WOMEN IN THE RENAISSANCEI. WOMEN IN THE RENAISSANCEA. GENERAL INTRODUCTION1. RENAISSANCE C 1350-1650a. FIRST IN ITALY b. NOT IN ENGLAND UNTIL LATE 16TH Cc. SCARCE IN FRANCEd. LATE 15TH -16TH C. NORTHERN EUROPE2. REBIRTH3. MOVEMENT THAT RECLAIMED GREEK & ROMAN CULTURE4. REVITALIZED WESTERN ART & ARCHITECTURE5. ESTABLISHED MODERN POLITICAL & ECONOMIC PRACTICES6. IDEAS SUCH AS HUMANISM, COURTIER TYPE 7. GREAT DISPARITIES BETWEEN LIFE OF RICH WOMAN & POOR ONE8. BETWEEN RURAL ONE AND URBAN ONEB. DID WOMEN HAVE A RENAISSANCE?1. CLASSIC QUESTION SINCE HISTORIAN JOAN KELLY ASKED IT SEVERAL DECADES AGO2. DISAGREEMENT WHETHER WOMEN HAD RENAISSANCE3. SOME HISTORIANS SAY - NOT A RENAISSANCE FOR WOMEN4. BECAUSE THEIR STATUS, ESPECIALLY IN THE UPPER CLASSES5. DECLINED ONCE MEDIEVAL TIMES OVERa. ESPECIALLY IN ITALY b. WHERE POLITICAL STRUCTURE PRECLUDED WOMEN FROMPARTICIPATING6. MEN IN CHARGE OF BUSINESSES & RULING7. WOMEN TO BE ORNAMENTS OF THEIR CLASS NOWa. NOT SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTORS8. BALDASSARE CASTIGLIONEa. THE COURTIER 1528b. EPITOMIZES THIS AUXILIARY ROLE FOR ARISTOCRATIC LADIES TO MEN OF THEIR CLASS9. BUT ONE OF FOREMOST HISTORIANS OF EUROPE DAVID HERLIHYa. PAST PRESIDENT AHAb. SOMETHING CHANGED IN THE RENAISSANCE IN WOMEN'S SENSE OF THEMSELVES, EVEN IF VERY LITTLE CHANGED OR CHANGED FOR THE BETTER IN THEIR SOCIAL CONDITION10. IN COURTLY LOVE TRADITION OF MIDDLE AGES11. MEN SUPPOSED TO PLEASE LADIES12. WHEREAS IN RENAISSANCE WOMEN MOLDED TO SATISFY GENTLEMENC. IDEAS ON EDUCATION FOR WOMEN IN RENAISSANCE1. AS RENAISSANCE IDEAL OF LEARNING SPREAD,2. GIRLS & YOUNG WOMEN OF UPPER ESTATES RECEIVED BETTER EDUCATIONS THAN THEIR MEDIEVAL COUNTERPARTS3. BUT CLASSICAL MATERIAL THEY STUDIED REINFORCED NOTIONSOF MALE SUPERIORITYa. MORE OF ARISTOTLE, PLATO, ETC. WORKS4. THEIR EDUCATION ENABLED THEM NOT TO ENTER LEARNED PROFESSIONS5. BUT TO ACT AS LADIES OF COURT6. PATRONESSES OF ARTS7. DECORATIVE PRESENCES IN HOUSEHOLDS8. BUT FOR FIRST TIME IN WESTERN HISTORY MEN STRESSING EDUCATION FOR WOMEN9. SOME HIGHLY EDUCATED RENAISSANCE LADIES EXERTED IMMENSE INFLUENCE OVER a. ARTSb. LITERATURE c. & SOCIAL LIFE OF RENAISSANCE10. & EVEN SOME HAD SIGNIFICANT POLITICAL ROLES AS WELL11. WHILE INITIALLY MEN FELT WOMEN SHOULD NOT BECOME TEACHERS EXCEPT TO THEIR OWN CHILDREN12. BY END OF 15TH C. BEGINNINGS OF GOVERNESSES IN ARISTOCRATIC HOUSEHOLDSa. THAT WILL BE SO PREVALENT LATER CENTURIES13. ERASMUS, MORE & OTHERS FELT WOMEN OF THE MIDDLE CLASSES SHOULD BE EDUCATED TOOa. NOT MERELY THOSE OF NOBILITY 14. ALL FELT WOMEN SHOULD READ SPECIFIC BOOKS IN PREFERENCE TO OTHERS READ BY MEN,15. THIS FOR SAKE OF MORALITY & FITNESS FOR WOMEN'S ROLES IN WORLD16. & NOT BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT WOMEN MENTALLY INFERIOR17. IN HIS UTOPIA, MORE EVEN SUGGESTED THAT OLDER WOMEN & WIDOWS MIGHT BE PRIESTESSESa. A TREMENDOUS LEAP AFTER ALMOST 1500 YEARS OF CONTRARY CHRISTIAN PRACTICE18. BUT DOMESTIC DUTIES NEVER TO BE NEGLECTED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURSUITS19. IN HIS COLLOQUY BETWEEN ABBOT (ANTRONIUS) & A LEARNED WOMAN (MAGDALA) 20. ERASMUS CONTRASTED TRADITIONAL & MORE PROGRESSIVE VIEWS ON WOMEN'S EDUCATION DURING RENAISSANCE21. SHORT BIT OF BELOW IS IN YOUR TEXT22. ANTRONIUS: