During this year’s Helen Damico Memorial Lecture series hosted by the Institute for Medieval Studies at The University of New Mexico, speakers will examine the many myths and misconceptions about the roles that women played during the Middle Ages.
The third annual Helen Damico Memorial Lecture Series, which is the 37th edition of the IMS Spring Lecture Series, founded by Damico at UNM, will be from Monday-Thursday, April 24-27, at 6 p.m. at Woodward Hall 101. This event is free and open to the public. Paid parking is available in the Cornell Parking Structure at Central and Stanford Avenues.
This four-day event is centered this year on the topic Medieval Women. The Institute continues to honor Damico with this topic as she was a forerunner in the scholarship of women from medieval history and fiction. Four of the country’s leading medieval scholars will offer presentations that span the fields of art history, literature, history, law, and medicine.
"The Helen Damico Memorial Lecture Series hosted by the Institute for Medieval Studies this year brings four scholarly experts from around the country to UNM to present lectures on Medieval Women," said IMS director Justine Andrews. "Our lecture series appeals to anyone interested in history and especially those who are fascinated by the complex relationship between the Middle Ages and our own time. The role of women in society is one that is perpetually discussed, and our four experts will reflect on medieval women's relationship to the law, artistic patronage, race, and home health. I think this year's series is of particular interest to those who are concerned about the contested rights and position of women in our time. Often the Middle Ages are reflected on when considering women's roles in society. Our four experts will present their research and some of the surprising realities for medieval women."
Cultural, regional, and religious restrictions certainly created boundaries to women’s activities and rights, but those boundaries could often be crossed, according to Andrews.
“Women gave testimony in courts of law and their rights could be supported by legal writ,” Andrews noted. “Women were written about as actors whose gender and race created spaces of intersection and agency. Women ruled kingdoms and households with equal acumen. Women were models of both romantic and religious ideals. These varied roles of women in the Middle Ages are not always dissimilar to those of modern women. As women’s rights today continue to be debated and legislated, these lectures present medieval precedent for the agency, strength, and importance of women always. We hope you will join us!”