This site will look much better in a browser that supports
web standards, but it is accessible to any
browser or Internet device.
Celtic Women
By Lyn Webster Wilde & Courtney Davis
Published by Blandford Press (1997)
ISBN 0-7137-2552-4
 Boudicca stands in a scythed chariot, her red hair flaming, urging her enraged people on against the invading Romans; Queen Maeve lolls languidly between battles, wondering which handsome warrior to take to bed next; pure-hearted St. Brigit watches at the door of a woman in labor, ready to step in and help if things go wrong - these are the kinds of image that spring to mind when 'Celtic women' are mentioned. There is pride and strength here, and glamour, and sometimes a distinctive spiritual atmosphere, which still has great power. But what is the reality behind these impressions? Were the lives of Celtic women much different from those of their Roman, Anglo-Saxon or Norse sisters? Was this a society where women could have authority, status and power, where they were generally viewed with respect, or one where they were denigrated and suppressed? I am going to try to answer these questions, but it is no easy task. There have been many different moments of 'Celtic Renaissance' in the past centuries, when people have delved back into the history of the Celtic lands, aiming to discover the truth about this intriguing culture, but usually, ending up producing romantic fantasies which reflect the values of their own time. Our own age is no different, we would like the women of this past culture to be the kind of women we admire today - strong, independent, intuitive, loving and protective of the weak and yet ready to fight for what they believe in. We may dismiss evidence as distorted and unimportant if it does not fit in with what we want to see. The 'truth' varies depending on who is looking for it, and every writer about the Celts has a different point of view, ranging from the extremely fey and mystical through to the iconoclastically down to earth. This mass of material is like the brew in a great bubbling cauldron, which tastes different every time you plunge your finger into it, depending on who has seasoned and stirred it last.
The art of weaving is one of the oldest women's mysteries (although it was and is practiced by men in some cultures) and perhaps the magic of that act will protect us from going too far wrong in our speculations. So that male readers do not feel left out, let us say that we will give them a temporary magical shield to protect them from the customary fate of men who sneak up to spy on a female mystery in action: being torn to pieces by the angry throng. Strong women need strong men, and in Celtic literature there are plenty of both. There is also plenty of evidence of the struggles between the sexes: take a look, for example, are the arguments between Queen Maeve and her husband, Ahill, in the Tain Bo Cuailnge (The Cattle Raid of Cooley), or Arianrhod and her brother Gwydlon in The Mabinogion, or St. Adamnan and his determined mother, Ronnat, in the early Christian records. In the battle of the sexes, though, the only winners are the products of that creative conflict, be they children, books, great ideas or whole cultures ... So that both male and female readers of this book will have the best chance of getting something useful from it, I have tried to present the facts as clearly as possible, and when I am speculating I have made that clear too, thus allowing you either to accept my interpretation or weave your own web from the threads gathered. We can give ourselves courage by remembering that the Celtic tradition is a living one, and that what we offer in our works and thoughts nourishes it at both root and branch - and changes it too. I am, like many British (and Irish, Australian, New Zealand, European and North American) people, of at least partly Celtic origin. My mother's family, the McCallums, come from Argyllshire, the old Celtic kingdom of Dalriada. My father's family, the Webster's ('Webster' means I weaver' in Anglo-Saxon), come from Glasgow and could therefore have originally been Angles, Saxons, Picts, Vikings, Normans or Celts, and perhaps, more likely, a complete mixture! I am going into this detail about my background only to make clear that although I love and respect the Celtic culture, I have equal respect for other races and cultures who have woven their threads in the fabric of life in these islands, and further afield. Celtic women were no alone in their glory: Viking women fought as warriors, the Anglo-Saxon women of the Dark Ages were a mighty force in the building of the Christian Church; and the Picts (who may or may not have been of Celtic origin) had the only attested matrilinear society in the British Isles.
A4 paperback contains 176 pages with 12 Color plates.
Buy online at:
Amazon.com 
|
