In the story, “The Book of the City of Ladies,” by Christine de Pizan, the narrator, eager to read a book that praises women, picks up a book by Matheolus because she had heard somewhere that Matheolus wrote “well” about women. However, to her disappointment,the book quickly disgusts her. The narrator says, “But seeing the kind of immoral language and ideas it contained, the content seemed to me more likely to appeal only to those who enjoy reading works of slander and being of no use whatsoever to anyone who wishes to pursue virtue or improve their moral standards.” (p1997). The narrator laments on the portrayal of women in literature, not only by writers who do not wish to be taken seriously like Matheolus but by all manner of philosophers, poets, and orators. According to Pizan on the nature of female representation in literature, “the female nature is wholly given up to vice” (1998). Pizan identifies the attacks on women and defends women against those attacks. “The Book of the City of Ladies”challenges damaging stereotypes about women and depicts them as brave, strong,intelligent, innovative, just, and worthy just as some men are.
The first theme Pizan tackles are that men are wise and women are foolish. Christine De Pizan lived in the 15th century, and based on the cultural context and the era in which she lived; there were not many female writers. De Pizan is one of the earliest professional women writers in history. The narrator in the book mentioned above says that all she sees on how women are portrayed in books are all lies and slander. Pizan also wonders how men who were endowed with such great intelligence and insight could write such lies. Therefore, she has to face the sad ‘reality’ that women, including herself, were “too crude to recognize the great flaw in themselves” (p1998) and that these men who wrote what she saw as lies, had to be right (p1998).
Additionally, the first part of the book depicts men as perfect. Women have had it rough in history, and it is incredible that Christine De Pizan could speak up at such an early time. The narrator in the book says that she is clouded with feelings of inferiority and she turns to God. She prays, “Oh Lord, how can this be, unless I commit an error of faith, I cannot doubt that you, in your infinite wisdom and perfect goodness, could make anything that was not good” (p1998). The narrator concluded that women had already been accused, judged, sentenced, and condemned. God was the perfect artisan, but, her creature, the woman, was not perfect according to the literature that the narrator had encountered. Women,as seen by most writers, were “vessels in which all the sin and evil of the world had been preserved” (p1998). Men were the perfect creatures, and women were the creatures of vice.
The female sex is inferior and of a lesser value. Christine De Pizan uses damaging stereotypes about women to defend women. Hence, using the weapons of the attackers of women against them. The narrator says that because women are of feeble bodies, fearful by nature and lack the strength witnessed in men. Women, therefore, are defective due to the qualities mentioned above, which should also mean that their moral qualities are diminished and they are less worthy of praise (p2001). However, in defense, Christine highlights that nature always compensates for things not provided.
Moreover, nature compensates by giving even more important qualities than those denied. For instance, Aristotle, who lacked physical beauty, was endowed with superior intelligence that we still praise millennia later. According to the narrator,women are better off without the strength of men, because only this way do they have the virtuous disposition to love God and be fearful of disobeying his Commandments. Moreover, strength and courage are not only limited to men as there have existed women who displayed even greater courage and power in the face of adversity.
Furthermore, women are less intelligent compared to men. The idea that women were as smart as men had been a topic of controversy for a long time. Even in America, women only started voting in the twentieth century, six centuries after Pizan wrote, “the Book of the City of Ladies.” One of the historical examples Pizan uses to build her City is Penthesilea, the Amazon queen and daughter of Queen Orithyia. Pizansays about Penthesilia, “The brave Penthesilea, who surpassed all others in intelligence, courage, prowess, and virtue…” (p2009). Another intelligent woman showcased in the story is Nocostrata, known to the Italians as Carmentis. Pizan says about Carmentis, “She was extraordinarily intelligent and endowed by God with special intellectual gifts.” (2012). Nicostrata had a vast knowledge of Greek literature and could write so wisely that poets wrote that god Mercury favored her. Nicostrata laid the foundations of the Roman Empire, a civilization that developed the legal system from which all known laws would be derived (2012). The text also narrates the accounts of other intelligent women such as Minerva and Queen Ceres.
Women are immoral. At the beginning of Pizan’s book. She laments on how women are depicted in books as “vessels of sin,” an idea that she challenges by the example of Nicostrata who in addition to inventing the modern legal system, also invented the Latin alphabet, the rules for constructing words, and the distinction between vowels and consonants. Nicostrata gave humanity many gifts, and the Italians showed gratitude by building a temple dedicated to her memory. Regarding the morality of women, Lady Reason says to the Narrator concerning the achievements of Nicostrata, “My dear Christine…Could a moral person be said to have done anything so splendid? (p2013).
Women should not lead. Most of the book by Christine de Pizan challenges the assumption that because women are not as physically active as men are, therefore, they are defective and not fit to achieve greatness. The Amazons portrayed by Pizan were worthy women rulers whose empire lasted for over 800 years. Moreover, she gives the example of Queen Ceres who led humanity out of primitivism and into civilization. Though her argument that Queen Ceres solely introduced men to city dwellings, better nourishment, and farming is significantly flawed, there are previous examples that prove that women are smart, innovative, and sober rulers.
Christine De Pizan wrote“The Book of the City of Ladies.” Partly in response to Mathéolus who had written that women were among the worst things created by God. Matheolus, who was a philosopher, named women as worst at a time when the Black Death was ravaging Europe and said nothing about the fatal disease. In other words, women could have been worse than the plague. No wonder Pizan does not forget to mention him at the beginning of her book. According to Pizan, Matheolus words were disgusting and “could appeal only to those who enjoy reading works of slander and being of no use whatsoever to anyone who wishes to pursue virtue or improve their moral standards.”(1996). Pizan wanted to show women of the 1400’sthat they were just as good as men were. Power, mostly in the form of authority and strength was a determining factor for self-worth in the 15th century, and from this, Pizan gives examples of some mighty women in history.
Over 600 hundred years since Pizan, women rights still have a long way to go. Even though women have been fairly represented in books and some of the stereotypes are looked down upon, women rights still lag in many sectors. For example, on an average, women earn less than men for doing the same jobs. In conclusion, the “Book of the City of Ladies” is a powerful allegory that depicts the history of feminism. Christine de Pizan makes a through case by using illustrations from some butt-kicking, intelligent, and innovative women from the past. She reasons that women are just firm, smart, creative, and reasonable as men. What stands out in her book is when she writes that God always compensates in more ways for the things denied, and from this, women have their role. Her historical examples of great women also make the book a historical anthology of ancient women doing crazy and noble deeds. Pizan’s book is a mixture of philosophy and medieval history. Moreover, it is thoroughly entertaining.
Zac Viper 