Is Martin Guerre a story of self-fashioning, and so an exemplary Renaissance tale?
The renaissance established a transformation on both an international scale and an individual scale. The celebration of intellect and revival of ancient Greek philosophy impacted European society and societal attitudes. With the lessening of papal power, government became increasingly more important in dictating temporal matters and the entire social structure of Europe was altered. While social hierarchy had always been a significant aspect of society, the humanist revolution and the promotion of individualism signified a change in attitudes regarding power and class. The story of Martin Guerre epitomises the effect of the renaissance on Europe and conveys
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humanist values and beliefs and their impact on individuals. The celebration of the glory of humanity also parallels with the Augustinian concept of the inherent and unavoidable corruption of society as a whole, which is prevalent in the story of Martin Guerre. Although humanism and the works of Pico and Machiavelli would have been unknown to Arnaud Du Tihl and the townspeople, the story of Martin Guerre conveys the effect of humanism on the societal attitudes and its inescapable spread throughout Europe and is therefore an exemplary renaissance tale. The story of Martin Guerre has become a polemic argument among historians resulting in various contradicting interpretations of the evidence and reconstructions based on the renaissance values of humanism present at the time. With the expansion of Europe in the sixteenth century and the discovery of the Americas, ‘The New World’, a range of opportunities for trade and international relations were established. Consequently, there was both a spiritual and temporal revolution throughout Europe. As the economy flourished, the middle class expanded and inherited more power within society. The Merchant class was increasingly more relevant with the expansion of trade. A guild system had been adopted where towns became dedicated and governed by a particular trade but with the industrialisation of productions such as wool it began to deteriorate. Wool was an industry that was accessed by all classes with the reliance on clothing. It provided constant employment throughout France with the wide range of jobs available as a result of the industry. With the renaissance, the guild system was undermined and there was cause for rebellion within towns with the destruction of their wage system. In France, the serf was replaced with the metayer. The metayer was dependant on their landowner for tools required for farming. Due to the reliance on wheat for food, famine was often a cause of casualties in small underprivileged towns and resulted in the search for other foods that could fill the role of wheat. Families were hugely important in small towns during the renaissance, and together they cultivated the land and worked within their assigned trade. The father acted as the leader of the family and dictated over his children and wife. Marriages were often short lived due to high death rates and there were often several subsequent marriages. People during the Renaissance focused on succeeding through the social hierarchy and improve their personal living state, although it was more likely for a person in the middle class to excel through the ranks than a person from the lower class. The influence of the Church in renaissance Europe lessened due to the corruption present but Christianity still played a significant role in individual and town life. The church was a town spiritual centre and was an important part of individuals’ perception of the world especially in areas where education was less common. The frequency of visits to the church also resulted in the church becoming a community place for meetings and celebrations bringing the town together. Towns in Europe were affected by the renaissance economically, spiritually and governmentally and this transformation was significant in the change of attitudes and operations of individuals within towns. The transition from the Middle Ages to the renaissance brought the celebration of intellect and the concept of humanism was established. Humanism was developed from the works of Bruni, Pico, Machiavelli and Petrarch. The revival of ancient philosophies and ideologies from the works of Plato and Aristotle was a central aspect of the humanist revolution. Petrarch collected and studied these ancient texts forming new philosophies as a result. Pico focused on the unity between humanism and Christian philosophy and the concept of individualism. Pico’s Oration On The Dignity Of Man highlights humanist ideologies of self-fashioning and virtue. Pico’s ideology that man acts as an intermediary between the earthly and the divine became a central characteristic of the humanist movement. Machiavelli’s works are more focused on government matters and were greatly significant in establishing and redefining government systems throughout renaissance Europe. Machiavelli emphasises the corruption of politics and humanity and dictates fear over love when governing. Humanism’s combination of studia humanitatis and an active political life spread throughout Europe and became central aspect of renaissance philosophy and theology. Studia humanitatis focused on the teachings of an amalgamation of grammar, rhetoric, poetry, history and moral philosophy centred on an Augustinian philosophy and studies of Aristotelian and Platonic texts. Machiavelli’s promotion of an active life was reliant on being involved politically and an individual’s dedication of themself to the state. The revival of classical texts lead to the establishment of a platonic academy in the 1430s which was crucial in the spread of humanist ideas throughout Italy and the rest of Europe. With the popularisation of the humanism, the translation of texts was more common and this made humanist ideas more accessible, which was hugely aided by the invention of printing as opposed to hand written texts. The Roman government system was held in high regard by humanists such as Bruni who advocate freedom through involvement in the active life, which encompassed citizenship, holding office and devotion to the common good. The humanist revolution created a new system of education for Europe and a new basis for ideology, morals and the definition of virtue. The success of the humanist movement was a result of the Church’s failure in providing a trustworthy belief and moral system for people. The Church’s inability to control temporal matters and subsequent corruption highlighted the importance of government and individualism in renaissance Europe. The story of Martin Guerre exemplifies the impact of humanism of Europe in both a societal and an individualistic way.
