Hrotsvitha
Hrotsvitha was a secular canoness who wrote drama and Christian poetry under the Ottonian dynasty. She was born in Bad Gandersheim to Saxon nobles and entered Gandersheim Abbey as a canoness. She is considered the first female writer from the Germanosphere, the first female historian, the first person since the Fall of the Roman Empire to write dramas in the Latin West, and the first German female poet.
Hrotsvitha's six short dramas are considered to be her most important works. She is one of the few women who wrote about her life during the early Middle Ages, making her one of the only people to record a history of women in that era from a woman's perspective. She has been called "the most remarkable woman of her time", and an important figure in the history of women.
Little is known about Hrotsvitha's personal life. All of her writing is in Medieval Latin. Her works were rediscovered in 1501 by the humanist Conrad Celtes and translated into English in the 1600s.
Hrotsvitha's name appears in various forms including: Hrotsvit, Hrosvite, Hroswitha, Hroswithe, Rhotswitha, Roswit, Roswindis and Roswitha. It means "a mighty shout", and speaks to the way she wanted to glorify Christian heroes and legends, as well as the values they represent. Some have commented on how this either represents or conflicts with the personality presented in her writing.
While many have questioned the authenticity of Hrotsvitha's work, examinations and collections of her works, coupled with multiple historical and contemporary works that speak of her, demonstrate that Hrotsvitha's work is authentic. Feminist scholars have argued that this questioning of the authenticity of Hrotsvitha's work reflects a sexist narrative rather than revealing a flaw in her work or that she did not exist, as individuals have been engaging with her work for hundreds of years, and with increased intensity since her rediscovery during the German Renaissance.
Life and background
All the information about Hrotsvitha comes from the prefaces of her work, and later interpretations of her writings. It is generally accepted that Hrotsvitha was born in approximately 935 and died in 973. Little is known of her lineage, or why she took the veil.Gandersheim Abbey was a house of secular canonesses. There is some debate over when she entered. Hrotsvitha took vows of chastity and obedience but not poverty. She could live a relatively comfortable life and leave the monastery at any time, all while being protected, studying from a large library, and learning from many teachers. This speaks to her economic position as being from a noble family. Hrotsvitha began her studies under the nun Rikkardis, who was younger than she. She also studied under the Abbess Gerberga, granddaughter of King Henry the Fowler. Abbess Gerberga became a friend and adviser of Hrotsvit. She was a good student who read many works popular at the time with a particular focus on legends about saints and would have spent much of her time learning how to write verse. Hrotsvitha herself became a teacher in her 20s.
As her writings demonstrate a rather mature perspective, they may have been written when she was older. She had a good grasp of the legal system, the history of the Ottonian dynasty and their line of succession. Hrotsvitha was the first Northern European to write about Islam and the Islamic empire. She was both educated and well informed. Her use of myths indicates a specific perspective as she writes about the importance of Christianity—with a focus on virginity, martyrdom, and the strength of Christian values—in the face of the threat Islam posed.
At first, Hrotsvitha wrote in secret until she was encouraged to read her works out loud and edit them. The Abbess encouraged her to continue writing. Hrotsvitha primarily wrote legends, comedies, and plays. Her Books of Legends or Carmina liber primus was written in the 950s or 960s and was written in honor of Abbess Gerberga. It contains eight legends written in dactylic hexameter. Her most popular work was The Book of Drama, or Liber Secundus, which offered a Christian alternative to the work of the Roman playwright Terence. In contrast to Terence, who told stories about women who were weak and morally corrupt, Hrothsvitha stories were about virtuous virgins with a strong connection to God and who persevered through adversity. Hrotsvitha's third book contains the Gesta Ottonis, which details the history of the Ottonians from 919 to 965; and the Primordia coenobii Gandeshemensis, the history of Gandersheim Abbey.
