Brief description
This course attempts to discuss the main elements from which late medieval society was constructed; after a broad overview, intended to introduce the issues which underpin the course and clarify its structure, a series of lectures will describe the nature of familial, local community and national ties in four main contexts: rural, urban, aristocratic, religious. The course will also consider ways in which individuals perceived themselves or were perceived as members of certain communities and the degree to which individual membership of communities overlapped. Additionally, the potential for 'alternative' communities to pose challenges as, say, heretical sects, dissident groups, or simply by offering mildly differing agendas needs to be addressed. The extent to which society in this period was divided according to class, education, economy, culture, and so on, will, consequently, be a central theme for investigation.