By the sixteenth century humanism had spread from Italy to France and throughout the rest of Europe. In the area of Toulouse where Martin Guerre was from, humanism was initiated by the powerful family of the Dufaurs. The humanist concepts of the glory of man and, self-fashioning are present in the story of Martin Guerre. The story magnifies the effect of humanism and it’s affect on small towns. Martin Guerre’s return to his hometown after eight years of absence initiates controversy within the town, which leads to a court case. Martin Guerre’s wife and family immediately accepted that the man was indeed Martin Guerre and accepted him into the town life. Eventually conflict arose and Martin Guerre’s uncle contested that this is the real Martin Guerre. With the revelation of the court case with the discovery that the man was Arnaud Du Tilh when the real Martin Guerre returns there is the question of his wife’s faithfulness. Arnaud Du Tilh perpetuates the humanist ideals of self-fashioning through re-establishing his identity and consequently moving between hierarchical ranks. Arnaud Du Tilh’s reputation in his previous town was based on his drinking and gambling and he re-establishes his identity and reconstructs Martin Guerre’s tarnished reputation, which was already tainted before he had left the town. Arnaud Du Tilh as Martin Guerre becomes virtuous …show more content…
fulfilling various roles throughout the town and involving himself in the family’s labour therefore leading an active life. The story of Martin Guerre is a product of the renaissance period and humanist values and this is evident in the actions of the individuals involved; although the people have not directly been influenced by humanism, it’s presence in society affects their values. The story of Martin Guerre illustrates humanism in the renaissance period in all aspects including Pico’s self-fashioning, leading an active life and possessing humanist virtues. The historiographical response to the story of Martin Guerre was greatly influenced by Natalie Zemon Davis’s reconstruction based on the insufficient primary sources available. Davis uses humanist values to reconstruct and interpret the emotions and attitudes of the villagers and suggests greatly the relevance of self-fashioning in regard to Arnaud Du Tilh. The focus of Davis’s recount portrays Bertrande, Martin Guerre’s wife, as the protagonist who willingly conspired with Arnaud Du Tilh during the trial. Davis’s writes as a psychological interpretation of Judge Jean Coras’s writings. Traditionalist Historian, Robert Finlay is critical of Natalie Zemon Davis questioning their reliability. Finlay relies on the historical record to produce his interpretation of the story of Martin Guerre condemning social history and labelling Davis’s interpretation misinterpreted. Finlay suggests Davis’s focus on identity rather than the greed and deception of the story contradicts Judge Jean Coras’s account, which describes Betrande as oblivious to the conspiracies of Arnaud Du Tilh. Finlay insinuates that Davis imposed a personal notion on Betrande in the reconstruction of the story of Martin Guerre . Natalie Zemon Davis’s response to Robert Finlay’s criticism of her book The Return of Martin Guerre, focuses on their different historiographical ideologies where she is more willing to see ‘complexities and ambivalence’ where Finlay requires the ‘absolute truth’ without any ambiguity. Davis claims that Finlay’s account differs from both hers and that of Judge Coras, which illustrates the indefinite nature of sources and interpretation. The absence of concrete sources regarding the story of Martin Guerre and the emotions and morals of the villagers creates uncertainty. Natalie Zemon Davis incorporates renaissance humanist values into her understanding of Martin Guerre and the various motives involved, while Finlay’s response is purely factual and reliant on the single source of Judge Jean Coras and denies humanism is present in the townspeople. The conflict is a result of the minimal sources available concerning peasants and town life during the renaissance period in France. The historiography surrounding the story of Martin Guerre is unable to arrive at a definite conclusion and is reliant on the interpretations of historians, which consequently differs depending on the school of thought. Natalie Zemon Davis admits that her reconstruction of the story of Martin Guerre is an invention based on fact and psychological understanding where Finlay abides by the evidence and is reluctant to examine varying approaches and understandings to the topic impeding his review of the renaissance period. The story of Martin Guerre is greatly representative of renaissance culture and is the result of the contextual morals and values.
