Roles of Women in the Middle Ages and Renaissance

The role of women has progressed from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and into the 19^th century. Although women were always considered inferior to men, even to modern day society, women have gained some rights which consider them more independent. The role of the female has evolved tremendously from the Middle Ages because women are now able to balance their family life as well as their work. Women are able to pursue a variety of different career paths which were once fulfilled by men.

Life was difficult in the Middle Ages. Very few people in society could read or write and thought that their existence was ruled by fate. People had little hope that their conditions would improve in society. During the Roman Empire, the poor counted on the soldiers of the emperor to protect them. However, when the empire fell, there weren’t any laws that would protect them. Therefore, the poor people would always turn to the lords to act on their behalf. The power the people gave to the lords led to beginnings of feudalism.

In the Middle Ages, women’s daily life was split between family, marriage and religion. Women were always expected to perform the duties of a housewife and be submissive towards their husband or a male authority in the house. Whether a women was born a noble or a pleasant, they were always held a very hard position in society. Although a few women did venture into fields of writing, painting, and dancing, they were largely confined to household tasks. Household duties women were engaged in included cooking, sewing, weaving, baking bread and entertaining. The principle role of women in the Middle Ages was to look after their children, husband and home. Being a wife was very important because women had to tend to their husband’s needs at all times.

Here is a video of Women in the Middle Ages. 

Other than attending to their daily household chores, women were not accessed equal rights. They weren’t entitled to equal rights like they do in modern day society. Some rights women were not eligible to included being able to vote, choose whether or not to marry, or have children. It was difficult for women to receive a job, let alone have access to an education, unlike men.

Women were considered powerless, defenseless and weak but played an important role in the lives of nobles and peasant families. In a feudal society, noble women were able to hold little property because the lords passed usually passed their land to their sons and not to their daughters. However, when nobles went out to fight, women would fill in their role. On the other hand, peasant women were drowned in endless labor in the fields and home. They worked alongside their husbands in the fields. As Chadwick stated, “our knowledge about the daily lives and customs of women in the Middle Ages owed much to representations emphasizing their labor, as in a thirteenth-century manuscript illumination of a women milking a cow” (Chadwick, 43). Young girls learned household duties from their mothers.

Women milking cow

The Renaissance was a major change for women. The Renaissance is known as the era of rebirth were women gained more freedom. More women became like Christine De Pizan – outspoken and courageous. Christine De Pizan was the first women who made a living as an author.

Christine De Pizan in her study.

Women in the Renaissance had greater equality than in comparison to the Middle Ages. Many things for women started to slowly change during this period, even though they were still widely restricted. The feudalistic structure that was present before started to break down and was replaced by mercantilism. One of the biggest changes that occurred was women were able to read. In the novel it stated that women were allowed to, “attend or teach in a university if she moved to Bologna” (Guerilla Girls, 32). It was evident that women were granted more freedom. Thanks to the presence of St. Catherine’s cult in Bologna, women felt supported. Because women were allowed to receive an education, “social historians have noted that in Bologna at the beginning of the fifteenth century women outnumbered men, a fact which may have well encouraged their participation in trades like painting and printing which remained under guild control until at least 1600” (Chadwick 90). Minor changes like these in the Renaissance gave women hope and encouragement. Below is a painting by Gentileschi (the first women artist in the history of Western art).

Judith Decapitating Holofernes, 1618

As for the nineteenth century, it was the period of great technological advances. The industrial revolution made art production easier because factories became prominent and the printing press developed. The need for women to find waged work outside their home was a necessity. If you were a 19^th century girl, “you could finally become a practicing lawyer or doctor” (Guerilla Girls, 52). It was evident women were stepping up to become more independent. The role of women took centuries to change, but it was unmistakable that progression occurred. 

The role women had in the Industrial Revolution is shown here. 

References

Chadwick, W. (2007). Women, Art, and Society (4th ed., pp. 43-86). New York, NY: Thames and Hudson.

Guerrilla Girls. (1998). The Guerrilla Girls' Bedside Companion to the History of Western Art (pp. 18-37). New York, NY: Penguin Books.