Caroline Dunn - Böcker

This study of illicit sexuality in medieval England explores links between marriage and sex, law and disorder, and property and power. Some medieval Englishwomen endured rape or were kidnapped for forced marriages, yet most ravished women were married and many 'wife-thefts' were not forced kidnappings but cases of adultery fictitiously framed as abduction by abandoned husbands. In pursuing the themes of illicit sexuality and non-normative marital practices, this work analyses the nuances of the key Latin term raptus and the three overlapping offences that it could denote: rape, abduction and adultery. This investigation broadens our understanding of the role of women in the legal system; provides a means for analysing male control over female bodies, sexuality and access to the courts; and reveals ways in which female agency could, on occasion, manoeuvre around such controls.

Ladies-in-Waiting in Medieval England examines female attendants who served queens and aristocratic women during the late medieval period. Using a unique set of primary source based statistics, Caroline Dunn reveals that the lady-in-waiting was far more than a pretty girl sewing in the queen's chamber while seeking to catch the eye of an eligible bachelor. Ladies-in-waiting witnessed major historical events of the era and were sophisticated players who earned significant rewards. They had both family and personal interests to advance – through employment they linked kin and court, and through marriage they built bridges between families. Whether royal or aristocratic, ladies-in-waiting worked within gendered spaces, building female-dominated social networks, while also operating within a masculine milieu that offered courtiers of both sexes access to power. Working from a range of sources wider than the subjective anecdote, Dunn presents the first scholarly treatment of medieval English ladies-in-waiting.

This study of illicit sexuality in medieval England explores links between marriage and sex, law and disorder, and property and power. Some medieval Englishwomen endured rape or were kidnapped for forced marriages, yet most ravished women were married and many 'wife-thefts' were not forced kidnappings but cases of adultery fictitiously framed as abduction by abandoned husbands. In pursuing the themes of illicit sexuality and non-normative marital practices, this work analyses the nuances of the key Latin term raptus and the three overlapping offences that it could denote: rape, abduction and adultery. This investigation broadens our understanding of the role of women in the legal system; provides a means for analysing male control over female bodies, sexuality and access to the courts; and reveals ways in which female agency could, on occasion, manoeuvre around such controls.

This book is an attempt to address the ethical issues raised by mental illness and its treatment by focusing on the question of autonomy. The mentally ill may be regarded as non-autonomous by virtue of irrationality, which may result in treatment models which deny them a voice. As a counter to this, some have moved to the other extreme and argued that the mentally ill must be regarded as fully autonomous in all circumstances, and consequently that all their wishes regarding treatment must be respected. This book examines the ethical consequences of such simplistic approaches towards autonomy and mental illness, and considers the ethical issues raised by specific forms of treatment. It is suggested in conclusion that improvement in the care and treatment of the mentally ill requires not only a fundamental change in social attitudes but also a less impoverished conception of autonomy than some of those currently employed.

On graduating high school, many American students believe that the Middle Ages was full of knights, war, all-powerful popes, and, if their content went beyond Europe, potentially an incredibly wealthy man named Mansa Musa, and a Mesoamerican ballgame. In this version of the past, medieval people were backward, dirty, and all believed the earth was flat. While people who work within this chronological time period recognize its complexity, most students are not exposed to the history of the middle ages until they take upper level or graduate classes at universities, if they ever get that far. Given recent national and international events, it is evident that leaving this complicated and nuanced history for so late in a person’s educational journey is doing a social as well as educational disservice. In a quest to help teachers remediate this problem, several scholars of the global Middle Ages and Medievalisms have written lesson guides to be used by teachers of World and United States history for grades six through twelve. the goal is to create a collection that a teacher would be able to implement in their classroom with minimal additional work.

On graduating high school, many American students believe that the Middle Ages was full of knights, war, all-powerful popes, and, if their content went beyond Europe, potentially an incredibly wealthy man named Mansa Musa, and a Mesoamerican ballgame. In this version of the past, medieval people were backward, dirty, and all believed the earth was flat. While people who work within this chronological time period recognize its complexity, most students are not exposed to the history of the middle ages until they take upper level or graduate classes at universities, if they ever get that far. Given recent national and international events, it is evident that leaving this complicated and nuanced history for so late in a person’s educational journey is doing a social as well as educational disservice. In a quest to help teachers remediate this problem, several scholars of the global Middle Ages and Medievalisms have written lesson guides to be used by teachers of World and United States history for grades six through twelve. the goal is to create a collection that a teacher would be able to implement in their classroom with minimal additional work.

This book is an attempt to address the ethical issues raised by mental illness and its treatment by focusing on the question of autonomy. The mentally ill may be regarded as non-autonomous by virtue of irrationality, which may result in treatment models which deny them a voice. As a counter to this, some have moved to the other extreme and argued that the mentally ill must be regarded as fully autonomous in all circumstances, and consequently that all their wishes regarding treatment must be respected. This book examines the ethical consequences of such simplistic approaches towards autonomy and mental illness, and considers the ethical issues raised by specific forms of treatment. It is suggested in conclusion that improvement in the care and treatment of the mentally ill requires not only a fundamental change in social attitudes but also a less impoverished conception of autonomy than some of those currently employed.

Royal women did much more to wield power besides marrying the king and producing the heir. Contributors highlight the theme of dynastic loyalty by focusing on the roles and actions of individual royal women, examining patterns within dynasties, and considering what factors generated loyalty and disloyalty to a dynasty or individual ruler.

Royal women did much more to wield power besides marrying the king and producing the heir. Contributors highlight the theme of dynastic loyalty by focusing on the roles and actions of individual royal women, examining patterns within dynasties, and considering what factors generated loyalty and disloyalty to a dynasty or individual ruler.