The second volume of The History of Private Life Vol 2: Revelations of the Medieval World takes the reader on a journey from early medieval times to the Renaissance. The behavior of men and women is pious and humble, with the hearth at the center. Time marches, and we see the hearth enclosed within huts, houses, forts, castles, and eventually palaces. I enjoyed this series immensely, as I find humility in the behavior of man; we seldom change. Survival ignites the spirit, and the spirit aims toward the light. I'll take a break from this series, as I wish to read other topics, but I leave you with a quote regarding man, woman, and society.

Consequently, it must be acknowledged that the opposition between private life and public life is a matter not so much of place as of power. But the contrast is not between power and non-power; it is between two different kinds of power. Think of two realms in which peace and order were disciplined, supervised, corrected, and punished, but correction and punishment were administered by different authorities.

Mediocre but prolific writers lacking scientific intention or training have, in the guise of popular history, embroidered on two themes; the proud and adultered lady, and woman as victim of oppression. But "women" are not a good subject for history in the "age of cathedrals" or any other period. Social classes were too diverse, and women occupied too many different positions (wifes, sisters, mothers, and so on), to permit a unitary treatment.

Abduction remained common until the 12th century, but was it merely an act of barbarianism and oppression directed against women. Many women instigated their own abductions or at any rate aided their abductors. When lovers faced opposition from their clans, abduction was a means of asserting individual freedom. If the clans later recognized the fate, it ended happily. A girl imprisoned in her own home or a wife abused by her husband might look upon her abductor as a liberator. Women gave themselves in order to attract a champion. Thus, the meaning of abduction is ambivalent. Proof of the oppression of women forced to resort to such measures to free themselves. It was one of their most effective weapons. Abductions were often rather theatrical affairs. In a more profound sense, they were kind of a ritual. They symbolized the way in which high drama and fierce pressures were combined in the lives of feudal women. The fact is, however, that we know nothing about feudal women except that men tell us the texts that paint her in a fearsome light or as a suspect.