Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
The main symbol in this book is (drumroll please…) the City of Ladies. Well that's probably a little anticlimactic, but there are still lots of interesting things to be said about the city itself. At the opening of this book, we don't know anything about this city other than that Christine de Pizan is supposed to build it.
As Lady Reason tells her,
"Thus, fair daughter, the prerogative among women has been bestowed on you to establish and build the City of Ladies." (1.4.1)
Christine is kinda-sorta comparing herself to Noah from the Book of Genesis. Just like Noah was supposed to build an ark, Christine is supposed to build a city. This city is to be a sanctuary from the flood of misogynistic philosophy out there.
But what kind of ladies are going to live in this new city? Well according to the three magical ladies who visit Christine, the city's inhabitants "shall all be women of integrity, of great beauty and authority, for there could be no fairer populace nor any greater adornment in the City than women of good character" (2.12.2).
In other words, Christine wants to populate her city with (pretty) women who are so good that men won't be able to criticize them. But where is this City of Ladies located, you ask? Trick question, Shmoopers!
This book itself is a City of Ladies, since within its pages Christine de Pizan tries to include as many women as possible that are good examples of virtue, intelligence, and strength. Christine de Pizan was meta before meta was in vogue.
And what is this City of Ladies symbolic of, then? Well, seeing as how the City of Ladies is contained within The Book of the City of Ladies, it's a pretty safe bet to say that the City of Ladies is symbolic of education and curiosity.
At the beginning of this book de Pizan is bummed out because of what some terrible dirtbag wrote about women. So what she does is, in essence, educate herself about the history of great women in order to prove women-hating philosophers everywhere wrong. The truth contained in history and literature sets de Pizan free of self-loathing.
So let's hear it for quashing misogyny through education, eh?