IT ISN'T FEMININE TO BE INTELLECTUAL; WOMEN ARE MADE FOR PLEASURE.23 . MAGDALA: SUPPOSE NOW THAT I TAKE MORE PLEASURE IN READING A GOOD AUTHOR THAN YOU DO IN HUNTING, DRINKINGOR GAMING. WON'T YOU THINK I LIVE PLEASANTLY?24 . ANTRONIUS: I WOULD NOT LIVE THAT SORT OF LIFE...25 . MAGDALA: BUT WHY DOES THIS HOUSEHOLD STUFF [BOOKS] DISPLEASE YOU?26 . ANTRONIUS: BECAUSE A SPINNING WHEEL IS A WOMAN'S WEAPON.27 . MAGDALA: IS IT NOT A WOMAN'S BUSINESS TO MIND THE AFFAIRS OF HER FAMILY & TO INSTRUCT HER CHILDREN?28 . ANTRONIUS: YES, IT IS29 . MAGDALA: AND DO YOU THINK SO WEIGHTY AN OFFICE CAN BE PERFORMED WITHOUT WISDOM?30 . ANDRONIUS: I BELIEVE NOT31 . MAGDALA; THIS WISDOM I LEARN FROM BOOKS...232 . ANTRONIUS: I CAN TOLERATE BOOKS - BUT NOT LATIN ONES.33 . MAGDALA: WHY SO?34 . ANTRONIUS: BECAUSE THAT TONGUE IS NOT FIT FOR A WOMAN35 . MAGDALA: I WANT TO KNOW THE REASON36 . ANDRONIUS: BECAUSE IT CONTRIBUTES NOTHING TOWARD THE DEFENSE OF THEIR CHASTITY...THE COMMON PEOPLE THINK AS I DO, BECAUSE IT IS SUCH A RARE & UNUSUAL THING FOR A WOMAN TO UNDERSTAND LATIN...37 . MAGDALA: WHY THEN IS IT NOT BECOMING FOR ME TO LEARN LATIN, THAT I MAY BE ABLE DAILY TO HAVE CONVERSATION WITH SO MANY ELOQUENT, LEARNED & WISE AUTHORS AND FAITHFUL COUNSELORS?38 . ANTRONIUS: BOOKS DESTROY WOMEN'S BRAINS WHO HAVE LITTLE ENOUGH OF THEMSELVES...BOOKISHNESS MAKES FOLK MAD...BY MY FAITH, I WOULD NOT HAVE A LEARNED WIFE...I HAVE OFTEN HEARD IT SAID THAT A WISE WOMAN IS TWICE A FOOL...39 . MAGDALA: A WOMAN THAT IS TRULY WISE DOES NOT THINK HERSELF SO; BUT ON THE CONTRARY, ONE THAT KNOWS NOTHING THINKS HERSELF TO BE WISE, AND THAT IS BEING TWICE A FOOL.40 . ANTRONIUS: I CAN'T WELL TELL HOW IT IS, THAT AS PACKSADDLES DON'T BECOME AN ASS, SO NEITHER DOES LEARNING BECOME A WOMAN. 41. AS WOMAN DID NOT GO TO UNIVERSITY42. THEY HAD NO OPPORTUNITY TO ENTER LEARNED PROFESSIONS43. WOMEN HUMANISTS TYPICALLY ACQUIRED THEIR EDUCATION FROM THEIR FATHERS OR FROM PRIVATE TUTORS44. QUEENS, WHETHER AS RULERS IN THEIR OWN RIGHT OR CONSORTS45. MADE SURE THAT THEIR DAUGHTERS WERE WELL EDUCATED46. TO BE FIT MEMBERS OF COURT47. THOMAS MORE, HENRY VIII'S LORD CHANCELLOR48. VERY INSTRUMENTAL IN SPREADING HUMANISM EDUCATION IN ENGLAND49. HIS ELDEST DAUGHTER MARGARET MORE 1504-1544a. FOR EG EDUCATED IN LATIN, GREEK, LOGIC, PHILOSOPHY, THEOLOGY, MATHEMATICS & ASTRONOMY50. MORE'S BELIEF IN EDUCATION OF WOMEN51. & ACCEPTANCE OF THAT BELIEF IN ROYAL FAMILY FOR ITS DAUGHTERS, MARY & ELIZABETH TUDOR52. ENCOURAGED OTHERS AMONG ENGLISH NOBILITY TO ARRANGE TUTORS FOR THEIR DAUGHTERS53. & THOSE PRIVILEGED WOMEN54. ONLY IN THE 19TH & 20TH C WOULD SUCH EDUCATION BE OPEN TO ALL WOMEN55. ALTHOUGH MALE HUMANISTS PRAISED WOMEN IN GENERAL56. THEY USUALLY PREFERRED THAT LEARNED WOMEN REMAIN SAFELY UNWED 57. & LIKENED THEM TO AMAZON QUEENS & ARMED WARRIORD. CONTRIBUTIONS OF LEARNED RENAISSANCE WOMEN OR HUMANISTS1. MORE THAN 30 WOMEN HUMANISTS OF RENAISSANCE 3IDENTIFIED2. THOUGH FEW WROTE MAJOR WORKS3. PROBABLY DUE MORE TO SOCIAL BARRIERS THAN LACK OF CREATIVE TALENT4. CONTRIBUTIONS OF LEARNED REN WOMEN VARIED5. MANY WROTE IN LATINa. LETTERS, ORATIONS, TREATISES & POEMS6. ALESSANDRA SCALA OF FLORENCE HAD COMMAND OF GREEK EQUALED BY FEW WESTERN SCHOLARS7. LUCREZIA TORNABUONIa. MOTHER OF LORENZO THE