Saints and Sanctity in the Middle Ages

Catalog description

Saints were central figures in medieval religious culture, but also in social and political life. Hagiography—stories of the lives (and deaths) of saints—was one of the most popular forms of literature in the Middle Ages, and saints' lives figured prominently in medieval visual arts. This course will explore the role of saints in the Middle Ages through reading and discussion of a selection of saintly legende (lives, legends) as well as examination of the role of saints in medieval visual culture. Students will also be introduced to the rich and varied scholarship on medieval devotion to saints.