marriage and the Cloister, 500-900 (The Middle ages) [Hardcover]

Suzanne Fonay Wemple (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This well-documented social study of the status and activities of women in the family and in the church during the Merovingian and the Carolingian periods is a valuable addition both to medieval history and to women's history."—Religious Studies Review

"Wemple has written an intelligent and interesting book about he transformation of Frankish society from a relatively primitive tribal structure to a more complex hierarchical organization under the Carolinians and has provided valuable insights into women's experiences in a crucial and formative period in Western civilization."—American Historical Review

"The position of women and their roles in Merovingian and Carolingian society are carefully delineated in this thoughtful and well-researched study."—The Key Reporter

"Rich and engagingly written."—Library Journal

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (June 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812277988
• ISBN-13: 978-0812277982
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,232,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Women in Medieval Europe, August 24, 2006

By 

Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Women in Frankish Society: Marriage and the Cloister, 500 to 900 (The Middle Ages Series) (Paperback)

It was fascinating to me to learn, as the author says in this excellent book, that "however oppressed they appear in the light of modern criteria, medieval women were far more visible, vocal, and powerful than their sisters in antiquity." During the early medieval period the ideal of equality of the sexes as revealed in the Gospels was taken for granted; only when Christianity became more a state religion were women repressed by the male hierarchy. But for a long time women (it's important to realize that the women Wemple refers to were those of the aristocracy only) retained certain legal and inheritance rights and often shared their husbands' work and had economic power as well. One of the most important developments was the women's monasteries, separate from the men's, where intellectual as well as spiritual needs were fostered and shared with the "outside" world. It's a tragedy after so much progress had been made to find women, thanks mainly to changes in marriage laws, gradually being relegated merely to procreative and family roles. Wemple writes well: she is scholarly but not numbingly so, and the book is both informative and intriguing.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A little dated but still very useful!, January 20, 2003

By 

Lois Huneycutt (Columbia, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Women in Frankish Society: Marriage and the Cloister, 500 to 900 (The Middle Ages Series) (Paperback)

This book was one that really opened people's minds to what could be discovered about women in the early-medieval era, and it still makes for fascinating reading, particularly when she speaks about pre-Christian family patterns and the impact of conversion onm things like marriage and inheritance. Some of her theoretical framework is a bit dated now, but this is still a starting place for those interested in pre-modern women's history. It helps that, despite the fact that many of the names and situation are unfamiliar to most people, she writes the book in an enganging stule.