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IMC 2022: Sessions

Session 1632: Mothers, Motherhood, and Borders in the Medieval World, II: Constructing Mothers throughout Christendom

Thursday 7 July 2022, 11.15-12.45

Organisers:Kirsty A. S. Bolton, Centre for Medieval & Renaissance Culture / Department of English, University of Southampton
Lauren Sisson, Department of History, University of Nottingham
Moderator/Chair:Kirsty A. S. Bolton, Centre for Medieval & Renaissance Culture / Department of English, University of Southampton
Paper 1632-aUndecidable Borders: The Scholarly Construction of Julian of Norwich's Motherhood
(Language: English)
Sara Ameri Mahabadi, Department of English, University of Toronto
Index terms: Gender Studies, Religious Life
Paper 1632-bBest Mom Ever: Defining the Maternal Sanctity of St Anne in High Medieval Liturgy
(Language: English)
Diana Myers, St Benet's Hall, University of Oxford
Index terms: Gender Studies, Liturgy, Religious Life
Paper 1632-cSt Perpetua and St Felicitas: The Transformation of Motherhood
(Language: English)
Mary Hitchman, Faculty of History, University of Oxford
Index terms: Gender Studies, Hagiography
Paper 1632-dThe Case of Richilde of Hainaut: Gender, Motherhood, and the Historiography of the Flemish Civil War of 1071
(Language: English)
Brad Phillis, Department of History, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Index terms: Gender Studies, Political Thought
Abstract

This second panel examines the construction of maternal identities throughout Christendom. Sara Ameri Mahabadi explores scholarly constructions of Julian of Norwich's maternity, and how viewing her as a bereft mother may aid understanding of her visions. Diana Myers discusses the development of St Anne's cult, the growing emphasis on her maternity, and the reconceptualization of female sanctity in the High Middle Ages. Mary Hitchman considers changing representations of Saints Perpetua and Felicitas throughout the early medieval period, and particularly their motherhood. Bradley Phillis explores how 12th-century writers use gender and motherhood to frame the political activity of Richilde of Hainaut.