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No Trivial Matter |
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It has been my experience that when you burst someone's bubble about a fondly-held fallacy, he will not thank you for it. Why, then, should you bother? If you can tell your girlfriend she doesn't look fat in that dress, why can't she go on believing medieval people never bathed?
Put simply, the answer is that truth, even the truth about trivia, is important. We look to details for a clearer picture of life in the Middle Ages; if the details are inaccurate, how clear can the picture be?
There's more to it, of course. The bulk of inaccurate info concerning medieval life serves to paint a dark, degraded, even ridiculous picture of the era. People are represented as ignorant brutes leading lives governed by greed, superstition and fear. This simplistic view of the Middle Ages allows those of us in the modern era to think of ourselves as morally, intellectually and socially superior, without really examining the medieval world or our own.
But if we choose to, we can take a closer look at the people, events and customs of the Middle Ages and compare them a little more reasonably with the world today. Yes, many people were superstitious in medieval times. But as a modern sports drink commercial illustrates, lucky charms and rituals are not at all uncommon today. Yes, there was violence in medieval society. Have we eradicated it from our own? Yes, the world was a very different place then, but the reasons why have more to do with the evolution of technology, of learning, and of society than with any superiority on our part or inferiority on theirs.
Through research, extensive reading, and a constant willingness to learn, we can begin to understand what medieval society was like, how and why it changed, and what it means for us today. And trivia? Those fascinating details of the past are important, especially when they're accurate. They bring the larger picture more clearly into focus, and bring the reality of the past more powerfully home.
And that is no trivial matter.
Urban
Legends and Folklore
Fables masquerading as fact aren't limited to the Middle Ages.
Guide David Emery has the legends that were born yesterday as well as
those that persist from yesteryear.
Trivial
Pursuits
Put medieval trivia on trial. Whenever you come across a questionable
bit of medieval info, post it on the
Medieval History Forum
for discussion and dissection.
A
Questionable Etymology
An amusing (and completely inaccurate) theory on the origin of a
common English vulgarity.
Origins
of the Finger
Cecil Adams sets the record straight on the myth about Agincourt,
archers, and defiant Englishmen.
Quizzes
from Your Guide
Fortunately, not all trivia is of the vague, unsubstantiated
variety. There are multitudes of documented facts, and I've been able
to use them in these diabolical quizzes with which I've tormented my
visitors. Catch our new medieval version of
Millionaire.
No Trivial Matter is copyright © 2000-03 Melissa Snell. Permission is granted to reproduce this article for personal or classroom use only, provided that the URL below is included. For reprint permission, please contact Melissa Snell.
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