Chaucer and Religious Women in the Middle Ages

The Ancrene Riwle was specifically a rule for anchoresses rather than nuns. As such it does not address situations concerning large groups of women, but rather individuals or small groups of a few anchoresses. The Ancrene Riwle is, in some ways, less strict than typical rules for religious women, since anchoresses did not live within the monastic structure. Only three vows are required of an anchoress: obedience, chastity and constancy to her abode. The asceticism dictated my many monastic rules is not prescribed by the Ancrene Riwle, although many anchoresses did choose to live a more ascetic life than it prescribes. The Ancrene Riwle makes allowances for those who may have a weaker constitution, and is, all in all, a somewhat gentler document than the average monastic rule. It does dictate dietary rules; however, these are relatively lax by monastic standards. The main focus of the Ancrene Riwle is isolation. The anchoress should not engage in excessive conversation through the windows of her cell, nor should she maintain excessive written correspondence. Isolation from the "real world" or cloistering was important both to protect religious women from any potential injury and also to insure that they remained pure and virtuous. History has left us a record of one anchoress, Julian of Norwich. Julian of Norwich lived in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries. She lived in the world for a number of years, but was, according to extant records, an anchoress by the year 1400, when she was fifty-eight. We know very little about Julian's life, not even her real name; however, what information exists does provide a view into the life of an anchoress. It is likely that she became an anchoress shortly following her mystical visions during an illness in 1373. Julian's cell at Norwich still exists today, and provides a glimpse into the simplicity of an anchoress' life. Julian's cell in the church had three windows, one that allowed her to hear the mass and receive communion, one that she communicated with a maidservant through, and one through which the public could come to seek her council. She remained cloistered in her cell for the remainder of her life. Her visions and reputation clearly indicate the appreciation she had for the religious women who had come before her. Julian, like many religious women of her age, was called to her faith not by practical matters, but by devotion.

Go To Page: 1

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic