Working Women in English Society, 1300–1620 by Marjorie Keniston McIntosh (review)

REVIEWS 263 The second chapter begins Lupack’s treatment of the Romance tradition, including a substantial section on Chrétien de Troyes (with detailed summaries of Erec et Enide, Cligès, Lancelot, and Yvain; Perceval is summarized later, in the chapter on the Holy Grail). Subcategories here deal with the ways that other medieval writers (in several languages) “translated” and adapted Chrétien’s work, as well as with specific characters and motifs from Arthurian Romance (including Lancelot and Guinevere, Lanval, and the motif of the chastity test). The third section, the only one focused on a single author and his influence, traces the significance and enduring influence of the work of Thomas Malory. This chapter (like those that follow it) is in a way an extension of chapter 2, since it deals very much with the Romance tradition. Lupack spends significant time on Malory’s literary descendents, especially Tennyson, and provides a detailed discussion of treatments of themes from Arthurian romance in contemporary novels and films. He also considers some of the ways that Arthurian ideas have been used to advance particular ideals of conduct (in the case he discusses, of Arthurian youth groups, chivalric ideals were promoted as a model for late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century boyhood). The fourth through seventh chapters focus on individual themes and characters that are elaborated in the romance tradition. Chapter 4 deals with the Holy Grail, chapter 5 with Sir Gawain, chapter 6 with Merlin, and chapter 7 with Tristan and Isolt. Lupack summarizes and contextualizes the traditions that have grown up around these figures, from medieval romances to contemporary popular culture. The presentation throughout is straightforward and readable, and the bibliographies that follow each section are helpful. The focus in general is on Western Europe, especially Britain (and, later, America as well). Lupack refers from time to time to farther flung Arthurian materials (in Polish, say, or Hebrew), but his primary focus for the medieval period is on chronicles in Latin, English, and French, and romances in English, French, and German (though he also discusses materials in Old Norse, Italian, and Welsh). As he leaves the medieval period to focus on the “continuing tradition ,” however, his focus is almost exclusively on texts in English. It is inevitable , as Lupack concedes in his introduction, that a book such as this will have to leave some things out, and the choice to focus on the Arthurian tradition in English is understandable, though it necessarily narrows the book’s scope. From medieval chronicles to comic books, Arthurian tradition has continued to change and has been adapted to suit a variety of purposes and ideologies. This volume provides a useful outline of the major strands of that tradition, with notes on both well-known and less familiar texts, and will surely be a valuable resource for both students and teachers. REBECCA BLUSTEIN, Comparative Literature, UCLA Marjorie Keniston McIntosh, Working Women in English Society, 1300– 1620 (New York: Cambridge University Press 2005) xiv +291 pp. Marjorie Keniston McIntosh expands our understanding of women’s working lives through her exploration of women’s participation in the market economy in England between 1300 and 1620. McIntosh departs from existing studies on women’s work by focusing on areas of continuity and change during the transition between later medieval and early modern periods, and by emphasizing REVIEWS 264 variations between regions of England through her study of five market centers. Working Women in English Society is a fascinating study which traces the influence of demographic, economic, social and cultural change on women's participation in the market economy while assessing the nature of their involvement in credit relationships as well as income-generating activities, such as the production and sale of goods, service work and the leasing of property. Working Women in English Society offers a thorough examination of the available sources and a review of the historiographic context. In addition to the information garnered from tax and legal records, McIntosh presents new evidence found in equity court petitions regarding women’s economic activities and interactions. Throughout her study, McIntosh is mindful of the limitations of her source material; moreover, she is careful to outline her methodology in...