Medieval Women on Film: Essays on Gender, Cinema and History

by Kevin J. Harty (Editor)

Overview

In this first ever book-length treatment, 11 scholars with a variety of backgrounds in medieval studies, film studies, and medievalism discuss how historical and fictional medieval women have been portrayed on film and their connections to the feminist movements of the 20th and 21st centuries. From detailed studies of the portrayal of female desire and sexuality, to explorations of how and when these women gain agency, these essays look at the different ways these women reinforce, defy, and complicate traditional gender roles.

Individual essays discuss the complex and sometimes conflicting cinematic treatments of Guinevere, Morgan Le Fay, Isolde, Maid Marian, Lady Godiva, Heloise, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Joan of Arc. Additional essays discuss the women in Fritz Lang's The Nibelungen, Liv Ullmann's Kristin Lavransdatter, and Bertrand Tavernier's La Passion Beatrice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476639000
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	04/02/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	216
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Kevin J. Harty, professor and formerly chair of English and coordinator of the Undergraduate General Education Core at La Salle University in Philadelphia, is associate editor of Arthuriana, the official journal of the North American Branch of the International Arthurian Society (of which he is the former president). He has previously written or edited 14 books, including ground-breaking studies of depictions of the Middle Ages on film.
Kevin J. Harty, professor and formerly chair of English and coordinator of the Undergraduate General Education Core at La Salle University in Philadelphia, is associate editor of Arthuriana, the official journal of the North American Branch of the International Arthurian Society (of which he is the former president). He has previously written or edited 14 books, including ground-breaking studies of depictions of the Middle Ages on film.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Preface
Medieval Women on Film: An Introduction (Kevin J. Harty)
Liberating Guinevere: Female Desire on Film (Amy S. Kaufman)
Adversary, Sister, Scapegoat: Morgan le Fay on Film (Usha Vishnuvajjala)
Isolde on the Silver Screen: Enraptured, Resolute and Shrewd (Joan Tasker Grimbert)
Maid Marian: Neomedievalism and the Misogyny in the Reel (Valerie B. Johnson)
The Women of Fritz Lang’s Medieval Epic, The Nibelungen; or, Two Queens and a Nazi (Donald L. Hoffman)
Through a Woman’s Eyes: Liv Ullmann’s Kristin Lavransdatter (Joseph M. Sullivan)
Gender, Violence and Medievalism in La Passion Béatrice (Andrew B.R. Elliott)
Lady Godiva on Film: Icon of Faith, Icon of Feminism or Erotic
Simulacrum (Sandra Gorgievski)
Hidden in Plain Sight: Heloise in Clive Donner’s Stealing Heaven (Kristin L. Burr)
Catty Queen Consort, Lioness in Winter and Loyal Queen Mother:
Images of Eleanor of Aquitaine in Film (Fiona Tolhurst)
The Lady Is for Burning: The Cinematic Joan of Arc and Her Screen Avatars (Kevin J. Harty)
About the Contributors
Index

Editorial Reviews

This volume looks at portrayals in film of various medieval European female figures, both the legendary and the historical...Most of the contributors are scholars of medieval history or literature, but several have a research interest in film.”—Choice

From the Publisher