Women's Rights in Anglo-Saxon England
Heather Pinson
Ramsey
Engl. 456-01
05/02/11
Anglo-Saxon England: The shift of women’s rights
“Male protection, of course, is a relative thing, and there must have been Anglo-Saxon families in which the wife was more assertive than her husband, and therefore, less in need of direct control” (Rivers). Widows were the most favorable above married and single women in Anglo-Saxon culture. Widows were basically free from control of men and had more rights than single and married women. “Widows did not lose all of their favored status with the introduction of Norman feudalism in the mid-eleventh century, yet the true flowering of widow’s rights appeared within the context of Anglo-Saxon England” (Rivers). Women were put under the protection of church and state after their husbands deceased. This protection was a distant type for them. Women had to be protected to sustain of life. Men took on the responsibility of protecting women and children to keep them from harm. Women, in some aspects, had to protect males and children by nurturing them. Human existence depends on these survival mechanisms for procreating. Since women carried the gift of life and had nurturing attributes, the male need for a female companion grew.
The “Hali Meiðhad” was used to pursue the women of this time, young and old, to give their lives up indefinitely to stay holy forever (Horner). By staying holy, they would have to forfeit their more traditional lives and give themselves to God completely, including their virginity. Women were looked at as a meaningless body if their virginity had been taken. “The letter of the text, its “female” body, is a useless shell, a mere container for the spirit, which, embedded within its feminized enclosure for the skillful reader to uncover, is male” (Horner). If they compromised their sacredness to their husbands and the husband died, this would be looked upon with respect and was the second greatest level for
Ramsey
Engl. 456-01
05/02/11
Anglo-Saxon England: The shift of women’s rights
“Male protection, of course, is a relative thing, and there must have been Anglo-Saxon families in which the wife was more assertive than her husband, and therefore, less in need of direct control” (Rivers). Widows were the most favorable above married and single women in Anglo-Saxon culture. Widows were basically free from control of men and had more rights than single and married women. “Widows did not lose all of their favored status with the introduction of Norman feudalism in the mid-eleventh century, yet the true flowering of widow’s rights appeared within the context of Anglo-Saxon England” (Rivers). Women were put under the protection of church and state after their husbands deceased. This protection was a distant type for them. Women had to be protected to sustain of life. Men took on the responsibility of protecting women and children to keep them from harm. Women, in some aspects, had to protect males and children by nurturing them. Human existence depends on these survival mechanisms for procreating. Since women carried the gift of life and had nurturing attributes, the male need for a female companion grew.
The “Hali Meiðhad” was used to pursue the women of this time, young and old, to give their lives up indefinitely to stay holy forever (Horner). By staying holy, they would have to forfeit their more traditional lives and give themselves to God completely, including their virginity. Women were looked at as a meaningless body if their virginity had been taken. “The letter of the text, its “female” body, is a useless shell, a mere container for the spirit, which, embedded within its feminized enclosure for the skillful reader to uncover, is male” (Horner). If they compromised their sacredness to their husbands and the husband died, this would be looked upon with respect and was the second greatest level for
Cited: Social Science. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. . and Lisa M.C. Weston. Tempe: Arizona Board of Regents for Arizona State University, 2004.149-181.