Thou Art the Man

Ruth Mazo Karras is Lecky Professor of History at Trinity College Dublin. She is author of, among other books, From Boys to Men: Formations of Masculinity in Late Medieval Europe and Unmarriages: Women, Men, and Sexual Unions in the Middle Ages, both available from the University of Pennsylvania Press.

"Thou Art The Man is an immensely readable book, both for the novice and expert alike, that leads us to reevaluate and deepen all our assumptions of David's literary, theological, and artistic representation in the Middle Ages. This is a foundational book that will serve as the groundwork for not only further studies on David but also in that it urges us to think further about the masculinity of Jesus and the paradigms used to articulate a binary gender identity in the Middle Ages. Further research should work to shatter many of the cis-gender expectations of medieval gender studies and use this work to build new horizons for the complex dynamics of gender variance in the religious communities of the European Middle Ages." (Church History) "[F]ew historians have so immeasurably deepened our understanding of medieval gender and sexuality as has Ruth Mazo Karras...Whereas her other works offered breathtakingly sweeping accounts of vast subject matters--masculinity, prostitution, sexual unions--Thou Art the Man proves her equally adept in delivering erudite insights about the sole and singular figure of David...[W]ith relentless attention to detail and inspired, illuminating interpretations across a range of medieval Jewish and Christian artifacts...[t]his is a masterwork." (The Medieval Review) "Ruth Mazo Karras's erudition and imagination undergird this book's strengths; rarely have the Jewish and Christian materials been treated in one study...[T]his book offers us a bold exploration of cultural attitudes toward masculinity in the European Middle Ages" (Speculum) "Karras presents a prodigious study of King David and medieval ideals of masculinity, with particular attention to how biblical exegetes developed, interpreted, and reinterpreted his stories...Her reflections on the meaning of King David in medieval society are compelling and extend our understanding of the intersections of religion and culture over time and their influences on the multidimensional social construction of masculinity" (Journal of Religion)

• ContentsAcknowledgmentsList of AbbreviationsIntroductionChapter 1. David His Tens of Thousands: Prowess and PietyChapter 2. Surpassing the Love of Women: Love, Friendship, Loyalty Between MenChapter 3. I Have Sinned Against the Lord: Sex and PenitenceChapter 4. With Sacred Music upon the Harp: Creativity and EcstasyChapter 5. O My Son Absalom: Establishing a DynastyConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex