Joan of Arc : The Early Debate

by Fraioli, Deborah A.

• ISBN13: 9780851155722
• ISBN10: 0851155723
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-08-01
• Publisher: Boydell & Brewer

Summary

Joan of Arc arrived at the French court claiming to be sent by God to come to the aid of the dauphin Charles. Most studies of Joan focus on her political expediency, but the starting point of this book is her assertion that she was sent by God: it is the first real exploration of the application of the Catholic doctrine of discretio spirituum (the discernment of spirits) to her case, and of her reception as a visionary woman. The author examines contemporary theological documents which show genuine debate about Joan's mission and whether she was diabolically or divinely inspired, also taking into account the two major literary works dealing with her, Christine de Pizan's Ditie de Jehanne d'Arc and Martin Le Franc's Le champion des dames, as well as Joan's own letter to the English. Appendices supply translations of pertinent Latin and French texts.

Author Biography

Deborah Fraioli is Professor of French at Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Introduction	1	(4)
Chinon and the Gelu Correspondence	5	(19)
De quadam puella	24	(21)
The Poitiers Conclusions	45	(10)
Prophecy	55	(14)
Lettre aux Anglais	69	(18)
The Dissertatio of Jacques Gelu	87	(16)
Christine de Pizan's Ditie de Jehanne d'Arc	103	(23)
De mirabili victoria	126	(24)
Collectarium historiarum	150	(9)
Reply of a Parisian Cleric	159	(14)
Martin Le Franc's Le champion des dames	173	(26)
Conclusions	193	(6)
Appendix I De quadam puella	199	(7)
Appendix II The Poitiers Conclusions	206	(2)
Appendix III Lettre aux Anglais	208	(1)
Appendix IV De mirabili victoria	209	(4)
Appendix V Martin Le Franc's Le champion des dames (Joan of Arc passage)	213	(6)
Bibliography	219	(9)
Index	228