Book of Hours

Recently I’ve found myself more and more interested in the portrayal of women in literature. I think I can attribute that one to Dr. Kirkpatrick and all of her feminist expertise. With this, I wasn’t surprised at all that a text from the Sir John Ritblat Gallery (in the British Library) about a female virgin martyr who was swallowed whole by Satan disguised as a dragon caught my eye. The text I’m talking about is the Book of Hours—specifically the one created in Bruges, which is now Belgium.

The gallery cites that this particular book was created in 1500 towards the beginning of the Renaissance, but it wasn’t the first or last of its kind. “Books of Hours are prayer books, made for wealthy lay people, which present prayers to be recited at specific times of day, or hours”(Christianson). One of the aspects that makes the Bruges edition literarily unique is that it follows the “use of Salisbury”. Essentially it means that it “follows the modification of the Roman Catholic rite begun by the Bishop of Salisbury in England in the eleventh century” (Christianson).

As I mentioned before, the visual and concept that sparked my interest revolved around the virgin martyr. This figure is known as St. Margaret of Antioch. In Latin, the text describes St. Margaret’s “punishment” for refusing  to marry a Roman governor and refusing to renounce Christianity. While she was said to have been swallowed by Satan disguised as a dragon, the text adds that she emerged alive but was eventually executed.

In other words, it is acceptable to punish women during the time for not taking orders from men. Were women of the Renaissance often portrayed as passive and not only unable, but incompetent, to make their own decisions? This is something I would like to explore more, especially while continuing to read the Skakesperean texts. However, I’ve made one connection that ties St. Margaret to Shakespeare and the Renaissance. The story in the Book of Hours is especially interesting when considering it in conjunction with our discussion of Miranda’s character and situation in The Tempest. Shakespeare portrays her as a girl who, for lack of better phrasing, takes what she can get. She proclaims her love for Ferdinand immediately and admits to having never even seen someone of the opposite sex previously. Prospero inherently marries her off as a means of social climbing and we have to wonder if she really feels love for Ferdinand. Or is she just following the expectations of the men in her life (Prospero and Ferdinand)? The idea isn’t fully developed, but I feel as though it can continue to be explored and I plan on examining the Renaissance through a critical feminist lens.

On a final note about the Books of Hours is that they were highly decorative. Many of these books were also produced as girdle books. The traditional of passing them down through the family was also employed. They often fell into the hands of the rich and aristocratic, which instills this idea of literature as luxury during the Renaissance.