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Written by Julia Kane, 1998
Last Revision: 18 December 2001
Copyright © MMV Prof. Pavlac's Women's History Site
Questions, comments, suggestions?
Mail to: bapavlac@kings.edu
Margery Kempe was born about 1373 in Norfolk, England. She was the daughter of a respected merchant and public official. She married merchant John Kempe, with whom she had fourteen children. She died sometime after 1433.
In her younger years Margery was respectful to the church, though she knew some clergy were spiritually negligent. When Margery was in her twenties she began to have visions in which she talked to Jesus, Mary, and some saints. In one vision, Jesus told her to go deeper in her religious practices. She was an illiterate laywoman turned religious enthusiast who became prone to fits of crying and screaming during religious services.
At about the age 60, she dictated her spiritual autobiography to two scribes. The Book of Margery Kempe is the earliest known autobiography in English. In her book, Kempe portrays herself as an honest and devote human being. Margery's message is taken from her direct relationship with Jesus that is based on unconditional faith and love. The Book discusses every aspect of Margery's life: from her marriage, religious conversion, and many pilgrimages. She was accused by her contemporaries of fraud and heresy, and often criticized by later scholars as hysterical and crazy. Nonetheless, Margery Kempe also had admirers, even among clergy, who defended her visions as genuine signals from God.
Atkinson, Clarissa W. Mystic and Pilgrim: The Book and the World of Margery Kempe. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1983.
Clarissa W. Atkinson, Assistant Professor of History of Christianity at the Harvard Divinity School, combines insight and sympathy in examining the world of Margery Kempe. It examines The Book of Margery Kempe and the ways in which Kempe learned to know and love God. Mystic and Pilgrim will appeal to anyone interested in medieval religion and women's history. Both scholarly and general audiences will enjoy the comprehensive text. This book is a popular citation in studies of The Book of Margery Kempe. Mystic and Pilgrim is a resourceful book that places Kempe in both historical and religious context.
Cholmeley, Katharine. Margery Kempe: Genius and Mystic. New York: Longmans, Green and Co., 1947.
After many readings and interpretations of The Book of Margery Kempe, Cholmeley realized that it was indeed essential to the study of history and spiritual life. Margery Kempe: Genius and Mystic describes the Margery's book and how it effected her life and the lives of others in her community. Cholmeley describes Kempe's attitudes towards religious leaders who were not fulfilling their duties and also gives accounts of Kempe's religious pilgrimages. Cholmeley concludes will describing how many of Margery's contemporaries criticized her. This book is simply written and can be read by anyone interested in the life of Margery Kempe. Margery Kempe: Genius and Mystic is a brief look at the life of this extraordinary medieval woman.
Collis, Louise. Memoirs of a Medieval Woman: The Life and Times of Margery Kempe. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1964.
Memoirs of a Medieval Woman retells the life of Margery Kempe in explicit detail. Collis also gives a precise historical overview of life in Europe while Margery was alive. With its many historical references, Memoirs of a Medieval Woman would be most appreciated by historians or those with medieval history knowledge. The text is comprehensible, however, the historical references may frustrate general readers. Can be used in conjunction with The Book of Margery Kempe to receive a complete and extensive description of the life of Margery Kempe.
Fienburg, Nona. "Thematics of Value in The Book of Margery Kempe." Modern Philology 87 (November 1989): 132-141.
Nona Fienburg, of Millsaps College, attempts to show how The Book of Margery Kempe exploits society during Kempe's lifetime. Fienburg believes that Kempe established her value in society and succeeded in challenging the evaluative system of medieval society. She uses examples from Margery's personal finances and family to show that she did succeed in establishing herself in a predominantly male society. Fienburg feels that Kempe's value is assured with the very existence of her book. Written for scholars, this essay can be used to further investigate Margery Kempe's personal triumphs.
Harvey, Nancy Lenz. "Margery Kempe: Writer as Creature." Philological Quarterly 71 (Spring 1992): 173-184.
Nancy L. Harvey, from the University of Cincinnati, attempts to show how Margery created The Book of Margery Kempe. Harvey states that Margery felt her book was "inside" her and that it was another person's duty to write it (Coincidentally, Margery was illiterate.) This essay looks at several aspects to the Book, including its vocabulary, as well as sources and influences that shaped Margery's ideas. Harvey feels that Margery's spiritual experience had its physical manifestation in the Book. This essay is clearly directed to those who are familiar with the original version of The Book of Margery Kempe. There are many quotes from the original text and no translation is provided. Harvey's essay would be most appreciated by scholars with some knowledge of medieval text. Overall, an interesting evaluation of Margery's self-reflections and inspiration.
