Some argumentative strategies in La Ciudad de las Damas by Cristina de Pizan.

Abstract

The traditional view of the Middle Ages and the medieval philosophical canon can be challenged if we study the works of medieval female authors. In this article I present aspects of Cristina de Pizan’s intellectual context. I identify some argumentative strategies in The Book of the City of Ladies (1405) and I propose a preliminary evaluation from several criteria. Her text is argumentative, she uses not only rethorical tropes but also arguments following logical patterns well known in the Middle Ages. She includes topics such as the idea of reason as a tool; the opposition between the principle of authority and direct experience; the analogy between a walled citadel and a systematic defense of women. Her work has been studied from several perspectives, v.g. the antecedents of feminism, the history of education. It has been analyzed from a literary point of view, from gender studies, and moral and political philosophy. However, it has not been studied from an argumentative perspective as far as I know. Pizan’s work does not focus on the typical medieval philosophical issues, but it does include philosophical and theological topics.