Der Ritter, der ein Mädchen war

Studien zum Roman de Silence von Heldris de Cornouailles

Contributions by Eva von Contzen Contributions by Cordula Kropik Contributions by Cornelia Logemann Contributions by Regina Toepfer Contributions by Julia Rüthemann Contributions by Matthias Meyer Contributions by Stefan Seeber Contributions by Brigitte Burrichter Edited by Inci Bozkaya Edited by Britta Bußmann Edited by Katharina Philipowski

Book cover: Der Ritter, der ein Mädchen war

Extent: 308 pages

Publisher: V&R unipress

Subjects: Gender & Sexuality, Literary Studies, Medieval Studies

Language: German

Hardback (Published)

(October 2020)

ISBN: 9783847111962

6.3 x 9.25 inches

Price: $82.00

On back order

Der mittelalterliche Roman erzahlt die Geschichte von Silence, die fernab hofischer Zivilisation als Junge erzogen wird und eine Reihe von Mannerrollen ubernimmt: Sie wird Spielmann, Krieger und Ritter. Vor allem aber ist Silence Zankapfel der Allegorien Nature und Noreture, die an Silences Geschlechtsidentitat ihre Uberlegenheit uber die jeweils andere demonstrieren wollen. Mit seinen vielfaltigen Themen ladt der Text dazu ein, ihn in Diskussionen um Personifikation/Allegorie, Stimme/Sprache/Schweigen, Natur/Kultur, in die Emotionstheorie, die Schrift- und Medientheorie sowie die Historische Narratologie einzubeziehen.


The medieval Roman de Silence tells the story of a maid who is raised as a boy, far from courtly civilization, and who takes on a series of male roles: she becomes a traveling minstrel, warrior, and knight; in doing so she even elicits the desire of the queen. Above all, however, Silence represents the bone of contention between the nature and nurture allegories, each of which wishes to use Silence’s gender identity to demonstrate superiority over the other. Yet her gender is only one aspect of the fascinating character Silence, who herself has allegorical characteristics. With its wide variety of themes, this text invites us to include it in discussions about personifications/allegory, voice/speech/silence, nature/culture, the theory of emotions, the theory of writing and media, and historical narratology.

  • Contributions by Eva von Contzen
  • Contributions by Cordula Kropik
  • Contributions by Cornelia Logemann
  • Contributions by Regina Toepfer
  • Contributions by Julia Rüthemann
  • Contributions by Matthias Meyer
  • Contributions by Stefan Seeber
  • Contributions by Brigitte Burrichter
  • Edited by Inci Bozkaya
  • Edited by Britta Bußmann
  • Edited by Katharina Philipowski