WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE

Conceptions of the Renaissance  Traditional interpretations  birth of the individual  men & women control own destinies  Recent interpretations  women’s destinies & identities linked to men  women had few choices  Renaissance values applied to men

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE Perceptions of Women  Christianity & the Church  “evil” women – Eve  “good” women – Virgin Mary  Greek & Roman ideas  Aristotle’s “deformed men”  second-class citizens

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE Perceptions of Women  Renaissance melded Christian & classical views  male = perfect, female = imperfect  represented opposites MALE FEMALE ACTIVE PASSIVE COMPLETE INCOMPLETE LIGHT DARKNESS RIGHT LEFT GOOD EVIL

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE Women’s Lives in the Renaissance  Domestic education & responsibilities  Life goal = marriage & procreation  Sexuality strictly controlled  Limited legal rights

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE The Importance of Class  Women of the working classes  important contributors to family economy  labored inside & outside the home  usually did not contribute to family economy  Women of the upper classes  received some education  valuable in strategic marriages

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE The Exceptions  CHRISTINE DE PISAN  France’s first woman of letters  Book of the City of Ladies: handbook for women  ruled Italian city-state of Mantua  ISABELLA D’ESTE ( )  created school for girls

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE The Exceptions  CATHERINE DE MEDICI ( )  rule France as regent for young son  great patron the arts  disguised as man, became soldier  CATARINA DE ERAUSO ( )  fought in Europe and the New World

WOMEN AND THE RENAISSANCE The Exceptions  SOFONISBA ANGUISSOLO ( )  great Italian painter  gained international recognition  most important female painter of period  ARTEMISIA GENTILESCHI ( )  served as court painter for several important rulers