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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Drifter Bob" data-source="post: 1670409" data-attributes="member: 17723">This idea that in medieval europe women were powerless is itself unrealistic.  There was sexism and women had a specific place in society, but that was hardly a universal hard and fast rule.  It can be taken so far in the name of realism as to make a fake world.  Even in the most repressive patriarchal socities on earth women have made their voices heard, and wielded power.  Arab kindoms in the middle ages were often ruled from the Harim.And again, as I pointed out before, there were many examples were women bucked the trend.  The vikings, as I pointed out had their women warriors.  Even in France and England, in the highest realms of society, i.e high aristocracy, and the lowest relams, the peasants, the rules were basically ignored.  Also, as people mentioned, there were massive networks of pagan midwives and such, many of whom were the leaders of witches covens (certainly if you go by the staistics of the witch burnings, in which the vast majority of the thousands and thousands burned were women, often young women)Europe in the medeival period was not king arthur and chivalry, that is all walt disney palblum.  It was just as nuanced and variegated as today in many respects.For example, consider Aud the 'deep-minded', a 9th century norse woman, who was one of the four founding settlers on Iceland.  Not all formidable women of the era were benign either.  Consider the scandalous Freydis from Eriks saga, who after bravely fending off a party of 'skraelings' (Indians) pregnant, bare breasted with a sword in her hand, she later on slew several members of her own expedition (with a sword) when her husband refused to do it.For some examples of archeological, literary and historical evidence of viking women, check this link<a href="http://www.lothene.demon.co.uk/others/womenvik.html" target="_blank">http://www.lothene.demon.co.uk/others/womenvik.html</a>DB</blockquote>

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