The condition of women in the Renaissance and Middle Ages
In the initial era, the condition of women does not suffer a great variation from the Middle Ages. While man is placed as the center of the universe, giving rise to humanism, the woman occupies the same place of submission and obedience.
The Church used two images for the woman, which she intended to establish as a model in an increasingly complex society that should be directed with iron hand if you wanted to control;The first one is that of Eva, which was created with Adam’s rib and led to the expulsion of both of Paradise for her original sin. The second is that of Mary, which represents, in addition to virginity, self-denial as a mother and as a wife. Both visions may seem contradictory, but it is nothing but the general impression that we have of the time: the ideal in front of the real.
From the social point of view, we could make a triple differentiation in terms of the position of women: the noble woman, the peasant and the nun. The first one was the only one that could enjoy great privileges and the one that, if possible, could achieve greater recognition.
The figure of the woman remained visualized lower than that of men;and until the 18th century, observed through an Aristotelian perspective, that is, subjugated by man. According to Aristotle’s words (s/f) “… the male, compared to the female, is the most main, and she inferior;And he is the one who governs, and she, the one who obeys … "Through these words, we can appreciate the woman as a person who should be submissive and subordinate to man, ideals that extended in the rebirth around the woman, as a servile and faithful figure.
There was an ideal of a woman, a figure that was aspired to become;It was based, as mentioned in advance, on the image of the Virgin Mary, angelic woman, perfect as a human being, wife and mother. It was intended to have a woman to imitate the purity of the Virgin, dedicated to man and domestic work.
An example of this ideal can be seen in "The perfect married" of Fray de León, published in Salamanca, in 1584. In this book it is considered how the ideal woman should be around her family, husband and religion. As said author mentions, "that that is to say that she has to study the woman, not to commit her husband and put him in anger and care, but to free him from the and in perpetual series of joy and rest" (De León, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis, Luis,1584). As you can see in this extract, it was inherent in the human being of that time to value women according to her work as a mother and housewife, and where the woman had to please her husband, clear him from her sorrows, take care of him and serve her.
On the other hand, the chastity of a woman, or call virginity, was a reason for honor for the husband as for the state, because the woman was "property" of both. Diabolic, essence, the female gender was not recognized as another;but, it depended on the male universe to justify its existence, the female image was conditioned by clerical discourse, that is, the male discourse of those who held the power of the word, of culture and tradition.;This image covered and promoted by them, remained respected even with the passage of time and the successive changes. The ideals maintained are shown in the words of different religious.
According to San Agustín (S IV D.C): "You have to address women severity and talk to them as little as possible … you cannot trust even the most virtuous"
In the words of Santo Tomás de Aquino (S. XIII d.C.): “… Under the charm of his words the virus of the greatest lasciviousness hides. "God created the most imperfect woman that man should therefore obey him since the man posate and reason"
San Jerónimo (S IV D.C.) raised: "… you never stop with a woman alone and without witness"
In contrast to the ideal of a woman raised in advance, another important figure arose that contradicted everything that was proposed idyllic in women, because she was rebellious and liberal: the courtly woman. The trade of these women was prostitution, customary associated with rich and aristocrats.
These women managed to gradually transfer the barrier that separated them from men, and managedFamily in the short term, they should be asserted and get work through other media. The treatment they were given and the freedom they enjoyed was deeply greater than those that their exclusive functions remained the procreation and satisfaction of man.
These women were immersed in a high intellectual world, compared to their peers, but were also mired in an erotic, hedonistic world, where the arts of sexuality did not go unnoticed. They were frequently awarded the figure of Eva, as a sensual, sinful woman, which was revealed against the rules to which it was sustained, and therefore, led to sin.
Being courtesan the exception, education was not common for the common European young people. Within the noble families, the daughters received an education conducted by the men and was limited to the trades of the home and to the collaboration with the future husband in the administration of their lands, received music and reading classes but in a limited way. There were recommendations, demands and limitations regarding what women could read, moving them away from any type of literature that took her to sin. Taking the aforementioned, you can appeal again to the book "The perfect married", by Fray de León, which recommends the reading of the Bible mainly, and texts of writers such as Cicero, Seneca, among others of said nature.
