How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Page)
Quote #7
Then people spat at her in horror at the illness, and some scorned her and said that she howled like a dog, and cursed her, and said that she did a lot of harm among the people. And then those who before had given her food and drink for God's love now spurned her.... (I.44.143).
Kempe doesn't just weep a little when she feels emotionally overwhelmed in prayer; she screams, writhes on the floor, and turns blue. It's terrifying behavior for those around her. Her neighbors might have some ideas about epilepsy—which they thought she had—but they didn't know it wasn't contagious. And during plague eras like this one, everything was all about contagion. No wonder Kempe is shunned. She's actively traumatizing the townspeople.
Quote #8
For she had been told that, if they had any storm they would throw her into the sea, for they said it would be because of her; and they said the ship was the worse for her being in it. (I.45.147)
People often believed that great storms at sea had something to do with the bad behavior of one or more persons on board the ship. You know, divine vengeance and all that. Kempe often finds herself a convenient target for this kind of thinking. On this trip to Santiago de Compostela, she has to do some serious praying to ask for calm seas.
Quote #9
Then she was charged by her confessor that she should not go where he preached, but when he preached in one church she should go into another. She felt so much sorrow that she did not know what she could do, for she was excluded from the sermon.... (I.62.190)
Kempe loves a good sermon, and when the "Good Friar" (a.k.a. the Gray Friar) comes to town, she's as excited as a tween for a One Direction concert. But the "Good Friar" isn't so good and forgiving after all, and despite his fantastic preaching, he really hates Kempe's disruptive behavior. While she's good at persevering in the face of bullying, Kempe really feels the pain of isolation here: she feels excluded from learning, and that's hard for her to take.