Book Review:
Growing Up Male in Late Medieval Europe
Ruth Mazo Karras’ From Boys to Men: Formations of Masculinity in Late Medieval Europe focuses on medieval masculinity during a crucial period of male development, which Karras calls “young manhood” (15). As she explores the social discourses amongst varying groups within the hierarchy of late medieval Europe, she compares and contrasts them, deconstructing the oversimplified notion that masculinity is merely the opposition of femininity. Asserting that masculine identity was acquired, she outlines the criteria that young men had to fulfill in order to be considered an adult male in their respective social backgrounds.
In Chapter 2, she focuses on the concept of knighthood in the aristocratic courts. There young men demonstrated their military prowess, and gentility as a sign of their masculinity. In Chapter 3, she focuses on the university scholars. There men were trained in rationality and moderation, as their masculinity stood in opposition to beastliness. In Chapter 4, she focuses on the towns craftsmen. There masculinity depended upon financial success and independence.
While the means by which men earned their masculine identities varied greatly, Karras points out that there were overarching themes that were present. Of these themes, she notes that masculine identity was formed through the acquisition of power that was gained through competition with other men. In the courts, knights proved their prowess through physical combat, as well as their ability to attract women. In the universities, scholars proved their prowess through verbal disputations, in which men verbally sparred with each other about various questions of debate. Lastly, town craftsmen proved their prowess through their ability to dominate other craftsmen economically by becoming the masters of their own trades.
Yet, despite the competition within each social group, Karras, also, notes that masculine identity could be reinforced through masculine bonds as well. Confraternities existed within each social group, in which young men bonded through activities, and assisted each other so they could achieve their goals. Amongst knights, brotherhoods were formed. Amongst scholars, men formed bonds through social events such as feasting, drinking, and gambling. Amongst craftsmen, masters, journeymen, and apprentices joined guilds and socialized with each other in taverns. Through these masculine bonds, men were able to both assert their masculine identity as well as empower themselves.
Karras presents an excellent overview of the formation of masculine identity in late medieval Europe. She gives both the prescriptive ideals of the time period, as well as the reality of the situation within each social group, demonstrating that there is no monolithic view of masculinity. Thus, she emphasizes that there are multiple discourses that compete with each other, creating tensions in what it means to be a man during the late medieval period. However, as she clearly notes and understands, the knights, university scholars, and craftsmen did not form the majority of the population in Medieval Europe, and she does not discuss the clergymen, or the rural peasantry in much detail.
Her work is similar to that Brent Shaw's work because it helps us examine the male role in pieces, such as "The Passion of the Perpetua." As Karras points out, this study of masculinity is a necessity, “we cannot understand women’s lives without understanding men as men” (19). With the absence of women from each of these male domains, as well as the dominance and commodification of women, it is only through a firm grasp of masculinity that we can gain an understanding of the role that women played. In moving forward, it is important that we examine the power plays that drive male-male and male-female relationships in the literature of the time.
Works Cited
Karras, Ruth Mazo. From Boys to Men: Formations of Masculinity in Late Medieval Europe. Philadephia: U of Pennsylvania P, 2003.
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