Johnson, Lynn Staley. "The Trope of the Scribe and the Question of Literary Authority in the Works of Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe." Speculum 66 (October 1991): 820-838.
Lynn Staley Johnson, along with this essay, has written a book about Margery Kempe entitled Margery Kempe's Dissenting Fictions. This essay discusses how medieval works and their authors were at the mercy of scribes who copied, interpreted, and edited written texts. Johnson feels that Kempe's constant emphasis of her own illiteracy caused many of her contemporaries to question her Book, thus contributing to the reputation of scribes. This intriguing essay is an easy read for interested scholars. Johnson's contains fascinating research concerning the scribes behind several of medieval history's distinguished authors.
Kempe, Margery. The Book of Margery Kempe. Ed. W. Butler-Bowon. New York: The Devin-Adair Company, 1944.
Margery Kempe, a controversial woman mystic in medieval history, wrote The Book of Margery Kempe as an autobiography. She was more that sixty years old when she began narrating her life in England and her pilgrimages to such places as Rome and Germany. This translation, unlike an edition published by the Early English Text Society, was modernized for a general audience. Reading this text should present little problems for anyone with an interest in Margery Kempe. Many names and places are modernized and obsolete words have been replaced. The Book of Margery Kempe, the first known autobiography written in English, is a captivating tale essential to the study of women in medieval history.
McEntire, Sandra J., ed. Margery Kempe: A Book of Essays. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.: 1992.
Margery Kempe: A Book of Essays provides essays written about Margery Kempe, her work, and her world. Each essay within the book assumes that Kempe did not suffer from hysteria, and her life and work should be taken seriously. The book as a whole attempts to further understand Kempe as an intelligent, mystical, and energetic woman. Although the reading level is moderately difficult, general readers will appreciate that both the early English and modern translations of The Book of Margery Kempe are given. This compilation provides further insight to the life of Margery Kempe.
Partner, Nancy. "'And Most of All for Inordinate Love': Desire and Denial in The Book of Margery Kempe." Thought 64 (September 1989): 250-267.
In this essay Partner believes that inordinate love is the motif at the center of the Book. Partner feels that Margery's life was governed by two opposing sides: one religious and holy, the other dark and repressive. This essay focuses on the denied desires that occurred in Margery's life story. She examines several examples of love and desire found in Margery's experiences. Partner concludes that Kempe's guilt over sins and the pressure of forbidden desire describes the life of any woman in late medieval society. This article is an interesting perspective on Margery's life. It can easily be read and understood by scholarly and general readers. An alternative to the religious and spiritual interpretations of Kempe's life.
Staley, Lynn. Margery Kempe's Dissenting Fictions. University Park, Pa.: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994.
Lynn Staley is a former Professor of English at Colgate University and the author of "The Trope of the Scribe and the Question of Literary Authority in the Works of Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe." In this book Staley attempts to prove her belief that The Book of Margery Kempe is fiction. She feels that Kempe attempts to create a society and relate that society to herself. This book can be most useful to scholars who have some prior knowledge of Margery Kempe and her Book. The reader must also be familiar with early English text in order to appreciate Book examples. Margery Kempe's Dissenting Fictions is an unique interpretation of Margery Kempe's Book.
Stone, Robert Karl. Middle English Prose Style: Margery Kempe and Julian of Norwich. The Hague, Netherlands: Mouton & Co., 1970.
Robert Stone was a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at the time of this publication. This book attempts to compare and contrast The Book of Margery Kempe and the Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich. Stone discusses such topics as character, style, and technique of both works. This book will not be valuable to someone without any knowledge of the English grammar and terminology. A scholar with a background in medieval history and English would best benefit from reading the book. Middle English Prose Style focuses on the structure of these medieval works, rather than historical content.
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URL: http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/margerykempe.html Written by Julia Kane, 1998 Last Revision: 18 December 2001 Copyright © MMV Prof. Pavlac's Women's History Site Questions, comments, suggestions? Mail to: bapavlac@kings.edu |