Reading Memory and Identity in the Texts of Medieval European Holy Women

This collection of essays examines a range of texts commemorating European holy women from the ninth through fifteenth centuries. The contributors explore the relationship between memorial practices and identity formation in two ways: first, by showing how women drew upon traditions and memories in fashioning their own lived lives; and secondly, by showing how both male and female authors used medieval memory arts to portray those lives for contemporary and future audiences. This book draws upon much of the recent scholarly interest in the nature and uses of memory, and will interest scholars of medieval literature, medieval religious history, feminist scholars, and historians of rhetoric.