Speculum Dominarum, Paris. BN MS LATIN 6784 – fol. 1r.
From Chapter 1
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Following Chaucer does not trace influence but uses Chaucer's likely reading, circumstances, and literary and social affiliations as guides to understanding his poetry, within the context of late medieval English culture and the reshaping of the concept of these particular offices that suited the needs of a future whose dynamics he anticipated. His understanding of the importance of the Ciceronian concept of office within the active life, his profound cultural awareness, and his probing of the foundations of social change provide him with a keen sense of the persistent tensions and inconsistencies that are fundamental to his poetry.
From Chapter 1
Plate 1. Speculum Dominarum, Paris. BN MS LATIN 6784—fol. 1r. Reprinted courtesy of Bibliotheque Nationale de France.
From Chapter 1
Plate 2. Cité des dames, London. BL MS Harley 4431, fol. 290r.© The British Library Board.
Plate 3. Le Miroir des Dames, Cambridge MS Corpus Christi 324, fol. 1r. Reprinted courtesy of Parker Library, Corpus Christi College.
From Chapter 1
Plate 4. Le Miroir des Dames, London, BL MS Add. 29986. © The British Library Board.
Plate 5. Psalter page containing women’s heads, London, BL MS Harley 2899, fol. 11r. © The British Library Board.
Plate 6. Regal Body Politic, Avis aus Roys, New York, Pierpont Morgan MS M.456.005r-Avis aus Roys. Reprinted courtesy of Pierpont Morgan Library.