The Book of the City of Ladies (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Christine de Pizan
- First Published: 1405
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Allegory
- Time of Work: Early fifteenth century
- Setting: Paris and the allegorical City of Ladies
- Genres: Criticism, Nonfiction, Philosophy, History
- Subjects: Sexism, Gender roles, Paris, Women’s issues, Women, Ethics, Human behavior, Fifteenth century, Women’s rights, Middle Ages, Debates or debating
- Locales: Paris, France, City of Ladies (mythic)
Characters Discussed
Christine de Pizan (pee-ZAWN), the narrator. Christine establishes herself as the author by placing herself in her study reading. She initiates the allegorical narrative by describing how three personified figures appear to help her construct the City of Ladies. The questions that Christine poses to her allegorical guides structure the work and connect the stories of women’s lives. Christine ensures that her presence as author receives emphasis by her repetition of the phrase “I, Christine” as she takes up a new question or topic. Although...
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See Also:
Christine de Pizan (Poetry)Christine de Pizan (Dictionary of World Biography)Christine de Pizan (Cyclopedia of World Authors)
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