What does the average person know about the Middle Ages? That there were knights with their ladies, they went on several crusades to fight the infidels, the noble English king Richard the Lionheart (who was actually quite a scoundrel), the Knights of the Round Table (not from here), dragons and a talking donkey (also not from here), the right of the first night, Robin Hood and his men in tights, Teutonic knights on ice, and chastity belts. Probably something else too, but I can’t recall off the top of my head.
In her book, Rosalie Gilbert set out to examine some of these so-called “facts” that we know thanks to movies and books, focusing on a particular adult theme—intimate matters. Were people really all that virtuous? Was there even a sex life at all? (Obviously, there was, since people had to reproduce somehow.) And how did they guard against spousal infidelity, or, conversely, try to ignite passion in their partners?
It took me just a few pages to decide I wanted to read the book because the author jumps right in, debunking myths and revealing just how difficult it was to remain a virgin in those times. After all, male virginity wasn’t much of a concern back then, and women, in general, were considered the embodiment of sin (we all remember Eve and the apple in Eden, right?), whom men simply had to tolerate for the sake of the survival of the family line.
The first few chapters were genuinely interesting. Some facts I didn’t know, and others I had never given much thought to. But after those initial chapters, the book suddenly becomes very dull, and then it starts to get irritating. This is because when it comes to sources, Rosalie Gilbert mostly cites the same authors, who aren’t exactly brilliant minds. As a result, the book turns not so much into an engaging “here’s how it really was,” but rather into “look at the utter nonsense they were saying.” Once or twice, that’s amusing, but after a while, it just gets tiresome to read the ramblings of a few deranged individuals.
Even though the book is divided into thematic sections, it still revolves around the same examples over and over. Most of the content isn’t about debunking myths but rather quoting these bizarre pieces of advice or the prohibitions of obsessed clergymen who, as it turns out, were often themselves perverts, unashamedly breaking their own rules by committing acts of violence and living in sin.
And if that were the only issue, it might have been tolerable. But the author keeps trying to joke about it all, though her humor feels forced, and her made-up scenarios like “let’s imagine how this would play out today if they were chatting on social media” are not just unfunny but painfully stretched and tedious. It’s like watching an aging comedian who’s more amused by their own jokes than entertaining the audience.
Yes, the book debunks some misconceptions passed down to us through Victorian literature, which fabricated much of what we now think we know, and then movies amplified and popularized these “facts.” However, all the genuinely useful insights could have been condensed into 1-2 chapters. There was no need to stretch it into an entire book “with blackjack and hookers.”
My rating: 2.5/5
