#favorite woman writer

[heather123fan-blog]

Day 5: Thursday, 11th July — Favorite woman writer: Christine de Pizan (b. 1364, Venice, Italy; d. 1430, Poissy, France)

Christine de Pisan (Christine de Pizan) was a medieval writer and historiographer who advocated for women’s equality. Her works, considered to be some of the earliest feminist writings, include poetry, novels, biography, and autobiography, as well as literary, political, and religious commentary. De Pisan became the first woman in France, and possibly Europe, to earn a living solely by writing.

De Pisan was raised at court in Paris with her father, Thomas de Pisan, the astrologer and secretary to King Charles V of France. Although her educational upbringing is unclear, through her father’s court appointment, she did have access to a variety of exceptional libraries. In 1380, de Pisan married Etienne du Castel, a nobleman from Picardy. He was an unusual husband for the time in that he supported her educational and writing endeavors. When he died in 1390, de Pisan was only in her early twenties. After receiving attention from patrons in the court for her poetry and love ballads dedicated to her husband, she decided that rather than remarry she would support her three children and newly widowed mother through her writing. While she was still establishing herself as a writer, de Pisan also transcribed and illustrated other authors’ works.

Her own writing, in its various forms, discusses many feminist topics, including the source of women’s oppression, the lack of education for women, different societal behaviors, combating a misogynistic society, women’s rights and accomplishments, and visions of a more equal world. De Pisan’s work, though critical of the prevailing patriarchy, was well received, as it was also based in Christian virtue and morality. Her writing was especially strong in rhetorical strategies that have since been extensively studied by scholars.

Her two most famous works are the books Le Dit de la Rose (The Tale of the Rose), 1402, and Le Tresor de la Cité des Dames (The Book of the City of Ladies), 1405. Le Dit de la Rose was a direct attack on Jean de Meun’s extremely popular Romance of the Rose, a work about courtly love that characterized women as seducers, which de Pisan claimed was misogynistic, vulgar, immoral, and slanderous to women. She later published Letters on the Debate of the Rose as a follow-up to the controversial debate.

In Le Tresor de la Cité des Dames, de Pisan has a discussion with three “ladies,” introduced as Reason, Rectitude, and Justice, about the oppression of women and the misogynistic subject matter and language that contemporary male writers used. Under the author’s guidance, the women form their own city, where only women of virtue reside. In the book, she writes, “Moreover, it is just as applicable to ladies, maidens, and other women to have worldly prudence in regulating their lives well, each according to her estate, and to love honour and the blessings of a good reputation” (Lawson, trans., The Treasure of the City of Ladies, 110).

Although de Pisan’s work was primarily written for and about the upper classes (the majority of lower class women were illiterate), her writing was instrumental in introducing the concept of equality and justice for women in medieval France. De Pisan lived the majority of her life in relative comfort, and in 1418, she entered a convent in Poissy (northwest of Paris), where she continued to produce work, including her last poem Le Ditie de Jeanne d’Arc (Song in Honor of Joan of Arc), 1429.

Christine de Pisan at The Dinner Party

Christine de Pisan is represented in her plate as an abstracted butterfly form painted in swirling, vibrant hues of red and green. Chicago describes the form as having “one wing raised in a gesture of defense, to symbolize her efforts to protect women” (Chicago, The Dinner Party, 86).

The runner is done in tones from the same color palette, and jagged flame-like forms adorn the edges. The wavy, colorful pattern is characteristic of Bargello needlepoint, also called “flame stitch” or “Florentine stitch,” thought to have originated in medieval Italy. According to Chicago, this design, which appears to be encroaching on the plate, represents the suffocating Renaissance-era constraints on women (Chicago, The Dinner Party, 86).

On the front of the runner, embroidered on the illuminated capital “C” in her name, is a scene based on an illuminated manuscript in which de Pisan presents a volume of her work to the queen of France. This book represents her writing as a gift of knowledge and feminism that was offered to the medieval world.

[mauvecherie-writes]

urgent support.

Hi guys, now I’m not ashamed to always ask for help but when it’s monetary, it always adds this layer of shame to it. However, I am an unemployed student still struggling to find work.

Until I get my student finance - I’m in overdraft and I have bills and expenses I need to cover for until then.

If you can please donate anything at all to my pot to achieve £150 it would be a massive help.

