An Introduction to the Study of the Middle Ages







Christine Matali




History of Medieval Europe
Dr. Stuckey
February 4th, 2014
What, according to Bull, does it mean, at least to the general Ppublic’s imagination, to be ”medieval”?
According to Marcus Bull, the general public’s imaginaperception to bef “medieval” hcarries a negative connotations. Popular images of the middle ages mostly consincludest of diverse images of collections of bits and pieces from the past, in a variety of contexts, and are sometimes manipulated by the media causing stereotypes and misconceptions. Some of these areas of popular cultures include, but, are not limited to, architecture, literature, and art. The woterdms “medieval” and “Middle Ages” can be used interchangeably, and are projected in a way that shows the values of the wronight and wrionght way of life. Some of these negative contexts trigger associations with intolerance, bigotry, superstitious, and fear (just to name but a few) through public perception.
Bell uses a few examples from books and movies in his analysis of some of the popular perceptions of the “Middle Ages”. ForOne example, is Mark Twain’s book “A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur’s Court”, and he explains how the book narrates an adventure of a New England factory superintendent who is transported back to an imunsprecisfied time, supposedly the “Middle Ages”, after being knocked unconscious. The twist in the plot is a combination of the different phases of the “Middle Ages”. It’ is a perfect example of manipulating the imagery of the Medieval Era.
What is The Popular Imagery?
Some of the popular imageries of the Medieval Era through superstitiousn are religionus. Bell also attempts to use other examples that explained positive interpretations of the eighteenth and nineteenth century, but as a result it demonstrates incompatible visions intof the popular perception. SomeA positive interpretations examples that he listed in his analysis wereis that Hhe aims ato inllustroducingate how medieval civilization can appropriately satisfy modern concern into a calm, civilized environment. He contrasts his points with an examples of other popular cultures, in order to explain how the use of medieval culture can be attractive. He introduceds the effect of architectural enjoyment, its significance in the past, and what value it had in its society during the eighteenth and nineteenth century. He includeds some examples such as those from “Contrast” (1836) and “Stones of Venice” (1851-53), which showed how architecture influenced social and cultural change for sophisticated thinkers during the mMiddle aAges.
Comparing and Contrasting the Reality of Academic Medieval History
The images and perceptions of the “medieval” are so pervasive, because tha reysult of inspiring the way in whowich today’s society functions. There is a chronological division between the past and the present from this period. But these chronological divisions help us understand the issues and theitsr potentials through analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of these events, as well as helping us form our judgments about others. For example, scholars and antiquaries developed increasingly sophisticated techniques between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to help them understand information from the medieval times. People such as John Mabillon (a scholar) and Frederick Barbarossa can be credited for some of the sources from the medieval times that are present today. They can also be credited for research publications pertaining to academic medieval history. Additionally, Barabarossa who has forged and altered documents that pertains to the academic medieval history for the modern age.
All of these, and many more, can be considered as a significant contribution to today’s academic discipline and study of the Middle Ages, ofas thwell as popular perceptions of the modern day.