Differences in Gender Roles During the Middle Ages
Women in the Middle Ages
History is marked by specific periods; which illustrates the cultural, economic, religious, and educational setting of the time. One such era is the Middle Ages or Medieval Period. This period that dates from around 850-1400, was defined by the “Italian Renaissance humanist, Francesco Petrarch, who coined the term Middle Ages to describe the period in European history from the end of the Roman Empire until his own time, the 1300s”. There were many changes that occurred during this span in history; such as the development of cities and the marketplace, which allowed some people to obtain financial wealth and move into a new social bracket. This redistribution of the pecking order was a source of distress for some medieval Europeans, therefore, the need to determine a new class structure arose. As a result, medieval intellects classified the different sets of people; “those who pray (monks), those who fight (nobles), and those who work (peasants)”. This new caste system put people’s minds at ease because “they asserted that the three orders had been established by God and that every person had been assigned a fixed place in the social order”. However, the three social categories did not include women of the middle ages, who were important fixtures of the time.
Nevertheless, what roles did woman play during the medieval era in conjunction to their male counterparts? Women’s roles and lifestyles varied according to their marital and/or social status; whether a noble or a peasant. Just like their male counterparts; females could be grouped according to their social class, which facilitated what their daily lifestyle entailed. Where the men of the Middle Ages were split into three categories depending on the type of work that they performed; the women of the Medieval Period were divided into five classifications based on their rank within society. The five groups were; women from the class that was landed and free, religious
History is marked by specific periods; which illustrates the cultural, economic, religious, and educational setting of the time. One such era is the Middle Ages or Medieval Period. This period that dates from around 850-1400, was defined by the “Italian Renaissance humanist, Francesco Petrarch, who coined the term Middle Ages to describe the period in European history from the end of the Roman Empire until his own time, the 1300s”. There were many changes that occurred during this span in history; such as the development of cities and the marketplace, which allowed some people to obtain financial wealth and move into a new social bracket. This redistribution of the pecking order was a source of distress for some medieval Europeans, therefore, the need to determine a new class structure arose. As a result, medieval intellects classified the different sets of people; “those who pray (monks), those who fight (nobles), and those who work (peasants)”. This new caste system put people’s minds at ease because “they asserted that the three orders had been established by God and that every person had been assigned a fixed place in the social order”. However, the three social categories did not include women of the middle ages, who were important fixtures of the time.
Nevertheless, what roles did woman play during the medieval era in conjunction to their male counterparts? Women’s roles and lifestyles varied according to their marital and/or social status; whether a noble or a peasant. Just like their male counterparts; females could be grouped according to their social class, which facilitated what their daily lifestyle entailed. Where the men of the Middle Ages were split into three categories depending on the type of work that they performed; the women of the Medieval Period were divided into five classifications based on their rank within society. The five groups were; women from the class that was landed and free, religious
Bibliography: Angell, Jeannette L. "Little-Known Facts about Women in the Medieval Church." Christian History, 1991. Hanawalt, Barbara. Women and Work in Preindustrial Europe. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1986. John McKay, et al. A History of World Societies Eighth Edition Volume 1 to 1715. Boston: Bedford, 2009. Shahar, S. The Fourth Estate: A History of Women in the Middle Ages. London, 1990. World History. http:://www.womeninworldhistory.com (accessed January 13, 2012). [ 4 ]. Shahar, S. The Fourth Estate: A History of Women in the Middle Ages. London, 1990. [ 5 ]. World History. http:://www.womeninworldhistory.com (accessed January 13, 2012) [ 6 ] [ 7 ]. Angell, Jeannette L. "Little-Known Facts about Women in the Medieval Church." Christian History, 1991. [ 12 ]. Hanawalt, Barbara. Women and Work in Preindustrial Europe. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1986.