Reviews

The Good Women of the Parish: Gender and Religion After the Black Death by Katherine L. French

siria's review against another edition

3.0

This is a very readable, interesting look at lay women's religious practices in late medieval England. French marshals an impressive array of documentation in order to discuss how women engaged with their religion and their society—how they used religious practices to make themselves part of their society, and to operate within/outside of patriarchal control. It's scholarly, but it is still accessible to the lay person. (Despite a shocking number of typos from something produced by the UPenn Press—"well-bread" women; religious ceremonies or "rights"; ecclesiastical laws or "statues", etc.) Despite the title, the book is mostly concerned with women rather than gender. Construction of gender roles, theologies, ideas re: women and ritual, pollution, etc, are largely ignored, making this more about women and popular religious practice than anything else. Still, very worth the read if you are interested in this area.

dwellordream's review against another edition

informative

4.0