Section 1, I/1-I/9 Summary and Analysis

"The Book of the City of Ladies" by Christine de Pizan is a novel that acts as a defense against the common notions of women as immoral. With the help of Lady Reason, Lady Rectitude and Lady Justice, Christine de Pizan constructs an allegorical city through the use of stories of women whose lives refute the common misconceptions about women. "The Book of the City of Ladies" serves as a partly historical and partly mythological collection of stories praising women and contradicting common beliefs about them.

In Part I, "Here begins the Book of the City of Ladies, the first chapter of which explains why and for what purpose the book was written," Christine de Pizan reads a book by Matheolus, but she puts it aside due to the slanderous remarks about the immorality of women. She...