Character Clues
Character Analysis
Location
Location is one of the first and most important things Christine de Pizan uses to characterize herself in this book. In the opening lines, she makes sure to tell us that she's hanging out in her library, where she spends a lot of her days studying and learning as much as she can. This would have been a really radical thing during the 1400s, since it was pretty rare for women to enjoy the same kind of education that men did.
Names
When you name three of your main characters Lady Reason, Lady Rectitude, and Lady Justice, chances are that your readers are going to read something into those names. Christine de Pizan is writing a philosophical book, after all, and she doesn't want anything to be unclear.
Each of these three ladies embodies a different virtue that women everywhere are capable of having. On top of that, Christine de Pizan wants us to know that it's just as sensible for these virtues to appear in female form as it is for them to appear as men.
Props
Lady Rectitude and Lady Justice both have special props that help show the meaning behind what they're supposed to symbolize as characters. Lady Rectitude holds a ruler to show the line that separates good behavior from bad. Lady Justice holds a golden container that holds whatever each person in the world truly deserves.
So these physical props basically show us that the point of Rectitude is to distinguish between good and bad actions, and the point of Justice (as a concept) is to make sure each person gets what they deserve.
Thoughts and Opinions
This book runs completely on thoughts and opinions and always follows the same pattern. Christine de Pizan will basically use herself as a sounding board for the opinions of the three magical ladies who visit her in her time of despair.
She'll ask them whether the things men say about women are true, then they'll prove to her that these things aren't true. Christine de Pizan will nod and agree, and they'll move onto the next thing that men say about women. Throughout this process, Christine comes across as a patient listener and the three ladies come across as strong and opinionated super-women.
Social Status
Christine de Pizan wants to make a case for women, but she doesn't want to tear down the entire social order of 15th century France. It's true that she speaks enviously of the democracy that was enjoyed by the mythological Amazon women. But when push comes to shove, she decides that her City of Ladies must have a monarch in charge, so she choose the Virgin Mary to be her queen.
On top of that, Christine de Pizan also advises female readers of her book to accept their second-class social status and obey their husbands. At the end of the day, de Pizan was probably worried about ruffling too many feathers.