How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
[Synoppe] soundly revenged her mother by having all the inhabitants of the country where her mother was killed put to the sword, and she devastated the entire land, and along with this country, she conquered many others. (1.17.1)
Christine de Pizan has a lot of admiration for the woman-only (and totally fictitious, just so we're clear) culture of the Amazons. These warrior women didn't take any lip from anyone and weren't afraid to stab their problems away when they had to.
Quote #2
And then she had his head severed and thrown into a bucket in which she had had collected the blood of his barons. (1.17.2)
Whoa, that's some Game of Thrones-style insano-gore. Like the Amazons, the woman from this anecdote is perfectly capable of being brutal when someone messes with her. Here, Christine de Pizan reminds us that it's not just men who can be powerful and brutal.
Quote #3
[There] was nothing which [Circe] might want to do that she could not accomplish by virtue of the strength of her spells. (1.32.2)
According to legend, there are many women who've been able to use magic and spells in order to accomplish whatever they want. It's unclear, though, whether de Pizan believed literally in these stories or if she knew they were fiction.
Quote #4
How happy will be the citizens of our edifice, for they will not need to fear or worry about being evicted by foreign armies, for this work has the special property that its owners cannot be expelled. (2.12.1)
To make sure that no one ever messes with the City of Ladies, Christine de Pizan builds it so that no army will ever be able to get through its walls or force the women inside it to leave. This is a safe place for Christine and for women like her. As we've mentioned before, though, it's really hard to determine whether the city is just in Christine's mind or if it's a real place in the book. Our money's on "in Christine's mind," though.
Quote #5
She entered and fearlessly took the sword which she saw at the head of the bed, withdrew it from its sheath, then raised it with all her strength, and cut off Holophernes' head without being heard by anyone. (2.31.1)
Don't be surprised if you find more than one story in this text about a woman chopping off a dude's head. Some people would argue that this is a sign of symbolic castration, and they might even be right. But for now, we're going to stick with the idea that sometimes a woman chopping off a dude's head is just a woman chopping off a dude's head.
Quote #6
However, [Coriolanus] knew how to avenge himself, for he went over to the side of those whom he had previously defeated and led them in rebellion against the Romans. (2.34.1)
Coriolanus (who you might know from Shakespeare) was a pretty good warmonger. He was so good that he conquered one group, then joined them and conquered the people he was originally fighting for. That's a pretty good track record.
Quote #7
All Powerful God, whom my wife, the queen, believes in and worships, please help me in this battle, and I promise that I will accept your holy law. (2.35.1)
At the end of the day, Christine de Pizan puts her life totally in the hands of God, who she considers all-powerful. Sure, men might hold the power in her daily life, but they are nothing but ants compared to God. God is so powerful, in fact, that the differences between men and women don't really mean much by comparison.
Quote #8
That same day, the emperor, who was named Alexander, was stricken with such a grievous affliction that he ate his own flesh. (3.6.1)
You don't want to go messing with the wrong woman in this book, or else you might just find yourself eating your own skin because you've been hit with a curse. If that's not a good reason for being a good human being, we don't know what is.
Quote #9
This noble and beautiful eighteen-year-old virgin argued with amazing skill against the judge Urban, who threatened her with martyrdom unless she renounced Jesus Christ. (3.9.1)
In this story, a young woman argues with a judge so forcefully that she ends up convincing a lot of listeners to be on her side. The judge has way more power than her and threatens her with brutal punishment, but she's more than willing to stand up to him in order to speak her mind and promote Christianity.
Quote #10
And you ladies who are married, do not scorn being subject to your husbands, for sometimes it is not the best thing for a creature to be independent. (3.19.2)
Despite all of her arguments for women's strength and independence, Christine de Pizan says at the end of her book that married women should obey their husbands and be humble. It's kind of sad, considering that it doesn't match up with a lot of stuff de Pizan has said earlier in this book.