The Book of the City of Ladies Essay - 1696 Words

The Book of the City of Ladies During the renaissance many different views of leadership surfaced. Christine de Pizan’s The Book of the City of Ladies, Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince, and William Shakespeare’s Richard III each present distinct views of what would make a good leader during the renaissance period. Shakespeare and Christine de Pizan’s views align most closely with Plato’s. Christine de Pizan’s view also aligns with Augustine’s medieval view of leadership. Machiavelli’s view, however, strays the farthest from Plato and Augustine. In The Book of the City of Ladies, Christine presents an allegorical city made up of great ladies from history. Allegorical characters Reason, Rectitude, and Justice guide Christine†¦show more content†¦Through these characters, collectively known as the Virtues, Christine shows that virtue, both public and private, holds utmost importance to a good leader. The examples used by the Virtues to dispel lies about women help a one see a glimpse of Christine’s ideal leader. The leaders used by Christine share many similar qualities, but chief amongst these is virtue. All of Christine’s characters possess some redeeming quality which supercedes any wrong done. Christine’s virtue comes from God and manifests itself through morally virtuous characteristics. This can be seen in the example of Valentina Visconti, the duchess of Orleans, who Christine describes as, â€Å"A lady who is strong and constant in heart, filled with devotion to her lord and good teaching for her children, well-informed in government, just toward all, sensible in her conduct, and virtuous in all things† (213). Christine places the highest value on leaders who lead by example. Christine devotes a large section of the City of Ladies to martyrs, saying of them â€Å"women who are crowned in glory and whose fair lives serve as excellent examples for every woman above all other wisdom. For this reason these women are the most outstanding of our City† (219). Machiavelli takes a drastically different view on renaissance leadership, placing emphasis on obtaining andShow MoreRelatedThe Book Of The City Of Ladies2292 Words   |  10 Pageshave faced intense discrimination from a lack of legal rights and very little independence from their husbands and society at large. In many societies, women have long been viewed as less than fully human. Christine de Pizan in her book â€Å"The Book of the City of Ladies†1405, wrote that the oppression of women is founded on irrational prejudice, pointing out numerous advances in society probably created by women. Under the end of the 19th century, women were excluded from taking part in voting andRead MoreThe Book of the City of Ladies Essay1384 Words   |  6 PagesWomen in History and the Rise of the City of Ladies Prior to and throughout the late middle ages, women have been portrayed in literature as vile and corrupt. During this time, Christine de Pizan became a well educated woman and counteracted the previous notions of men’s slander against women. With her literary works, Pizan illustrated to her readers and women that though education they can aspire to be something greater than what is written in history. Through the use of real historical examplesRead MoreEssay on The Book of the City of Ladies1088 Words   |  5 Pagestrue visionary in the fight for the equal rights of women. Her original ideas and insight provided a new and more intelligent way to view females. Pizan’s work, The Book of the City of Ladies, provided women much needed guidance in how to survive without the support of a man. It is Christine’s literary work The Book of the City of Ladies that is most intriguing to contemporary readers. Christine was the first woman writer to possess the ability to identify and address the issues of misogyny in theRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Book Of The City Of Ladies 1990 Words   |  8 Pagesposition and â€Å"either were they allowed to contribute in any aspect of life. There is a very profound statement made in the book â€Å"The book of the city of ladies†. â€Å"Didn’t you yourself create woman, especially and then endow her with all the qualities that you wish her to have? How could you possibly have made a mistake in anything?† (De Pizan, Christine.) The Book of the City of Ladies. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2016. â€Å"Women in the early medieval age wereRead MoreThe Love Letters Of Heloise And Abelard Analysis886 Words   |  4 Pages Their is a distinctive role in the medieval view of women in â€Å"The Book of the City of Ladies by Christine de Pisan† and â€Å"The Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard† that are different and similar. â€Å"The Book of the City of Ladies by Christine de Pisan† was a book that was written by Christine Pisan and what inspired her to write this story was all of the slander woman were getting as far as being blamed for every negative thing in the world. â€Å"The Love Letters of Heloise and Abelard† wasRead MoreThe City Of Ladies Analysis1141 Words   |  5 Pages The Book of the City of Ladies, published by the author, Christine De Pizan in the early 1400s, is known to be one of the earliest works of feminism. In her work Pizan constructs an allegorical city called â€Å"The City of Ladies,† a city where only women livelived, to defend the â€Å"chosen,† virtuous women from the misogyny of the male authors. Although the text may have sounded dreamy and fantastical for female readers at the time, listing their capabilities, intelligence and strengths, de Pizan cleverlyRead MoreGuy Montag Character Development Essay775 Words   |  4 PagesBradbury. In this novel, the protagonist, Guy Montag, makes a living in a futuristic world by burning books and their owners houses since it is illegal to own books. Eventually his eyes are opened and he begins to steal the books he is supposed to burn from the owners houses, and starts protecting them. Guy Montag is developed through the usage of minor characters such as Clarisse, the old lady, and Granger. First of all, Clarisse has a major impact on the development of Guy Montag. Clarisse isRead MoreSignificance Of Comedy In Dantes Divine Comedy1193 Words   |  5 Pagesmost literature works, is the meaning of comedy. 2. Analyze the significance of insects and animals in The Panchatantra. a. Panchatantra was written in the valleys of Kashmir, as people later found out, so the animals in the book belonged to that place. The animals in this book are used to send a sublime message and touch the heart in a very natural way. 3. Discuss the theme of revenge in Hamlet. a. This was the major theme of the play. Prince Hamlet is mourning both his mother’s remarriage as wellRead MoreEssay On The Importance Of Being Earnest1087 Words   |  5 PagesImportance of Being Earnest The title of the book I read for my summer reading is called The Importance of Being Earnest which is a drama book written by Oscar Wilde. It was set in London in the year of 1895. A constant theme throughout this book was marriage beginning with Lane and Algernon discussion. Everyone has different ideas of what marriage is, Lane believes it is a pleasant state, Algernon and Jack discuss if its for business or pleasure. Lady Bracknell believes that it should be a completeRead MoreStefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta: Baby, I Was Born This Way551 Words   |  3 PagesLady Gaga remains famous today due to her striking originality, the themes of her music, and her immensely addictive melodies. Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta has always been a spunky, nonconformist individual. From her birth till now, almost anyone would describe her as different, or exotic. Born to Joseph and Cynthia Germanotta, she was raised in a modest, American home with her little sister, Natali (Lady 1). Germanotta was born on March 28, 1986, in New York City, New York (Gaga 2). Living