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SUBJECTIVE VISION AND FRAGMENTATION IN LATE MEDIEVAL
FRANCE, BURGUNDY, AND FLANDERS
Suzanne M. Verderber
A DISSERTATION
in
Comparative Literature and Literary Theory
Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy
2000
Supervisor of Dissertation
Graduate Group Chairperson
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UMI Number 9965587
Copyright 2000 by
Verderber, Suzanne May
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COPYRIGHT
Suzanne M. Verderber
2000
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For my father, Joseph Verderber
iii
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Acknowledgements
This dissertation would, quite simply, never have come into existence without
a number of people who have supported and nurtured me, emotionally and
intellectually, throughout the past decade. The satisfaction of completion rightfully
belongs not only to me, but to them as well.
I wish to thank Kevin Brownlee for mentoring me since the very beginning of
my graduate studies. His passion for the late medieval period, always fresh and
enthusiastic, was contagious. I am grateful for the trust he placed in me to pursue this
project, which took years to assume a recognizable shape. I cannot thank him enough
for his kindness and intellectual generosity.
I wish to thank my readers Stephen G. Nichols and Ann Matter, incomparable
role models, who patiently listened and offered guidance and support at crucial stages
of this project. David Wallace has been an inspiring interlocutor for the past three
years. I am grateful also to Rita Copeland for sharing her intellectual vivacity and
warmth; her course on medieval literary theory was essential to me in developing the
intellectual context of this project. Liliane Weissberg has helped me in innumerable
ways, professional and personal, offering encouragement and guidance. Thank you
for all, Liliane.
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How will I ever get anything done without Joanne Dubil after graduation? She
has seen me through every stage of this process, from the beginning. Her presence has
made the labyrinth of exams, proposals, applications, and dissertation, navigable. If
anyone possesses Ariadne’s thread, it is she.
The Program in Women’s Studies, personified in Demie Kurz and Luz Marin,
has been a second home for me at Penn, a source of both professional and personal
support. They have provided multiple teaching opportunities and an assistantship
from 1996-1997, helping me to feed my body along with my mind.
I wish to thank Koen Geldof of the Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven, Belgium
for kindly inviting me to spend the summer of 1996 in Leuven, and for discussions on
history and theory that helped me form the theoretical foundations of this project.
Thanks also go to the Penn-Leuven Faculty Exchange for providing funding.
I am grateful to the French Institute for Culture and Technology at the
University of Pennsylvania for a grant that made it possible for me to examine
manuscripts in the summer of 1999.
To the members of the Gender Studies Dissertation Group, Jerome Bauer, Alev
Cinar, Bonnie Gordon, Karen Schiff, and Janine Mileaf: thank you for being such
attentive readers, for creating a community around a process that is otherwise so
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isolating. When some had moved on, and the group was transformed into a duo,
Janine Mileaf, ma prochaine, attentively read my pages when they were at their worst.
I harbor the dream of co-authoring a book with her on surrealism and medievalism.
I am fortunate to have friends who have the ability to make me laugh and feed
my mind. Gregg Flaxman read and commented on significant portions of this
dissertation; his wit, intelligence, and generosity have actually helped make this
process pleasurable. For their collegiality, support, and friendship I thank Juliette
Cherbuliez, Jon Ebume, Swagato Ganguly, Claire Goldstein, Francine Hirsh, David
Hollenberg, Sari Kawana, Carmen Lamas, Aaron Levy, Sophie Le Brun, Katy
Milligan, Craig Millman, Sabrena Nacera, Hans Pols, Sven-Erik Rose, Scott Page, and
Michael Strong.
I have wondered, on numerous occasions, what I could have done to deserve
the friendship of Lynn Festa and Rayna Kalas. The gods have smiled upon me. They
have made the past decade one full of growth, fun, and intellectual excitement. How
fortunate I did not start a graduate school a year sooner or a year later! It is impossible
for me, in this small space, to acknowledge the extent of my love and thanks to both of
you.
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James Liebman has provided love, kindness, and encouragement throughout
this project. I was able to work in large part because he helped make Philadelphia a
home for me.
How can I thank my family? They are incredible. My father, Joseph
Verderber, has, as long as I can remember, encouraged me in the following way:
“Please do what makes you happy.” I will miss him. My mother, Mary Verderber,
only recently expressed to me in a concise way her whole attitude toward her children:
“You have no idea what you are capable of accomplishing.” Without them, I would
have never made it to this point. To Ann Verderber, Ed, Gillian, and Rebecca
Armstrong; Mary. John, Raymond, and Patrick Fendrick; Raymond and Ruth
Hagemann; Russell, Connie, Amanda and Amy Nixon; Angela, Joe, Colleen, and
Kevin Henry: I am looking forward to spending more time with all of you. Thank you
for your love and support.
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