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If sodomy/homosexuality was 'unmentionable' in the Middle Ages, how can we write its history?
- Essay length: 3250 words
- Submitted: 28/01/2005
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Marked by teacher:
Rachel Smith
Teacher essay summary
This essay is well written, makes a good argument and considers the nuances of the subject matter well. It is occasionally too colloquially written, and could be improved by using more formal language.
5 stars.
Marked by teacher Rachel Smith 02/05/2112
The first 200 words of this essay...
If sodomy/homosexuality was 'unmentionable' in the Middle Ages, how can we write its history?
The study of gender, specifically homosexuality, is a relatively new invention. Tied up in the rise of feminism and the documentation of females in history, as a tributary of this, is the study of homosexuality through the ages. This essay is therefore part of an ongoing field of relatively new study.
John Boswell, in my opinion clearly describes the difficulty of the study in such an "unexplored" area. Indeed, writers are often forced down "wrong paths" as well as "dead ends". However the comfort lies in the knowledge that we have "opened trails" and "posted landmarks" so others can "reach destinations beyond his furthest advance".1
In order to answer this question, one needs to ascertain, clearly, what this question is demanding. Within this essay I am going to clearly define "homosexuality" and "sodomy" within the boundaries of the Middle Ages. Whether, it was "unmentionable" and to what extent this contributes to our ability to record its history. Of the evidence available to us, we must also deem its effectiveness, in enabling us to accurately access homosexuality in the Middle
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MbT essay summary
This essay is well written, makes a good argument and considers the nuances of the subject matter well. It is occasionally too colloquially written, and could be improved by using more formal language.
5 stars.