Works
Hrothsvitha's works fall under the categories of legends, comedies, and plays. Cardinal Gasquet said her works have "a claim to an eminent place in medieval literature, and do honor to her sex, to the age in which she lived, and to the vocation which she followed." The works are organized chronologically and speak to how Hrotsvitha valued the Christian approach to life.Despite Hrothsvitha's importance as the first known female playwright, her work was not seen as important and translated into English until the 1600s. She is often omitted in texts about the history of plays and literature.
The most important manuscript of her works, containing all the texts other than Primordia, is the Codex Bayerische Staatsbibliothek Clm 14485, a manuscript written by several different hands in Gandersheim toward the end of the 10th or start of the 11th centuries. It was discovered by the humanist Conrad Celtis in 1493/94 in the Cloister of St. Emmeram in Regensburg and formed the first edition.
''Liber Primus''
The Book of Legends is a collection of eight legends: "Maria", "Ascensio", "Gongolfus", "Pelagius", "Theophilus", "Basilius", "Dionysius", and "Agnes". All are written in Leonine hexameter except "Gongolph", which is written in rhymed distichs. "Theophilus" and "Basilius", are based on Latin translations of the vitae of Greek saints, and are versions of the Faustian tradition, in which a sinner sells his soul to the Devil. Hrotsvitha supplements the story with her description of Theophilus in The Seven Arts: De sophiae rivis septeno fonte manantis.A common theme throughout is the constant battle between good and evil. The Devil is a frequent presence in many of Hrosvitha's works, and she characterizes him according to the conventions of her time. In "Dionysius" and "St. Agnes" she recounts the martyrdoms of early Christians. The Liber Primus reflects Hrotsvitha's interest in combining classical forms with Christian themes, and her desire to create literature that promotes Christian morality and virtue.
''Liber Secundus''
The Book of Drama presents a Roman Catholic alternative to Terence. These are the six plays: "Gallicanus", "Dulcitius", "Calimachus", "Abraham", "Pafnutius", and "Sapientia". They are essentially love stories, written in prose, and are not so much dramas as "dialogues." Though initially considered medieval examples of closet drama, recent scholarship has shown that Hrotsvitha was associated with the theatrical exploits of the Ottonian court and, furthermore, within the context of the Gandersheim cloister, it is possible that her plays may have been staged or, at least, read aloud.As the earliest known woman writer in the German lands, Hrotsvitha was keenly aware that her gender made her writings less likely to be taken seriously than that of her male contemporaries. In the prologue to The Book of Legends, Hrotsvitha says: "Scorn he should not render at the writer's weaker gender/ Who these small lines had sung with a woman's untutored tongue/ But rather should he praise the Lord's celestial grace."
In general, Hrosvitha's plays were works of hagiography. All six speak to a consistent theme in Hrothsvitha's work, the virtue of virginity over temptation.
Her plays contrast the chastity and perseverance of Christian women with Roman women, who were portrayed as weak and emotional. Hrotsvitha wrote her plays in response to those of Terence, a popular Roman playwright who she thought unfairly represented women as immoral. She writes, "Wherefore I, the strong voice of Gandersheim, have not hesitated to imitate a poet whose works are so widely read, my object being to glorify, within the limits of my poor talent, the laudable chastity of Christian virgins in that self-same form of composition which has been used to describe the shameless acts of licentious women."
All these dramas serve a discreet purpose. "Gallicanus" and "Calimachus" focus on conversion, "Abraham" and "Pafnutius" tell stories of redemption and repentance, and "Dulcitius" and "Sapientia" tell stories of virgin martyrdom. Cumulatively they speak to the power of Christ and Christian values, which was Hrothsvitha's objective. They are known to have been performed many times since her death, the earliest confirmation of which was in Paris in 1888.
She writes in her preface that her writing will appeal to many who are attracted by the charm of style. There are comedic elements, as in "Dulcitius", when the wicked blind governor stumbles among pots and pans, having attempted to molest three virgins. The women watch and laugh. Although they go on to become martyrs for their faith, they do so on their own terms. "Dulcitius" is the only one of Hrotsvitha's comedies which aligns with the modern comedic genre.