Premodern History and Art through the Prism of Gender in East-Central Europe

This collection examines premodern history and art in East-Central Europe viewed from the perspective of gender and women's history. It gathers Czech art and other historians of all generations in order to introduce this segment of history writing to global academia.

Premodern History and Art through the Prism of Gender in East-Central Europe is a representative collection of current Czech research in premodern history and art history, using gender as a tool of analysis. The common denominators of the texts collected in this volume are the art history of the premodern period, gender perspectives, and, to a certain degree, the Czech milieu. The book is divided into four parts, based on area of interest, time frame, and research perspective. The first part sheds light on the state of research in the field of women's history—along with the implementation of the concept of gender—and highlights a certain paradigmatic conservatism of Czech art historiography. The second gathers contributions that analyze visual sources of Czech origin. The third includes texts that analyze gender issues on the level of literary representation. The final part presents two case studies that involve analysis of the premodern West European source base. Rywiková and Malaníková present this volume as an innovative way to introduce this specific segment of Central European art history to a broader audience in global academia.

List of Figures

Part I: Women and Gender in Czech Medieval History

Foreword: Gender Trouble in Czech Medieval History Scholarship

Milena Bartlová

Introduction: Premodern History and Art through the Prism of Gender

Michaela Antonín Malaníková and Daniela Rywiková

Chapter 1: Women's History and Gender History as Part of Czech Medieval Studies

Michaela Antonín Malaníková

Part II: Gender Identity through the Prism of Visual Arts

Chapter 2: Medieval Art in the Czech Lands through the Prism of Gender: The Visual Culture of Royal Nunneries in Medieval Bohemia and Moravia

Daniela Rywiková

Chapter 3: Kunigunde – ‘ Bartered Bride’ and ‘Bride of Christ’

Jennifer Vlček Shurr

Chapter 4: Gender in Czech Secular Art of the Late Middle Ages

Jan Dienstbier

Part III: Gendering the Medieval Literature

Chapter 5: Women as Men and Men as Women? Gender Roles in Anglo-Saxon Literature Reversed

Tereza Kalousková

Chapter 6: Gendered Body Politics and the Construction of Czech Historical Memory

Věra Soukupová

Chapter 7: Reading About Men and for Men: Daughters Against Fathers, Violence and Wisdom in One Medieval Manuscript

Martin Šorm

Part IV: Midwives and Lovers: Two Pre-modern Case Studies

Chapter 8: Why Do We Not Hear the Praise of Skilful Women Who Are Writing Books About It?” Early Modern Obstetric Manuals from the German Speaking Regions from a Gender Perspective

Hana Jadrná Matějková

Chapter 9: Benedetta Carlini, Catalina Erauso, and Catharina Margareta Linck: Stories of Love between Women from the Sixteenth Century to the Early Eighteenth Century

Dáša Frančíková

Bibliography

About the Contributors