Who is the laugh on? Women and learning: ideology and intertextual play in 14-15th century poetry in Czech and English
2019
Abstract
A number of both Czech and English poems of the period show a woman confronting a sacred/doctrinal text; invariably, that confrontation assumes a distinct aspect of carnality. Alison of As I went on Yol Day, the Wycliffite Woman, the Wife of Bath - victim or victor, they still appear comical in their ignorance or presumption.
The analysis considers these texts in conjunction, briefly charting their customary contexts (misogynic tracts, religious polemics, etc.) and focusing on their affinities as regards the way they engage with other, more strictly literary, texts and forms. The central issue is the possibility of containing the element of play in these poems, once introduced: can they be reduced to a single, orthodox reading?