Micahel Psellos, “A Brief Biography of Michael Psellos” and “The Court Memorandum”

“A Brief Biography of Michael Psellos” and “The Court Memorandum”


The biography of Michael Psellos and the introduction immediately preceding “The Court Memorandum” both provide information that allows the reader to better understand the significance of the “The Court Memorandum.” The introduction serves to address the questions of authorship that have arisen from the memorandum. Since Psellos was one of the involved parties in the dispute, it seems unlikely that he would have been the author of the manuscript based on the court proceedings. Furthermore, the report is written from the perspective of the judges, which would not have included Psellos since the case involved both him and his daughter. However, the author of the introduction, David Jenkins, is able to combine the different interpretations of authorship from several other scholars, and by systematically exposing their flaws and assumptions, he is able to construct a reasonable argument that does in fact, place Psellos as the author, even though he was an involved party in the case.

The biography also assists in establishing Psellos as the author of “The Court Memorandum.” By introducing Psellos as the immensely knowledgeable and gifted speaker he was, his writing patterns can be identified in the memorandum. In addition, by reviewing Psellos’ fluctuations in power and wealth, the reader is introduced to the fact that Psellos would have likely arranged the marriage of his daughter so far in advance, and with such an impressive dowry, since it was very possible that he could lose financial stability and be unable to provide the same amount in the future. The supplementary readings to Psellos’ primary source allow the reader to develop a deeper understanding of the issues behind “The Court Memorandum” and to better understand the background that lead to the development of the memorandum itself and the interpretations that scholars have made of it over the past.
Joseph Schindler

Family Relations, Gender, and Demography

"Women, Family, and Inheritance in Bologna During the Black Death" by Shona Kelly Wray addresses the topic of family decisions during times of difficulty and even death. Wray argues that families in Bologna, Italy were steadfast in maintaining functionality and normalcy within the family, despite the imposing threats of the Black Death.
As evidence, the author uses the last will and testaments of individuals in this region, both before and during the plague. These primary sources are very insightful when looking at demographics and inheritance trends. Yet, they are presented in such a dry and mathematical way that it is hard to engage in and interpret the significance of what is being said. The author incorporates very little secondary sources and it is hard to grasp the overarching view that such sources offer. It almost seems as if there are two arguments that are being presented. The first one, the one that technically is defined within the article, is that families functioned and maintained familial ties despite a primitive instinct to engage in the "survival of the fittest" mentality. The second argument is the issue of inheritance procedures and the significant changes that recognized women, namely daughters and sisters, as potential heirs. Both of these arguments are engaging and significant in our perception of history. However, I believe that the authors choice to try and join the two arguments into one unit only broadened and watered down the potential for one poignant and delightful article.

The Riddle of the Western Family Pattern

Mary Hartman's "riddle" is what are the origins of the Western family pattern. She begins with an introduction of discussing how single young women, and men, during the middle ages were making their own decisions, rather than being directed by a collective household. Hartman argues the degree of autonomy that existed in late medieval households in northwestern Europe was different than their counterparts. With this in mind, Hartman introduces her "new hypothesis for when, how, and why the northwestern Europe adopted a unique set of household arrangements" (pg. 78). She acknowledges there are many theories on this and discusses many of them throughout the chapter. Hartman's approach to discover the origins begins by looking at the two basic models for households of fixed agricultural societies: the dominant early-marriage model and the late-marriage model. The second model, she believes, points to how northwestern Europe differed.
Just as the plow helped establish the early-marriage model, the underpopulated and underexploited lands in northwestern Europe led to the less common late-marriage model there. The need in a peasant household for labor led to the delay of marriage for women. Late marriage for women Hartman claims, was the most enduring of all the features of the western family pattern; and if this were first feature in the western pattern, the other features become less of a riddle and easily explained.

