An Emerging Female Readership of Print in Sixteenth-Century France? Pierre de Changy's Translation of the De institutione feminae Christianae by Juan Luis Vives
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5693185 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Pollie Bromilow (University of Liverpool, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2013 |
| Volume | 67 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 155-169 |
| Publication date | 2013-04-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | French Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0016-1128 • E-ISSN: 1468-2931 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/fs/kns310 |
| OpenAlex | W1965474542 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 4 |
This article explores the role of adaptive translations into the vernacular, title pages, prefatory material, format, and representations of reading as indicators of an emerging female readership of print in sixteenth-century France. The example of the Institution de la femme chrestienne demonstrates the role of translation in broadening the readership of an established humanist conduct book by Juan Luis Vives to include women who, according to the translator Pierre de Changy, often lacked the knowledge of Latin to read the work in its original language. Changy highlights the new and wider appeal of the text beyond court circles by dedicating the translation to his daughter Marguerite and emphasizing its suitability for her female friends and relatives. Spaces of reading are strongly gendered: whereas male readers and owners might keep their books in a librairie or cabinet , reading by women is characterized by its lack of physical location. Women's need for portable books is also reflected in the small formats in which the Institution de la femme chrestienne was printed. A key text in the reception of Vives in the sixteenth century, this translation anticipated the emerging demand for vernacular print from women outside the nobility and the convent
Art · Art history · Audience measurement · Humanities · Media studies · Performance art · Political science · Sociology · Early Modern Women Writers · History · Law · Medieval Literature and History · Renaissance Literature and Culture
| Citations per year | 0.43 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2019 - 2024 (6) |
| Highly cited | No |