Sacred Biography: Saints and Their Biographers in the Middle Ages

by Thomas J. Heffernan

Book Overview

Though medieval "saints' lives" are among the oldest literary texts of Western vernacular culture, they are routinely patronized as "pious fiction" by modern historiography. This book demonstrates that to characterize the genre as fiction is to misunderstand the intentions of medieval authors, who were neither credulous fools nor men blinded by piety. Concentrating on English texts, Heffernan reconstructs the medieval perspective and considers sacred...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195079078
• ISBN13: 9780195079074
• Release Date: October 1992
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 8.3"