- Title:
- Beyond the boundaries of the Carolingian cloister : an examination of monastic interaction during the early ninth century
- Creator:
- Prior, Corinna, J.
- Date Created:
- 2009
- Degree Awarded:
- Master of Arts
- Subjects:
- Carolingians Church History Middle Ages, 600-1500 Monasteries Middle Ages, 600-1500
- Geographical Focus:
- Europe
- Supporting Materials:
- n/a
- Description:
- This thesis examines interaction between early ninth-century monks and the world outside the cloister in Carolingian Europe. Although the manners in which monastic authors regulate this contact remained diverse, many underscored desire to both invite guests within monastic walls or else to travel within the surrounding community to assist, teach, or establish new monasteries. Instead of threatening monastic claustration, authors often framed interaction as a means to further monks’ spiritual development. I approach early ninth-century monastic writing on interaction by genre, considering capitulary texts, a commentary on the Benedictine Rule by Smaragdus of Saint Mihiel, and hagiographic narratives. Within each of these genres, monastic authors constructed different forms of physical and mental boundaries between the monastery and the outside world. These boundaries did not serve to prevent anyone from entering or exiting the monastery, but rather heightened the power of a sacred space by drawing attention to the transition.
Source
- Preferred Citation:
- Prior, Corinna, J.. 2009. "Beyond the boundaries of the Carolingian cloister : an examination of monastic interaction during the early ninth century", Department of History, Carleton University
- Link to this page:
- https://cuhistory.github.io/grads/items/hist_123.html
Rights
- Rights:
- Copyright the author, all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.