Thank you, thank you, thank you 🩷🩷🩷🩷

PAYPAL

KO-FI

[vulpixelates]

thank you to @ladyinthebluebox for tagging me to make a poll of my favorite video game ladies! 💖 i think there is one going around where it's just favorite fictional women in general but i had to limit it to video games or i'd be here for a year

tagging the following and anyone else who wants to (but no pressure!): @butchdollyparton @bardofheartdive @serawasnever @sunlians @littlebirdofprey

[itsmiyamore]

Teehee someone call a kagehina fanfic writer I'd absolutely eat this shit up

[yunmeng-jiang]

workin on my first scum villain fic!!

[b0bthebuilder35]

Just…

Thank you 🕊️🥹

[peachviz]

no, no, it’s cool. I get it. there’s absolutely a good reason why Janeway is almost somehow naked every season and it’s only season 3

[uwmspeccoll]

Woman Writer of the Week

In my ongoing quest to discover the folk literature in Special Collections, I was excited to find a book of fairy tales that were retold as well as illustrated by women! It is always very exciting to find a twofer, and I feel these two compliment each other very well.

The book in question is Favorite Fairy Tales Told in Scotland, which contains six popular retellings by American librarian, writer, authority in children's literature, and collector of international fairy tales for children Virginia Haviland (1911-1988), with illustrations by multiple Caldecott Honor awardee Adrienne Adams (1906-2002). This first edition copy was published simultaneously in Boston and Toronto by Little, Brown & Company in 1963.

This book is from the Favorite Fairy Tales series, which consists of sixteen volumes, each focusing on fairy tales compiled from sixteen different countries, retold in “simple, faithful versions”. Part of Haviland’s reasoning behind compiling these stories was to “make them more accessible for children.” Haviland was considered a pioneer for her work in compiling these tales into dedicated books.

Adams began her career first as a freelance designer of displays, murals, textiles, and greeting cards. After marrying children’s book writer John Lonzo Anderson (1905-1993), she illustrated his book Bag of Smoke that began her career as an illustrator. She became a full-time illustrator in 1952 and illustrated more than thirty books that ranged from contemporary stories to fairy tales. The media for her colored illustrations ranged from tempera, gouache, watercolor, to crayon.

View more Women’s History Month posts.

View more posts on our Children’s Books.

- Elizabeth V., Special Collections Undergraduate Writing Intern

[weepingfoxfury]

The man on the radio is still in Switzerland so today we have a woman on the radio. The woman on the radio definitely has more of an idea where all the buttons are and in which order to press them ... even if her stairs at home outwitted her. Apparently there was one more step than she remembered ... which means she now has bruised knees. Extra Step Syndrome is a common occurrence ... happens in many households ... symptoms are a jarred back, bruised knees and excessive use of expletives. It has yet to be discovered where the extra step comes from. Sympathies woman on the radio, sympathies.

The traffic lady came and went and told tales of too many to count cars and buses and lorries.

Julie Andrews sings of a few of her favourite things before some accapella gentlemen sing about the Teddy Bears' Picnic.

The shiny metropolis was as shiny and scent and sound filled as always yesterday. Had to make a quick escape, empty handed, from a charity shop as a man sneezed and sneezed and coughed and coughed ... and in between his potentially contagious cacophony announced to all and sundry about how ill he felt. This happens regularly. Ill people in Ireland do like to head out for a spot of fresh air when feeling at their worst.

Get well soon ill people of Ireland ... your beds are the best place for you.

Enjoyed some banter with the gentleman in my local second hand DVD shop. I am the last of the big spenders. A one euro film each week and he beams and laughs and always asks if I'd like a bag for my big purchase. This week he even cleaned the disk for me. It's the little things.

Glad to be at home today with all my favourites ... cats and dogs, the sound of birds and my happy little cup of coffee ...

[thewhimsicalarchives]

🎧 song of the day & playlist rambles (1): this song has been replaying in my mind far too often recently ~

Favorite Line: "And I'm down on my hands and knees, beggin' you please, baby. Show me your world,"

Consensus: There’s just something I can’t put my finger on about this song. It’s not only satisfying to listen to, but it gives me a sense of nostalgia, longing, and contentment all at the same time. It’s nostalgic in the sense that it makes me feel like I’m reliving a memory all over again- a memory that I haven’t experienced before- if that makes any sense. In conclusion, super deep feelings everywhere, love Mac Demarco 🫶

Rating: 10/10, my favorite song by him.

[vulpinesaint]

i don't talk about alucard castlevania very often because the last season of castlevania was so bad to me that i just don't engage with the show anymore like that but make no mistake. i have many thoughts and opinions on that man.

