Judith Bennett's A Medieval Life: Cecilia Penifader of Brigstock, c. 1295-1344
Length: 1200-1500 words:
Part 1
This is not a research paper, but rather an overview of the book and her main themes. You should answer questions such as; what was Cecilia's relationship to her environment and to her neighbors like? What was the function of the court? What kind of life did peasants lead in this period? What kind of life did women in this period lead? What kind of choices did they have? What kind of restrictions existed? In addition, you should specifically address your own expectations. In other words, did the life of a medieval peasant such as Cecilia, based on what you learned thus far in class and from other sources, conform to your expectations? If not, how were they different?
Part 2
You also need to take one or two topics within the book such as; peasant religion, agricultural life, the image of nobility, gender roles etc. and discuss it more in depth (about 1-2 pages).
Part 3
The third part of the assignment is a ‘critique' of the book. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the book as you see them. Are there sections that seem incomplete or unclear? Are there any unanswered questions? What are some of the limitations of a study such as this? Although the author is an ‘expert' or a ‘specialist' and you are not, you still need to learn to read with a ‘critical eye.' Keep in mind that a ‘critique' does not necessarily mean a bad or negative review.
Format and Citation - You should use the Chicago Manual of Style format. A condensed form of this can be found in Kate L. Turabian's A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. You may use outside sources to augment your discussion if you wish, but it is not required.
Some tips for better writing:
• Do Not use contractions in formal writing
• Do Not use first-person or second-person (I, me, you, ‘my opinion' etc.)
• Avoid 1 or 2 sentence paragraphs
• Avoid excessive or long quotations for this length paper.