| Anchoritic Traditions of Medieval Europe Contributor(s): McAvoy, Liz Herbert (Editor), McHugh, Anna (Contribution by), Mulder-Bakker, Anneke B. (Contribution by) |
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ISBN: 1843835207 ISBN-13: 9781843835202 Publisher: Boydell Press OUR PRICE: $90.25 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: January 2010 Annotation: (Provisional) Presents for the first time a comprehensive survey of the various traditions of medieval anchoritism as developed in western Europe during the Middle Ages, dispelling the long-accepted myth that the English anchoritic experience is the definitive one. It offers both an overview of the origins and development of anchoritism across Europe, and a close examination and profile of one or more specific examples of influential anchorites within that region, highlighting their reception by contemporaries and their influence upon the religiosity of the community. The introduction discusses the biblical origins of the anchoritic life, and the variety of paths it took. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Europe - Medieval - Religion | Institutions & Organizations - Religion | Christianity - History |
| Dewey: 255.020 |
| LCCN: 2010292528 |
| Physical Information: 0.7" H x 9.3" W x 6.2" (1.05 lbs) 256 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - Medieval (500-1453) - Cultural Region - British Isles - Religious Orientation - Christian |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The practice of anchoritism - religious enclosure which was frequently solitary and voluntarily embraced, very often in a permanent capacity - was widespread in many areas of Europe throughout the middle ages. Originating in the desert withdrawal of the earliest Christians and prefiguring even the monastic life, anchoritism developed into an elite vocation which was popular amongst both men and women. Within this reclusive vocation, the anchorite would withdraw, either alone or with others like her or him, to a small cell or building, very frequently attached to a church or other religious institution, where she or he would - theoretically at least - remain locked up until death. In the later period it was a vocation which was particularly associated with pious laywomen who appear to have opted for this extreme way of life in their thousands throughout western Europe, often as an alternative to marriage orremarriage, allowing them, instead, to undertake the role of "living saint" within the community. This volume brings together for the first time in English much of the most important European scholarship on the subject to date. Tracing the vocation's origins from the Egyptian deserts of early Christian activity through to its multiple expressions in western Europe, it also identifies some of those regions - Wales and Scotland, for example - where thephenomenon does not appear to have been as widespread. As such, the volume provides an invaluable resource for those interested in the theories and practices of medieval anchoritism in particular, and the development of medieval religiosity more widely. Dr LIZ HERBERT MCAVOY is Professor of Medieval Literature at Swansea University. CONTRIBUTORS: Anneke B. Mulder-Bakker, Gabriela Signori, M. Sensi, G. Cavero Dominguez, P. L'Hermite-Leclercq, Mari Hughes-Edwards, Colman O Clabaigh, Anna McHugh, Liz Herbert McAvoy. |