"Medieval Marriages" Documentary

The documentary "Medieval Marriages" helped me build connections between the modern interpretations of medieval marriage history with the lais of Marie de France and "The Clerk's Tale" by Geoffrey Chaucer. This documentary helped clarify topics brought up in our reading that were hard to interpret such as divorce, consummation of marriage, marital abuse, and social class differences. The following comparisons between the documentary and our readings are listed below:

• In "The Clerk's Tale", Walter wanted a divorce, but the documentary told us that even nobles could not easily divorce.
• In "Chevrefoil", Tristram and his Queen often met in order to quench their physical desire for one another, which the documentary states was common for those in unhappy marriages to do in Medieval times.
• In "Chaitivel", the castrated knight is not able to maintain relations with his lady because he cannot consummate their marriage. The documentary cites inability to consummate a marriage as a viable reason for seeking a divorce in Medieval times.
• Abusive relationships such as the one in "Laustic" were hard to leave in Medieval times according to the documentary, trapping both the abuser and abused individuals.
• "Yonec" confirmed the notion that nobles should seek to have male heirs to inherit their wealth as the documentary states that having a daughter inherit familial wealth was not encouraged.
• The documentary stated that it is forbidden for a spouse to remarry unless given special permission by the church, which contradicts the actions of Biclavret's wife, who takes a new husband after Bisclavret's disappearance.
• The documentary repeatedly made the point that marriages in Medieval times were about what each party could financially bring to the table. In "Le Fresne", the relationship between the noble prince and Le Fresne would be considered socially acceptable because of the apparent class differences of the individuals involved in the relationship. 
• Marriage in Medieval times was very easy for couples to enter into, but very difficult for couples to exit regardless of the reasoning behind the request for divorce. This notion was displayed in "Equitan", as all the couple had to do in order to enter into marriage was exchange rings and vows.

In conclusion, the documentary highlights how easy it was for a couple to be considered married, but how difficult it was to complete a divorce.