It was the woman who would later be in charge of conveying the culture and knowledge she possessed to the sons and daughters. If we refer to the nobles, today we know that most of them cultivated knowledge.
On the contrary, access to education for the lower classes was much more complex, especially in rural areas. The nuns were the luckiest among all women if we refer to education, since they could even know Latin and Greek and therefore to read and write. They had to face questions, since they were considered without rigor for the simple fact of being women, as well as with less intelligence and less capacities.
The prescriptions or norms that women should follow, regardless of their age or social class, were governed by books and treated always written by men;And this education contemplated by the writers, was seen as a means to fulfill their obligations and remain submissive.
In the sixteenth century, the theologian Gaspar de Astete said that women could not make a living writing, so he wondered what to give them something that would not help them for anything. And on the contrary he stressed that the woman’s weapons should be the spindle and the wheel. In a similar line of thought, the humanist and philosopher Juan Luis Vives, defended that women should know how to read but they should only read certain works. In addition, in his conviction of thought, this author wrote instruction to the Christian woman (1523), where he explained the expected behavior of women.
Although they were instructed in reading, there were few women who instructed themselves in writing, since it was not considered something well seen or correct;According to Carmen Sanchidrián (2016), writing always implied a "risk". If we only know how to read, we can "apprehend" the ideas of others, but we cannot transmit ours more than orally. What implies the ability to write is precisely the danger of transmitting to others and many people at the same time, if they are printed and to people of many generations, the ideas themselves. (In History and Memory of Education; pp.10. 2016)
Anyway and as can be seen to a greater or lesser extent at all times, there have always been figures that have rebelled against what is established. In addition to the aforementioned courtesan, there were some outstanding women, either in the field of arts or literature, who managed to make their talents a profession, living from it.
From the city of the Ladies of Christine of Pisan published in 1405, where the intellectual values of women and their abilities to intervene in any matter, there was a forceful response to the writings denigrating the female sex. This text is considered the beginning of a literary and above all, social and political debate, since it advocated a new social organization, which resulted in a series of written texts or attitudes of women through which their abilities and the abilities defended themselves andneed for them to be educated and instructed. In addition, issues such as the alleged physical inferiority of women, the justification of the violation, such as those that fit the social context in which he lived, such as the impediment of political participation in the city by the city by the city bywomen, marriages imposed, among others.
Advanced the Renaissance, the woman slowly begins to stop being a passive object, to become a participant in the culture. Although brief and very little visible in historical studies, the contribution of women to European culture was tangible and encouraging for all women who followed them in time. The most important thing, then, is the starting point, the beginning of a cultural contribution that will increase and will already be unstoppable. From the Renaissance to the present day, the contribution of women in European culture is unquestionable today.
While the formation in art and literature was essential in a lady of cut. To a lesser extent literature, the exercise of which was more "harmless" for the immaculate Renaissance woman. Progressively to the weakening of the conditions that prevented women from access to culture, increased the number of women who wrote poetry and were interested in science, politics and music, mainly among the noble class.
The 18th century shows the importance of education and the need to expand it. To do this, the publication of the encyclopedia will be very important. This work tried to collect all knowledge and transmit them to all those who knew how to read.
Another work of great importance will be Emilio de Rousseau;It raises an image of Emilio’s ideal companion woman, who should know.
Despite the scientific revolution that the Renaissance meant, for women there was no. Science, about women, reaffirmed what the tradition and doctrine of the Church said about it. The conclusions of science continued to maintain the superiority of the male and the subordination of women;It will result in a theme of controversy, since it will be attacked by some and defended by others.
Representation of women in the pictorial art of the Renaissance- Observation of images as historical sources.
In the art of the Renaissance, the home will become the space par excellence where the woman will be represented, as opposed to the city related to the masculine. The activities of man develop outside the domestic space, or in the countryparticipate in him.
Meanwhile, the woman will remain at home, managing it, activating her engine and taking care of inside, of the family. This is why, the woman will be represented in art, very often performing domestic work of different kinds, in relation to the care and education of children, their personal education or to purely tasks of home organization.
