1st Edition
Feud, Violence and Practice Essays in Medieval Studies in Honor of Stephen D. White
This collection presents an innovative series of essays about the medieval culture of Feud and Violence. Featuring both prominent senior and younger scholars from the United States and Europe, the contributions offer various methods and points of view in their analyses. All, however, are indebted in some way to the work of Stephen D. White on legal culture, politics, and violence. White's work has frequently emphasized the importance of careful, closely focused readings of medieval sources as well as the need to take account of practice in relation to indigenous normative statements. His work has thus made historians of medieval political culture keenly aware of the ways in which various rhetorical strategies could be deployed in disputes in order to gain moral or material advantage. Beginning with an essay by the editors introducing the contributions and discussing their relationships to Stephen White's work, to the themes of the volume, to each other, and to medieval and legal studies in general, the remainder of the volume is divided into three thematic sections. The first section contains papers whose linking themes are violence and feud, the second section explores medieval legal culture and feudalism; whilst the final section consists of essays that are models of the type of inquiry pioneered by White.
Biography
Belle S. Tuten is W. Newton and Hazel A. Long Professor of History at Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, USA. Tracey L. Billado is Assistant Professor in the Department of History at Seton Hall University, South Orange, New Jersey, USA.
’This book has much of interest to medievalists and for this reader, much that he didn’t know. The editors deserve praise for assembling such a volume.’ Vidimus 'Finally one must not fail to comment on how delighted Stephen White must be by the students, friends, and colleagues who put together this beautiful collection that has so much bearing on his own work. This is a fine book. One worth consulting again and again.' Medieval Review ’... readers who are at all familiar with the work of White and his followers will not find anything very surprising in this volume. However, both they and newcomers will find an excellent summation of White’s contributions, and a demonstration, through an unusually broad swathe of times, places and sources, of the value of his thought.’ Early Medieval Europe 'This is a coherent collection in two ways. It is in itself a sustained comment on White's work as it is also a contribution to our understanding of the politics of dispute and negotiation in the central middle ages.' Hispania 'Fine tribute to a much admired scholar.' English Historical Review