The humanist movement was hugely responsible for individual’s morals and belief system all across Europe. The operations of town life and community in France during the sixteenth century, was affected by the renaissance and reformation, and the transformation of European ideals as a result. The spread of the humanist ideology spread throughout Europe and affected temporal and religious attitudes. The story of Martin Guerre epitomises this affect of self-fashioning on a individual scale and Natalie Zemon Davis analyses this affect through the examination and interpretation of values and morals. Finlay’s criticism of Davis’s lack of concrete evidence is justified however Davis uses a contextual investigation to provide warranted interpretations in her reconstruction of the story of Martin Guerre. The story of Martin Guerre characterises the renaissance period through the portrayal of self-fashioning within Arnaud Du
Tihl. Bibliography Primary Sources Pico, Giovanni, Oration On The Dignity Of Man. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012) Secondary Sources Arthur Geoffrey Dickens, The Age of Humanism and Reformation: Europe in the Fourteenth, Fifteenth, and Sixteenth Centuries (N.J: Prentice-Hall, 1972) Alan Robert Schneider, Public Life in Toulouse, 1463-1789 (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1989) Eric Russel Chamberlin, Everyday Life in Renaissance Times (London: BT. Batsford, 1966) John Rigby Hale, Renaissance Europe: Individual and Society (New York: Harper & Row, 1972) Natalie Zemon Davis, ‘On The Lame’, The American Historical Review 93 (3), (June, 1988), 572–603. Natalie Zemon Davis, The Return of Martin Guerre (Cambridge, Mass., 1983). Robert Finlay, ‘The Refashioning of Martin Guerre’, The American Historical Review 93 (3) (June, 1988), 553–571
Martin Guerre from Artigat had left his wife Bertrande and their son Sanxi and their inheritance to seek adventure in Spain as a mercenary. After leaving his family for nearly nine years a man claiming to be Martin returns to the village to claim his wife and land. Bertrande accepts the man as being her husband and they have another child together. Martin has a dispute with Pierre over the management of the family estate and ownership of the rents from Matins land during his absence. During their dispute a passing by veteran had claimed that "Martin" is not who he claims to be. He said that Martin had lost a leg at the battle of Saint Quentin and that he really was Arnaud de Tihl from a neighboring village. Both Martin and Arnaud had soldered together in the war, where they had became friends. The Guerre family was very divided over the story. Pierre and his sons-in-law believe the soldier's story, and Pierres daughters and Bertrande continue to believe "Martin" is Martin. As their ca...
In The Return of Martin Guerre, one man's impersonation of an heir from an influential peasant family in the French village of Artigat ultimately leads to his public execution. The tale of Arnaud du Tilh alias Pansette (meaning "the belly") is full of ironies, not the least of which is his death at the hands of a man who by some accounts harbored some admiration for the quick-witted peasant. Set in a time and place where a hardly discernible line separated proper behavior from that which was grounds for death, du Tilh was guilty of more than one serious charge. Yet he was well-known as a strong farmer, loving husband, shrewd rural-merchant, and eloquent speaker. Arnaud's actions are not the result of his own audacity, rather of something more universal, so universal its results can be seen in other historical figures from the text. Du Tilh assumed Martin Guerre's identity because doing so represented a unique opportunity to test the extent of his abilities and leave behind his presently troubled life.
The Return of Martin Guerre, written by Natalie Zemon Davis, is the tale of a court case that takes place in sixteenth century France. Martin Guerre is a peasant who deserted his wife and family for many years. While Martin Guerre is gone, a man named Arnaud du Tilh arrives at Martin’s village and claims to be Martin Guerre. Bertrande, who is Guerre’s wife, Guerre’s sisters, and many of the villagers, accepts the imposter. After almost three years of being happily married, Bertrande takes the fraud to court under pressure of Pierre Guerre, her stepfather and Guerre’s brother. Arnaud du Tilh is almost declared innocent, but the real Martin Guerre appears in the courthouse. Throughout this tale, many factors of the peasant life are highlighted. The author gives a very effective and detailed insight to a peasant’s life during the time of Martin Guerre. Davis does a successful job of portraying the peasant lifestyle in sixteenth century France by accentuating the social, cultural, and judicial factors of everyday peasant life.
The period of the Renaissance changed a man's view of man. The Renaissance was a new life changing way for everyone in the middle ages for both men and women. A very important quote from the document “People saw themselves in a new way”. The build up of how the Renaissance started and this time is called the middle ages and was a period of time which stretched from 500 ce to about 1350 during the middle ages the Roman Catholic church and the Pope were primary players.For over 300 years Renaissance spread from Italy to Western Europe.The way it spread was like a car moving from place to place. The main question the document is asking is “How did Renaissance change man’s view of man “? One major key term in that question is Renaissance and “this means rebirth”. My main thesis is the way the renaissance has changed man’s view of man and
Janet Lewis, the author of The Wife of Martin Guerre, illustrates what family dynamics were like in the sixteenth century, “…for the extend of his father’s lifetime Martin would legally remain a minor” whereas, women’s identity and importance were only known through their husbands. However, within this novel Bertrande de Rols, wife of Martin Guerre, is known as herself; this is to express that the novel was written according to her experience as the wife of Martin Guerre. Even though, it wasn’t acceptable for women to go forward with such accusations, Bertrande de Rols did the right thing pursuing Arnaud as an impostor because she knew he was not her husband despite what everyone else said. After all, she knew Martin best.
