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Medieval bestiaries : text, image, ideology / Debra Hassig.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Strickland, Debra Higgs, 1958- author.
- Series:
- RES monographs in anthropology and aesthetics.
- RES monographs on anthropology and aesthetics
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Anglo-Norman literature--History and criticism.
- Anglo-Norman literature.
- Animals in art--History and criticism.
- Animals in art.
- Animals in literature--History and criticism.
- Animals in literature.
- Bestiaries--Illustrations--History and criticism.
- Bestiaries.
- Bestiaries--England--History and criticism.
- English literature--Middle English, 1100-1500--History and criticism.
- English literature.
- Illumination of books and manuscripts, English--History and criticism.
- Illumination of books and manuscripts, English.
- Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval--England--History and criticism.
- Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval.
- Latin literature, Medieval and modern--England--History and criticism.
- Latin literature, Medieval and modern.
- Manuscripts, Medieval--England--History and criticism.
- Manuscripts, Medieval.
- Physical Description:
- 1 online resource (xx, 300 pages, [112] pages of plates) : 176 illustrations (some color), facsimiles, plates
- Place of Publication:
- Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1995.
- Summary:
- "Medieval Bestiaries: Text, Image, and Ideology integrates the bestiary into the social history of art through an examination of twenty-eight manuscripts produced in England during the twelfth, thirteenth, and early fourteenth centuries. The analysis of the reception of the bestiary by different types of readers-- religious and lay, male and female-- links selected bestiary entries to specific social, political, economic, and theological concerns of significance at the time that the manuscripts were produced and read. Special attention is devoted to bestiary characterizations of women and Jews. The first comprehensive analysis of text and images that takes both an iconographical and semiotic approach to the imagery, this study also takes into account the aesthetic dimension of these works. It challenges, moreover, the pervasive thesis that the bestiaries were collections of standard texts and images intended solely for religious contemplation. By tracing their changing functions across the centuries and evaluating them in the broader context of medieval intellectual history, bestiaries are shown to be a dynamic genre"--Publisher's description.
- Contents:
- 1. The Manuscripts
- 2. On Method
- 3. In One Ear: The Weasel
- 4. The Good Friend: The Stag
- 5. The Model Citizen: The Bee
- 6. The Heretic: The Fox
- 7. Born Again: The Phoenix
- 8. Clean Living: The Beaver
- 9. The Loving Child: The Hoopoe
- 10. The Harlot: The Siren
- 11. Burning Love: The Fire Rocks
- 12. The Ideal Spouse: The Elephant
- 13. The Idolatrous Jew: The Hyena
- 14. The True Panther
- 15. Changing Functions.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 267-287) and index.
- Description based on print version record and online resource (A&AePortal, viewed on November 14, 2025).
- ISBN:
- 9780300292640
- OCLC:
- 1551323023
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