Famous Renaissance Figures
By Room 108
In this report, you will be exploring the unique life of Christine de Pisan including her personal life and her major accomplishments. You will also be reading the analyzation of her greatest work which is "The Book of the City of Ladies" and her perspective towards the different elements of worldview. Adding on to that, you will be able to hear a glimpse of her diary from during the most important time of her career and life.
Christine de Pisan
Grade 8 : Elaine and Henna
Personal Life
Have you ever heard about a woman who earned through writing in the Renaissance? Well, Christine was born in 1364 in Venice, Italy. Following her birth, Thomas di Benvenuto da Pizzana accepted an invitation from King Charles V of France, to be the King's astrologer and physician. Due to her father’s high status, she was successfully educated in many languages and immersed herself in King Charles V vast library that housed many ancient manuscripts. At the age of 15, Christine de Pisan was married to Etienne du Castel, who the French court secretary. Throughout the years, the couple had 3 children; a daughter, a son and a still born child. Furthermore, Pisan shared her literary and poetic interests with her husband, who was supportive of her intellectual pursuits. However, she did not publicly introduce her abilities during their exceptionally love marriage. Unfortunately, after the death of King Charles V, the new king reduced Tomasso’s and Etienne's income at the same time causing the family to find itself in circumstances that are more difficult. Ten years after her marriage, her husband Etienne left to Beauvais on a mission. After contracting the bubonic plague during his mission, Etienne died causing the family to be economically threatened. Christine was left with the responsibility of her children, her niece and her mother. As she tried unsuccessfully to collect money from her husband's estate, her pursuit was halted because of all complicated lawsuits. Seeing that, Pisan turned to her most perfected ability, writing. After her famous 30 year career, the course of Pisan’s life was altered after the Hundred Year of War. Later, after France's defeat in the battle of Agincourt, she decided to enter a convent in Poesy France, where she died in 1430. Overall, Christine was a well educated woman with a happy marriage but also many economical issues.
Christine de Pisan and Etienne du Castel
The City of Venice
During the time of the Renaissance, Christine de Pisan was known for objecting against society and for writing English literature about her opinions on an issue the society had yet to realize. She was encouraged and supported by important French and Italian patrons, and influenced 15th century English poetry. Written in the 13th century, the Romance of the Rose states courtly love while critically depicting women as nothing more than seducers. Pisan specifically objected to the use of vulgar terms and stood up for women through debated text. This dispute helped to establish Pisan's reputation as a female intellectual who could assert herself effectively and defend her claims in the male-dominated literary realm. She also penned a biography of King Charles V, which was published around 1404. In the year of 1405, her most known and effective books were The Book of the City of Ladies and The Treasure of the City of Ladies. The first shows the importance of women’s past contributions to society, and the second strives to teach women of all estates how to cultivate useful qualities in order to counteract the growth of misogyny. Furthermore, her final work written in 1429, The Poem of Joan of Arc ("Ditie de Jehanne de Arc") celebrates the appearance of a woman military leader who, according to de Pisan, vindicated and rewarded all women’s efforts to defend their own sex. After completing this particular poem, it seems that Pisan, at the age 65, decided to end her literary career. Therefore, Christine de Pisan most famous literary works were dedicated towards the importance of women, such as The Book of the City of Ladies, The Treasure of the City of Ladies, the Poem of John of Arc and her debate with the author of the Romance of the Rose.
Worldviews
As illustrated in her literary texts, Christine de Pisan's strong belief was dedicated towards the society stating that power should be given according to one's abilities and virtues and not their gender, critically pointing out the negative treatment of women in the society. However, she did not believe that everyone should be given power equally or that women and men should be treating the same. As evident in her text, she stated that she wants power, money, independence and social status given according to once capability for certain abilities rather than their birth in a hierarchy or in a certain gender.
Analyzation of
"The Book of the City of Ladies"
As illustrated in this book, three allegorical figures appear to Christine and tell her to build a city that would act as a safegaurd for women from cruel accustations . To begin with, Lady Reason, Rectitude and Justice guide Pisan to a fertile land where she is to build the city, with the help of her pen. They guide Christine through this by narrating stories of women who have entered monarchy, pursued their intellectual abilities and arguements of education equality. Moving on, the theme of “Misrepresentation vs. Truth” is illustrated as Christine tries to reveal the truth about the dedicated nature of women and shows the society how they have misrepresented women as seducers. One of the motifs represented is “Allegory", through the allegorical figures of reason, rectitude and justice. “The man or the woman in whom resides greater virtue is the higher; neither the loftiness nor the lowliness of a person lies in the body according to the sex but in the perfection of conduct and virtues,” says Lady Reason. She is simply stating that a person should hold power, not according to their gender, but according to their abilities and virtues.
Picture from "The Book of the City of Ladies"
Diary Entry: December 1429
Sources:
Anderson, M.,(2013). “Christine de Pisan”. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/115672/Christine-de-Pisan Chisholm, H., (2014). “Christine De Pisan” . 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. http://www.studylight.org/enc/bri/view.cgi?n=7002
Delamarre, L., (1908). “Christine de Pisan”. The Catholic Encyclopedia. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03723a.htm
Francisco, S., (2002). “Christine de Pisan”. Gratefulness. http://www.gratefulness.org/giftpeople/christine_de_pisan.htm Lawson, Sarah., (2012). “Christine De Pizan”. Fordham University. http://medievalsourcesbibliography.org/sources.php?id=286596786
Major Accomplishments
Christine de Pisan's officially began her career by asserting her intellectual abilities and establishing her authority after she was widowed. By 1393, she was famous for her poetry, which sometimes reflected her grief over her husband's death. These patrons were intrigued by the novelty of a female writer and had her compose texts about their romantic exploits. As a start, she served as court writer for several dukes including Louis of Orleans, Philip the Bold of Burgundy and French royal court during the reign of King Charles VI. Between 1393 and 1412, she composed over 300 ballads, and many shorter poems, particularly involving women and the practice of chivalry. Moving on, her later poems were about autobiographical information about her life and views on humanist approach. In Epistre au dieu d'amour (1399), she explored the status of women within society and critiqued their depiction in literature. Her major works include mutation of Fortune (1403), The Book of the City of Ladies (1405), The Book of the Three Virtues (1405) and poem about John of Arc (1429). In modern times, Pisan is best remembered for her revolutionary works on women and her courage to face a lot of misogyny. In recent decades, certain scholars have argued that she should be seen as an early feminist who efficiently used language to convey that women could play an important role within society. Other critics, who claim that it is either an anachronistic use of the word or a misinterpretation of Pizan’s writing and intentions, have challenged this characterization. In succeeding in just about every endeavor she undertook, she broke a great deal of ground for women’s opportunities for her posterity. She completed 41 works during her 30-year career (1399-1429) and can be regarded as Europe’s first professional woman writer.