How Northwestern Europe was Strange: Marriage, Households, and History

In the first Chapter of The Household and the Making of History, Mary Hartman shows the link between the age of marriage, household structure, gender roles and how Western Europe progressed from what she called a "backward periphery on the western fringes"(pg 1) into one of the more advanced areas of the world. She argues that while in most social arenas men were the dominate players, but that through domestic arenas, and thus women, many of modern history's best features are the result of marriage and the household system. Despite the generally excepted notion of very young marriages in the medieval era, Hartman argues that people actually tended to marry at an older age. She says that by marrying later many women first worked outside of their homes and when they did get married the couple tended to pool their resources and start their own nuclear family. Hartman claims that streamlined households would explain, in part, why the economical changes that led to industrialization occurred. towards the end of the chapter Hartman once again reminds us that she believes that women helped shape the world and history just as much as men did, and that women are not often given the credit they deserve in the writing of history.

Herlihy's The Family and Religious Ideologies in Medieval Europe

Herlihy’s article, much like the title suggests, looks at the link between the family and religion during the medieval era of Europe. The goal of his article is to show how the role of religion interacted with the family, specifically concerning marriage and domestic organization. He looks at the changes that occurred in families and marriage as religion took center stage in the lives of medieval citizens.

First, Herlihy looks at the attitudes and ethics of the church during the medieval time. The church during this time did not see marriage as the highest priority for members. Celibacy was the highest form of worship to God and for that reason, many of the values ascribed during this period reflect that. This can be seen in the affirmation that sexual morality had to be equal for both sexes. The Church changed many marriage laws that were prominent in the medieval time, such as the law on incest. This change directly changed the laws that governed inheritance for families and the basic make up of families. Herlihy then looks at the effects religion had on the family. The church made it possible for families and marriage to occur more easily. Marriage was no longer something for the elites, but was extended to the serf class by changing the requirements for marriage. Now marriage only required consent of the two parties and did not require permission from families. Lineage was traced differently with the rise of the church. Families began to trace their linage through patriarchy and lineage became more ancestor focused. Herlihy’s article brought up a lot of good points concerning the laws that governed marriage and family and how that changed with the church. However, he seems to avoid the issue of the lower, unreligious or pagan class. Through not looking at the whole of society we are unable to see the real changes that occurred in marriage and the family. If we are unable to see the whole of society, then we cannot make a fair assessment of the changes that occurred during this time period. While the church was dominate, we cannot assume that every member of the European continent was Christian and followed the rules of the Christian church.

The Right of Paternal Power, Natural or Conditional?

In his article, Charles Reid discusses the role of paternal power through the Medieval Era. The article begins with research strongly supporting the unconditional role of fathers in the household, but then weaves its way in and out of such an argument. Reid uses his article to bring both sides of the paternal argument to the table.
The overriding theme for the article was law, state, and church, discussing carefully each of the points as if it were the given requirements for writing the article. Gender was an associate theme, taking the role of assistant to the main role, and family relationships and family economics made a short appearance inside the article.
After citing classical Roman law and its uncontestable paternal power, Reid takes the reader through a labyrinth of philosophers, affirming and contesting the all-authoritative role of the father in the household. Reid goes in depth, explaining the responsibilities of the father to the family, the rights of the children—both in and out of wedlock, and the governing laws of family. A powerful argument made on behalf of the church argues that men and women are equal within a marriage, and that one cannot stand without the other. Other philosophers, however, present the argument that Eve was given as a helpmeet for Adam, and this is subordinate to him in all things. In all cases, the relationship between rights and responsibility were not ignored, pointing to the partial purpose of marriage to be procreation and the consequences of procreation being that man must provide for the children in educational and nutritional ways.

Women, Gender, and Children

In her article, "Whither Family History" Nara Milanich points out several problems with the study of family history in the today's scholarship. One of her main focuses is the problem of sources. She quotes extensively from The History of the European Family (HEF) as a very broad overview that focuses on continuity and the transition from the traditional to the modern. As she builds her arguement she challenges these traditional forms of scholarly research and proposes that by understanding family history on a global scale we can better understand differences in race, gender, and class. In this article she specifically quotes several studies done in Latin America and analyzes how they compare, and what they can reveal about traditional Western studies. According to Milanich in order to acheive this global study we must "accommodate the full range of cross-cultural and historical variation." Arguments of change and transition in the family must allow for differences across race, class, and culture. Fortunately, the study of the family can also help us better understand those differences.