Medieval Marriage: Symbolism and Society

Medieval Marriage shows how marriage symbolism emerged from the world of texts to become a social force affecting ordinary people. Ideas of St Augustine finally became a social system of monogamous indissoluble marriage. Sexual intercourse as a symbol of Christ's union with the Church became increasingly important in legal and social practice and preaching became a mass medium where marriage symbolism was broadcast to a huge public. This book builds on d'Avray's Medieval Marriage Sermons but broadens the scope of the argument and works from a wide range of manuscript sources of different genres.