Fighting back: marie de france and christine de pizan’s exposure and discrediting of benevolent and hostile sexism in courtly love culture

Today, we are bombarded with the stereotype of women as sex objects or princesses. It is not very often that women are portrayed as smart, capable, empowering females who contribute to the world around them. These stereotypes are enforced by the popular media of our time and have led to the use of hostile and benevolent sexism against women. This thesis looks at how benevolent and hostile sexism were supported by courtly love culture in the late Middle Ages. It also looks at how Marie de France and Christine de Pizan combated the benevolent and hostile sexism of the twelfth through fifteenth century, by criticizing courtly love culture and constructing a female image that promoted positive traits, such as intelligence and morality. By examining Marie and Christine, modern women writers can use similar tactics to bring awareness to all women.