Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index


  • Record Number: 6986
  • Author(s)/Creator(s): Putter , Ad
  • Contributor(s):
  • Title: Tranvestite Knights in Medieval Life and Literature [men dress as women both in real-life tournaments and in such romances as "Meraugais de Portlesguez," Malory's "Sir Tristram," "Witasse le Moine," and "Claris et Laris"; the author argues that these situations serve to emphasize the cross-dressing hero's masculinity and make a joke of inept characters].
  • Source: Becoming Male in the Middle Ages.  Edited by Jeffrey Jerome Cohen and Bonnie Wheeler.  Garland Publishing, 1997.  Pages 279 - 302.
  • Description:
  • Article Type: Essay
  • Subject (See Also): Arthurian Literature Cross Dressing Cross Dressing in Literature Knights Literature- Prose Literature- Verse Masculinity Masculinity in Literature Romance, Literary Genre Tournaments
  • Award Note:
  • Geographic Area: General
  • Century: 12-13
  • Primary Evidence:
  • Illustrations:
  • Table:
  • Abstract: Examples of cross-dressing knights exist in abundance, both in historical records and in chivalric romances. This essay examines a number of examples to discover what transvestitism meant for a medieval audience. [Reproduced by permission of Garland Publishing at http://www.garlandpub.com].
  • Related Resources:
  • Author's Affiliation: University of Bristol
  • Conference Info: - , -
  • Year of Publication: 1997.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN/ISBN: 0815328362