"My mind became flooded with an endless stream of names as I recalled all the authors who had written on this subject. I came to the conclusion that God had created a vile thing when He created woman. Indeed, I was astounded that such a fine craftsman could have wished to make such an appalling object, which as these writers would have it, is like a vessel in which all the sin and evil of the world has been collected and preserved. This thought inspired such a great sense of disgust and sadness in me that I began to despise myself and the whole of my sex as an aberration in nature." Christine de Pizan, Part I: 1. Here begins the Book of the City of Ladies, the first chapter of which explains why and for what purpose the book was written, p. 6-7

"Let me tell you that...