Femina: The instant Sunday Times bestseller – A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It

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Femina is a reassessment of the medieval period, particularly in the role of women in unheard roles, notably in science, governance, clergy and cultural developments. The narrative occasionally loses its thread, describing extensive historical context before circling back to the main subject. Others chose a life of religious contemplation and wielded the influence and power that comes from being God's representative on earth. I understand that it’s about the wider female experience or their lives but like I say, I think I expected more on specific women.

Diese patriarchale Sicht auf die mittelalterliche Welt stammt aus der Feder von Historikern, sie wurde Jahrhundertelang in unsere Geschichtsbücher so aufgenommen. Dr Ramirez discusses issues of gender and sexuality - a very current topic in society - through the lens of historical figures. It is very factual, not ideal for those who don't know much about medieval times as you will be lost. But I think that questioning and challenging assumptions is what she would expect her readers to do.Leider hat sich Autorin einiges herausgenommen, was ich von einer ernsthaften Historikerin nie erwartet hätte.

Ranging from Aethelflaed to Hildegard of Bingen to Jadwiga, crowned king of Poland, this is a fascinating study of these women's lives. Maybe it's about the quality of writing, and the fact there's always half a knowing eye on the present.The one thing they all have in common however, is that they are bypassed by our conventional histories, overlooked in favour of the stories of their male contemporaries. Since her death, Jadwiga has been invoked for nationalist purposes rather than for her accomplishments as an intelligent female ruler, her piety and image as a paragon of virtue overshadowing her history-altering life. It dispels the myth that all women were worse off in the past and shows that the dark ages were not as dark as we've been led to believe.

Ich habe "Femina: Eine neue Geschichte des Mittelalters aus Sicht der Frauen" als höchst interessant empfunden und es hat mir großen Spaß gemacht, die originell aufbereiteten Erzählungen über mittelalterliche Heldinnen zu lesen. Feminist approach: From the beginning I loved Ramírez' aim of telling the story of the middle ages through the notable women of the time. Es wurde zwar irgendwie eine Parallele zu Frauen im Mittelalter gezogen, die ich aber nicht nachvollziehen konnte und deplatziert gewirkt hat. The jury is out on whether she was experiencing post-partum psychosis or spiritual ecstasy (she claimed that all 12 Apostles had turned up for her nuptials with Jesus) but there is no doubting the outrageous originality of her voice. I'd been vaguely aware of the status of women in the Viking world, thanks to a Horrible Histories sketch, particularly with regards to domestic violence.While the content is undoubtedly relevant and important, my reading experience was somewhat marred by the book's structural and stylistic choices.