The World without Women: Gender Issues in the Gesta Regum Sclavorum

Kunčer, Dragana (2023) The World without Women: Gender Issues in the Gesta Regum Sclavorum. Istorijski zapisi, XCVI (4). pp. 7-26. ISSN 0021-2652

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Abstract

This paper aims to explore the role of gender in the Gesta regum Sclavorum (GRS), also known as the Chronicle of the Priest of Dioclea. It critically examines the portrayal of women in this historical narrative, noting its reflection of a broader trend in medieval male-authored texts that perpetuate female inferiority and marginalization. In the GRS, women predominantly emerge as anonymous and passive consorts of kings, relegated primarily to the role of progenitors of heirs. Instances of women taking independent action, as exemplified by the widow of Hungarian prince Kys, then Cossara, the daughter of Samuel and wife of St. Vladimir, and Laquinta, wife of King Bodin, are depicted in a manner that suggests their inclusion in the narrative is due to the benefits these actions provided to their male relatives. The portrayal of female agency in the GRS is thus interpreted as a reflection of the gendered social norms of the era, which were more inclined to resist rather than support the women’s empowerment

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