The Return of Martin Guerre written by Natalie Davis gives the audience a rare glimpse into the world of peasant life in sixteenth century France. It also allows a modern day audience a chance to examine and to compare their own identities and questions of self. What makes the story so interesting to modern day viewers and readers is how relevant the story and the people in it are to our own times. This story is about a history of everyday people rather than royalty and generals, history's usual subjects.
The beginning of individualism’s gradual evolution was first manifested in the Renaissance Era. The Renaissance was a ripe time ready for change. The weakening role of the Catholic Church led to an increase in power for the masses. Corruption plagued Church officials and many sought theological respite elsewhere. The reemphasis of ancient Greek and Roman texts proffered alternatives for many to satisfy their religious needs. This helped contribute to the abolishment of the Church’s imposition of its absolute truth and its claim to ultimate authority. As the church lost power, so did the political units. The bonds between church and state began to erode. Feudalism declined, hence giving rise to new political opportunity. The noble class no longer held a monopoly on the valued positions in society. Rather, one was able to pursue wealth and fame through various endeavors ranging from artist to soldier.
After years of abandonment, an absent man presumed to be Martin Guerre appeared in front of a woman who longed for a strong love and different husband. An “obstinate and honorable” woman could no...
In early modern Europe, the 16th century presented a turning point in history where identities and values were challenged. Given the fluctuating state of identities, could the crisis of power centralization precipitate skepticism on the heroes of The Return of Martin Guerre? Can the monumental epistemological changes of the time (e.g. The Reformations and Counter Reformation, the rise of Protestantism, rational individualization in thought) be adequately conveyed or fully reflected using micro-histories?
“In the renaissance era, individual success was held in high esteem in France due to the inflation of money in the economy, insecurity of power, and the downfall in politics during the change between kings” (Manimtim, Marcello.
Several individuals in this course displayed ideas that were different from the norm in their society. The dominant group or worldview in their society marginalized them, but they found ways to defy the dominant group or they created an alternative environment where they could pursue their goals without being affected by others. These individuals have utilized the past to base their actions for the goal of transforming the social order, however, there were problems that arose from the usage of the past. In The Return of Martin Guerre, Bertrande de Rols used her unfruitful marriage to start a new life based on her own choices, but her past life became mediated by the law and she could not continue her masked story when the truth was evident.
Bertrande got attracted to him and there is something in him, which makes her quickly accept the family's request to take him in as a husband. Moreover, he is a gentleman, great lover, good father, well educated, multi-talented also have much more tenderness and sensuality to have Bertrande's love at the end. Arnaud charmed the villagers and worked with them for their prosperity. He gave Bertrande the happiness and joy of marriage, which Martin had never given her. In the end Martin returns and Arnaud is executed due to the consequences of his lies and for being the imposter of Martin. It is a big loss for Bertrande, “but when hate and love have together exhausted the soul, the body seldom endure for long.” (93), the trial finds her an adulteress and unfaithful towards Martin. This is unfair because Martin`s family asked her accept the intruder. Bertrande is simply trying to do the right thing but has to suffer due to unwritten rules of our cruel
From his figurative window, Rousseau sees a Europe ravaged by conflicts resulting from supposedly peaceable and civilized institutions (111). He posits that the essentially problematic flaw, the cause of conflict, is a contradiction in modes of relating: while individuals live within a framework of enforced norms ("l...
The destruction that the French Revolution had exacted on the European consciousness was evident in the attitudes of the people most touched by the tumult of the era – people who came to realize that absolution was no longer a pertinent intellectual goal. The cold rationale of the Enlightenment was no longer adequate to explain the significance of life in a society where everything had so recently been turned upside down. Romanticism was the expression of this society’s craving for answers and fulfillment. Everywhere, people embraced life passionately and lived as... ... middle of paper ... ...
The renaissance and the reformation were two of the most significant changes in history that has shaped our world today. Both of these great time periods are strikingly similar in some ways and totally different in others. This is because the renaissance was a change from religion to humanism whether it is in art or literature; it is where the individual began to matter. However, the reformation was,” in a nutshell,” a way to reform the church and even more so to form the way our society is today. The first half of this paper will view the drop in faith, the economic powers, and the artistic and literary changes during the renaissance, while the second half will view the progresses and changes the church makes during the reformation.