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Medieval Culture and Society
Peasant and Community in Medieval England, 1200-1500
In recent years, work on the medieval English peasant has tended to stress the degree of interaction between the village and the world beyond its bounds. This book not only provides an overview of this research, but also develops this approach. Phillipp R. Schofield describes the traditional world of the peasant - with attention given to such issues as relations between lord and tenant, and the nature of the peasant family - and places the peasantry of the late middle ages within the wider political, legal, ecclesiastical and commercial world of the medieval community.
- GenresHistory
286 pages, Paperback
First published December 17, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
March 13, 2015
Maybe not a book to read just before you're going to bed to lull you, but one to read with an attentive mind I suppose.
The detail in this book is very scholarly and very academic and therefore wakefulness is required in order to enjoy it and also to focus on it. However, this is not to say that it is not interesting (and that it is).
The chapters are separated thematically on the parts of life that particularly affected the peasantry of the high middle ages, so things such as the land, finance, politics and religion - not exclusively. It can be a bit dry at the start where the history strays into more economic territory, however that cannot be helped.
There is a little feeling that Schofield relies heavily on the work of other historians. He certainly seems well versed in the historiography and it is useful to have that there, but it's a very constant reference, whereas other works seem to focus more on the author's own research. This is especially so given that this book is relatively short.
However it is highly useful as a reference book. It's concise and comprehensive at the same time, and it feels like you're getting a broad picture of the general peasantry. You'll probably enjoy some chapters greater than others, but with such a macrocosmic topic that is most certainly expected. It's a good starting block to find out what particularly about the Medieval peasantry excites you, and you'll probably know where to go from there afterwards.
A definite recommendation from me (who is looking into the field of county-based peasant industries).
The detail in this book is very scholarly and very academic and therefore wakefulness is required in order to enjoy it and also to focus on it. However, this is not to say that it is not interesting (and that it is).
The chapters are separated thematically on the parts of life that particularly affected the peasantry of the high middle ages, so things such as the land, finance, politics and religion - not exclusively. It can be a bit dry at the start where the history strays into more economic territory, however that cannot be helped.
There is a little feeling that Schofield relies heavily on the work of other historians. He certainly seems well versed in the historiography and it is useful to have that there, but it's a very constant reference, whereas other works seem to focus more on the author's own research. This is especially so given that this book is relatively short.
However it is highly useful as a reference book. It's concise and comprehensive at the same time, and it feels like you're getting a broad picture of the general peasantry. You'll probably enjoy some chapters greater than others, but with such a macrocosmic topic that is most certainly expected. It's a good starting block to find out what particularly about the Medieval peasantry excites you, and you'll probably know where to go from there afterwards.
A definite recommendation from me (who is looking into the field of county-based peasant industries).
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review