From Vice To Virtue: A Comparison Between Two Medieval Women From China and Europe: Meiniang and Cunizza da Romano
As Western Europe and China were almost entirely isolated from each other for thousands of years, the systems of ethics that shaped their respective societies developed in a very different way. In this post, I would like to compare two medieval women who were immortalized in literary works: Meiniang, the female protagonist of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) vernacular story The Oil Vendor and the Queen of Flowers ; and Cunizza da Romano, a famous 13th century noble woman to which the Italian poet Dante Alighieri ( c. 1265–1321) dedicated a chant in his master piece, the Divine Comedy . Meiniang: Victim, Courtesan, Filial Woman The Oil Vendor and the Queen of Flowers is one of the most famous vernacular stories of Chinese literature. It was written by Feng Menglong (1574-1646), a scholar and a pioneer of Chinese vernacular fiction. He was a prolific writer, author of commentaries, poetry, drama and prosa. His most famous works are three collections of tales, Illustrious Words