The Power of Women: A Topos in Medieval Art and Literature

by Susan L. Smith and Susan L. Smith

Eve tempting Adam with the apple, Delilah shearing Samson's hair, Phyllis riding the philosopher Aristotle like a horse--from the patristic period through the sixteenth century, examples of disorderly women such as these from the Bible, antiquity, and romance were cited to prove beyond any doubt that women exercise a power that no man, however superior his moral and physical qualities, can resist. An example of Latin topica, loci,...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812232798
• ISBN13: 9780812232790
• Release Date: August 1995
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press Anniversary
• Length: 456 Pages
• Weight: 1.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.3"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary