Christine de Pizan

Character Analysis

The Bookworm

Christine de Pizan opens this book wanting to make a very clear impression on us. She wants us to know how well read and intelligent she is, so she makes sure to mention that she has a big library that she spends a lot of time in. As the book notes,

One day as I was sitting alone in my study surrounded by books on all kinds of subjects, devoting myself to literary studies, my usual habit, my mind dwelt at length on the weighty opinions of various authors whom I had studied for a long time. (1.1.1)

It's not surprising that Christine would do this, since she was a woman author writing in the early 1400s and she needed to establish her credibility with her readers. Also, she wants to criticize the ideas of male authors, and it makes total sense that she'd want us to know how much time she has devoted to literature and knowledge. de Pizan knows what she's talking about.

While studying, Christine becomes depressed when she thinks about how many great philosophers have said that women are inferior to men. She doesn't (yet) have the confidence to think she knows more than these learned dudes, so she just feels bad about herself.

This is the moment when the three magical sisters visit her and tell her that God loves women just as much as he loves men. By the time they're done, Christine is so full of admiration that she bows down before them:

When the speeches of all three ladies were over […] I threw myself at their feet, not just on my knees but completely prostrate because of their great excellence. (1.7.1)

de Pizan knows a great person when she meets one, and she is certain that these three ladies are great people. She's also probably pretty happy that these Ladies have hauled her out of a great big pit of self-loathing depression.

The Self-Doubter

Despite the encouragement of the three ladies, Christine still has a lot of doubts about women. She's done a lot of reading in her life and can't just dismiss the opinion of every great male writer. She tries to look at herself objectively and to judge her thoughts and behavior.

Thinking deeply about these matters, I began to examine my character and conduct as a natural woman and, similarly, I considered other women whose company I frequently kept, princesses, great ladies […] hoping that I could judge impartially and in good conscience whether the testimony of so many notable men could be true. (1.1.1)

In the end, Christine wouldn't be able to overcome her self-doubt without the help of the three great ladies who visit her. That's because she has the weight of male-authored history on her shoulders. The fact is that no woman before her had ever stepped forward to defend women against the attacks of men, so it was really a one-sided conversation.

And this is the kind of bias that leads Christine to think, "I considered myself most unfortunate because God had made me inhabit a female body in this world" (1.1.2). No one should ever have to feel lesser because of their gender, and it quickly becomes this book's mission to find beauty and goodness in womankind.

Cautiously Optimistic

By the end of the book, Christine has ensured that her readers are well aware of all the great women who've existed throughout history and literature. At the same time, she has been very careful about putting her strongest statements in the mouths of the three magical ladies. This is a super-smart move: de Pizan's male peers could publicly ridicule statement's made by de Pizan herself, but it's a little harder to attack a fictional character like, say, Lady Reason.

Her own character in the book stays very humble and makes sure to tell her female readers to

… be humble and patient, and God's grace will grow in you, and praise will be given to you as well as the Kingdom of Heaven. (3.19.3)

She also imparts this bit of keep-your-head-down advice:

… do not scorn being subject to your husbands, for sometimes it is not the best thing for a creature to be independent. (3.19.2)

Or, in other words, she tells women that they should feel good about themselves as women while still obeying their husbands' commands and staying meek as little dainty mice.

It might seem strange that Christine backs down on some of her stronger stances at the very end of the book. She is no doubt writing this because her main aim is to help women become educated and to have men view women as good moral beings.

The only way she could do this (circa 1405) would be to get some of her male readers onboard with her arguments. Saying that women should obey men was probably a bone Christine was throwing to men so they'd agree with her general views on women's goodness. It's a sad compromise, but one that Christine kind of had to make.

In fighting the war against the philosophical statement that Women Are Evil, she had to lose the battle of Women Should Be Independent. After all, the priorities a woman had to have in 1405 included not getting bubonic plague, not dying before the age of 45, and not getting severely beaten by your husband.