One of the most famous interior paintings in the history of art that have the home as a background is the Arnolfini marriage (1434) by Van Eyck.
If we perform an analysis of this image as a historical source, focusing on the human figures of this picture, it is worth mentioning the words of María Millán (2016) the position that the husband adopts is of superiority in front of the woman, blessing her with the right hand,While with the left authoritatively subject the wife. The woman is represented in a submissive posture, with her head bowed down, and with her free hand resting on her bulky belly, maternity symbol.
The oranges located on the table under the window, symbolize that high economic status, or in their religious observation, this fruit known in the north as ‘apples of Adam’, is a symbol of lust and sin of which the woman is promoter, the woman is promoter, the woman, the woman is promoter,and that was sanctified through marriage.
The orientation of the characters, together with other aspects, offers an interesting secondary reading;Regarding the orientation, the man and the woman are represented in the same room, despite the situation of man next to the window he summarizes in a position that invites himself to relate to the outside world of that house. In the case of women, the situation is very different;since her orientation indicates inwards, showing himself folded to the home.
Also in a similar theme, Velázquez will paint many paintings, in this work an example will be mentioned, and it will be old frying eggs (1618) in which, according to Manuel Pérez Lozano (s/f) “… there is nothing more than a gender scene, theCulinary activity of an ordinary house. (…) We are facing a portrait made in his family environment, as soon as Mrs. María in her current tasks."
The woman looks up with a lost expression in infinity reflects a visual reflection on the senses of touch and sight as instruments of knowledge of reality;That is, the old woman, almost blind, tanta with the spoon between her hands since this environment is everyday and therefore the view of her is not necessary. The young man represented, on the other hand, looks at the variety of objects represented, with a gesture outside the environment and work
According to Mata and Luque (s/f) in this same line the works of Vermeer are framed. The case of this painter is very unique since usually the figures represented are almost entirely women and practically all share a common space: the house. Vermeer’s works also serve to analyze female activity within the house. In some of her works, such as dairy (1659), a woman with a water jug (1664), or the encajera (1669), shows the woman performing household chores such as sewing or cooking, and the stay of the house is showndevoid of decoration with the intention of highlighting domestic work.
In the milkmaid (1659) Vermeer introduces us to a woman in a room under the window, concentrated in her work and distant from what surrounds her;In view of her, she remains oblivious to the viewer, the low look of her symbolizes her humility and her head of her shows us the acceptance and normalization of her destiny.
In a woman with a water jug (1664) in this picture we see a woman, bourgeois, taking a jar with silver tray, we can also observe a color carpet and a set of objects as neighbors, behind, the presence stands outof a cartographic map. The sum of the aforementioned makes clear the bourgeois condition and its desire to hold, a detail that is observed remarking with the presence of a semi -open window to show the possessions abroad. However, the woman appears distant from that outside world because she is observed with her eyes folded inside that window and therefore, of the home and not outward.
In the encaxra (1669) a young woman is represented on the bobbly lace pillow, with a sewing cushion and various threads, on the left, on a table. The woman is concentrated in her work, the lace, considered a female activity since medieval times, taking as a bibliographic source the proverbs of Solomon in which the model of virtuous woman, biblical episode cited in all books referred to the marriage of the marriage of theepoch.
Mata and Luque (s/f) mention that, however, Vermeer also performs multiple works related to intellectual activities especially linked to music by showing women playing the lute, guitar or spineta, as in cases of women with lute (1664) And Woman sitting playing the spineta (1675). These works are used cadres and cartographic maps to decorate the stay, reinforcing the intellectual content of the scene. Making clear the difference between one social sector and another among the different women shown;Also in the former, the gloom is greater, decreasing the size of the window and giving an image of a more limited opening space, less intellectual, more home -centered.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that some works and mentioned in broad strokes were selected here, but, there are multiple Renaissance paintings with themes that relate women in the domestic, submissive and subject to fulfill their social role as a mother and wife, and thatgive the eldest freedom and power.
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