Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index

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Record Number: 3531 Author(s)/Creator(s): Elliott , Dyan. Contributor(s): Title: Dominae or "Dominatae"? Female Mysticism and the Trauma of Textuality Source: Women, Marriage, and Family in Medieval Christendom: Essays in Memory of Michael M. Sheehan, C.S.B.  Edited by Constance M. Rousseau and Joel T. Rosenthal.  Western Michigan University, 1998.  Pages 47 - 77. Description: Article Type: Essay Subject (See Also): Authority Bridget of Sweden, Saint Confessors Francesca Bussa dei Ponziani, Saint Mystics Scribes and Scriptoria Visions Writing Award Note: Geographic Area: General Century: 14- 15 Primary Evidence: Illustrations: This article examines the dynamics between the confessor/amanuensis and his female charge -- the illiterate holy woman. It focuses primarily on hagiographical materials, but also includes forays into theological treatises on spiritual discernment. While addressing concrete questions, such as how the process of redaction was undertaken in specific cases, it also examines more abstract problems,such as how revelations were authenticated. These issues are, in turn, used to illuminate the~~tantalizing question of where the power ultimately resides in these relations. [Abstract submitted by the author to the Medieval Feminist Index.] ~~~~ Table: Abstract: Related Resources: In her compelling essay, Dyan Elliot further explores the concept of limitation, both culturally and self-imposed, and both positive and negative, for late medieval women mystics, especially focusing on the fifteenth-century Frances of Rome and her relationship with her scribe, John Mattiotti; or better put, her scribe's relationship with Frances' visions and the act of writing them, which was fraught with peril. Typically, female mystics refused notoriety; several, like Marguerite Porete, demonstrate by a negative example the danger of speaking for oneself and had to be pressured into revealing their visions and submitting to scribes, an act which Elliot suggests was detrimental to the visionaries' own security and independence. The procedures of writing down visions were subject to much scrutiny, were seen to be vain, provided an occasion of temptation for the scribe, and ultimately placed the visionary in a completely subdued relationship vis-a-vis her scribe: John tested Frances' purity by commanding her complete obedience. Thus, this "exaggerated passivity" seemed by the late Middle Ages an essential precondition for mystical veracity. (77)" From the review written by Miriam Shadis of "Women, Marriage, and Family in Medieval Christendom," "Medieval Review" (TMR ID: 96.12.11). [Reproduced by permission of the "Medieval Review."]. Author's Affiliation: Indiana University Conference Info: - , - Year of Publication: 1998. Language: English ISSN/ISBN: 1879288656

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