It should come as no surprise that one of the central themes of The Book of the City of Ladies is women and femininity. From the first page, Christine de Pizan writes with the sole intent of proving that women are capable of being just as moral and intelligent as men. She stops short of saying that women should have equal rights, but then again, she was writing in 1405. There was probably only so much Christine de Pizan was able to get away with when it came to arguing the case for women in society.
Questions About Women and Femininity
- Why does Christine de Pizan open this book feeling so horrible about being a woman? Use specific evidence from the text to support your answer.
- Why does de Pizan say that women shouldn't try too hard to be independent at the end of the novel? How does this jibe with her celebration of the Amazon women earlier in the book?
- Why would Christine de Pizan build a city just for ladies and then tell her female readers to obey their husbands? Is she being a hypocrite here? Why or why not?
- Does Christine de Pizan's early brand of feminism have anything to teach us today, or is it too far in the past to be useful?
Chew on This
In The Book of the City of Ladies, de Pizan clearly wants to argue for women's independence, but pulls back because she's afraid of her social reputation.
Christine de Pizan fantasizes about a City of Ladies because she's skeptical of men's ability to treat women well.