Medieval Marriages Film

The film on medieval marriages and lives was very eye opening. I never realized or really even thought about marriages and the rules or standards before. They were strict and forced on people.

However, one thing that did stand out to me was the fact that marriage was a right of passage made by choice. Family, friends, the man and the woman all made the decision as to whether there should be a marriage or not. It was up to the friends and family to find a suitable partner for the man or woman - someone of the wealth, high social status, etc. The man and woman then decide if they will marry or not. It is not a marriage out of love, just like in Marie de France's Equitan. The woman was not in love with her husband, she was in love with the king, but was not noble enough for him. I also found it interesting that two people can marry without any witnesses or a priest until the church ruled otherwise, and if this was the case during the time period of Equitan, he and his lover should have just married if she was not already married.

Another thing that stood out to me was that the churches allowed for divorces. This allowed for husband and wife to be separated, able to live in separate homes. However, this did not mean that the marriage was over. The man and woman were still married and they were not allowed to marry other people. This was not the case in Le Fresne. Gurun was able to divorce La Coudre, ending their marriage, allowing him to marry Le Fresne, his true love.

This film showed me the difference between marriage and divorce in medieval times and nowadays. It shows how the standards, rules and society has changed over time when it comes to marriage and divorce.