[comphetkoncass]

dc fic writers with male faves not caring about female characters whatsoever -> accidentally making their male favs sexist

even the dudebro canon writers have the guy characters ask her 'hey you seem down... didnt you kill your dad last week?' before going back to focusing on him. dc fic writers often won't include women at all, or if one does show up she's usually a hollow shell whose only purpose is to enrich your male fav's life and provide hurt/comfort and emotional first aid.

[velvetporcelain]

please read.

Jesus. I am in love with everyone. — I’m not a slut I promise. I just will throw myself onto everyone that walks by me and they can feel it, I know they can feel my divine feminine energy. It offends some. It attracts some.

— and that’s life!!!!!! sex. sacred energy exchanges with strangers without ever touching our bodies.

pure energy of the human spirit. I light em all up!!!!! I know this!!!! and you wouldn’t understand because you are fucking greedy with it!! and they have taught you to protect your divine feminine energy —- but if there is one thing I beg you believe my sister —- it’s —-

PROTECT YOUR DARK FEMININE ENERGY AT ALL COSTS!!!!!!!!!

i am crying for you. you are just waiting to explode with energy— explode!! Please!!! I beg you my sister ———- spread it like the disease you are. the dis. ease. the discontent of what makes life easy!!!!! interrupt it!! for god sake woman!!! you are the holy portal of life itself!!!!

for fuck sake woman!!!!! I beg you!!! show me the prism of colors waiting to spew from the center of your divine breasts!!!!!! open your shirt wide like Superman!!!! SHOW THEM!!!!!!!!!!

you fucking god!!!!!! Wolf!!!!!!!!!! YOU ARE GODS FAVORITE SPECIES!!!!!! you made to create, conjure and cultivate!! now get the fuck up—- baby——— I said get the fuck up and show your teeth!!!

fin.

-x

[smallhatlogan]

you don't need to hate on a female character for doing something seemingly foolish or cruel but you also don't always need to try to justify it, sometimes you can just say "Oh she acted this way because the writers sucked"

but sometimes her actions are perfectly justifiable and you're just bad at sympathizing with her or giving her the benefit of the doubt

[miscellaneousjay]

I also finally watched “The Devil Wears Prada” from start to finish yesterday as well. Andrea Sachs (played by the always wonderful Anne Hathaway) is a whole mood and inspiration, okay?! Andy might’ve been low on confidence and style, but do you know the sheer amount of AUDACITY (I think/objectively looking from the outside in) you have to have to walk in to a business that specializes in fashion looking like a soggy, overgrown second-grader and trying to convince IRL Cruella De Vil why she should give you a job?! PURE PUSSY (very strong and flexible muscle) I TELL YOU! Me? I wouldn’t have even dared. However, if my apartment was on the line, soggy second-grader reporting for duty.🫡 Then Miranda was a HORRIBLE BOSS!! She had Emily so scared of failure that that lady stopped eating and came to work with the FLU! Just NASTY!😷 Then, she had Andy doing her kids’ HOMEWORK!!!!😤 That shit woulda blew me, I woulda walked out, and I woulda had Blonde Dude use his connects to get me out of being Miranda Priestley’s lackey. That lady is the definition of being a Boss and a Bitch. Like, two things can be true at once: 1) She is an icon and the moment and 2) She’s cruel and couldn’t give less than half of a fuck about any of her employees; not even the tried and true like Nigel. He worked for her for 18 years and hadn’t seen a promotion ever! And how she used that to positively GAG Andy about how she did the same thing to Emily when it came to the Paris Fashion Week trip?! Damn!😬 While I like how Andy left the world of fashion and faux camaraderie (except for Nigel, he was her only real friend there) behind, I like that she took confidence and no-nonsense with her. As a writer still breaking into my field, I have never related to a character harder than I have to Andrea Sachs at the moment! I wonder if Essence is hiring…🤔😏🤓😝

P. S. Andy’s boyfriend could’ve been a lil more supportive of her considering her daddy had to lend them rent money and, when she started working for Miranda, most of their income was coming from Andy being on call for “The Dragon Lady” damn-near 24/7 (not being paid enough if you ask me, but def more than he was before he got a better-paying job at the END OF THE MOVIE).

[thepastisapebbleinmyshoe]

She collected men, the way the sea, collects forgotten shipwrecks.

So desperate to be loved, to be touched, covered in thorns, even a sociopath, can resemble a woman.

I stared deep into her eyes, and saw a thousand, broken souls, devoured by the same lies.

Shipwrecks

"She Planted Her Own Flowers"

Better World Books - Give the Gift of Reading!