The castilian lettered in the trail of quattrocentist women: of their defense and education

Author(s)

Danielle Oliveira Mércuri

• Document type: Doctoral Thesis
• Press: Franca. 2016-08-29.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Faculdade de Ciências Humanas e Sociais. Franca
• Defense date: 2016-08-01
• Advisor: Susani Silveira Lemos França

Abstract

The composition of some treaties in defense of women during the reign of Juan II (1405-1454) of Castile is representative of a longing that seems to have become common among the lettered of that kingdom from the first half of the fifteenth century: not only to prevent the memories and deeds of noble women from falling into oblivion, but rather repress that, about them, only the shameful word was pronounced. To go through this path, these nobles could not avoid to wage a fight against those that, for a long time, or even contemporary to them, insist on exile them to oblivion or vituperation. But not only these forms of reasoning in favor of women brought them to light at this time, the power games put them also in the sights of the discussions held by the lettered, as the succession crisis hit the Spanish kingdom in the second half of the fifteenth century, dividing it between two possible heirs to the crown - Lady Juana (supposed daughter of Enrique IV and Juan II granddaughter) and Isabel (sister of Enrique IV and daughter of Juan II) - and the ascension to the Spanish throne by Isabel (1474), which came to strengthen, even if in another dimension, the interest of the Castilians to dedicate them comments, or even to provide them with services and prepare them some guidelines of conduct. In this research, we propose to inquire about the meaning attributed to the defense and education of women by scholars of this peninsular kingdom, from some central questions, to know: the reason they came to be, in a more regular way, the motto and the recipient of the texts written by the Castilian nobles; what type of prescriptions and recommendations these men prepared them; which factors contributed for some of them, specially queens, to be the main interlocutors and / or claimants of these texts and to what extent the debates established between some men and the concerns of some women became axis of the requirements addressed to them. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/22746-1 - REQUIREMENTS FOR WOMAN IN A QUEEN OF CASTILE (fifteenth and sixteenth centuries)
• Grantee: Danielle Oliveira Mércuri
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate