Angus J. Kennedy, Christine de Pizan: Supplement 2

Medium Aevum, Spring, 2005 by Andrea Tarnowski

Angus J. Kennedy, Christine de Pizan: Supplement 2, Research Bibliographies and Checklists: New Series 5 (Woodbridge: Tamesis, 2004), xv 285 pp. ISBN 1-85 56-6102-0. 45.00 [pounds sterling]/$70.00.

For more than two decades, Angus J. Kennedy has advanced Christine de Pizan scholarship, and medieval studies in general, by acting as Christine's most thorough and scrupulous bibliographer. The appearance in 1984 of Kennedy's first bibliographical guide was a boon for researchers then turning their attention to Christine de Pizan's considerable lyrical, allegorical, and historiographical output; Kennedy's listings assembled, in just over 500 entries, nearly six centuries' worth of work. In 1994, Kennedy again provided readers with a detailed map of the field, which had grown at an astonishing rate over the course of ten years: Supplement I to the original guide contained close to 400 new entries. In the most recent decade, the pace of research has only increased: Kennedy's 2004 Christine de Pizan: Supplement 2 adds some 1,200 items to the Christine bibliography. This numerically eloquent testimony to scholars' interest is equally indicative of Kennedy's dedication in gathering, describing, collating, cross-referencing, and indexing vast quantities of information.

The Supplement 2 volume maintains the format Kennedy has used from the start, grouping entries into five main categories: bibliographies and manuscript catalogues; surveys of Christine de Pizan's life and writing; studies of defined topics such as Christine's connections to and reception in Italy and England; anthologies and collections of critical essays; and, finally, Christine's individual works as presented in manuscripts, editions, translations, and critical interpretations. All these categories have added entries in the new Supplement, but some have been markedly enriched: for example, in the 'topics' section, the heading 'Political, social and educational themes' counts seventy-seven new entries, as opposed to fifteen in Supplement I, while 'Feminism and related topics' grows by 140 entries, compared to fifty a decade ago. Such increases can attest either to new trends, or to sustained, deepening enquiry: during the last ten years, some critics have focused keenly on Christine as a political and moral commentator, whereas her status as a woman author has long been central to modern scholarship.

The project of interpreting Christine cannot evolve unhindered without reliable, efficient access to her texts; if I Le Livre de la cite des dames has brought the author fame and fortune, it does not by itself offer a full sense of her talents. Kennedy notes with satisfaction that nearly all Christine's works have now been issued in up-to-date critical editions; the task of translation, usually into modern French and/or English, also proceeds steadily.

With this essential resource in hand, scholars can pursue their research confidently. But the very importance of Kennedy's three bibliographical guides--whose reissue as a single volume would enhance their usefulness even further--raises the question: how will such information be processed in the future? Even if Kennedy were to agree to shoulder yet another Supplement, can an update wait a decade? Internet sources, mentioned only fleetingly in Supplement 2, must figure in any future version of the bibliography, just as the internet itself mightily affects the speed with which material is archived and shared.

ANDREA TARNOWSKI

Hanover, New Hampshire