When we study pre-modern women’s literature, we commonly discover that a majority of the available texts were not necessarily fictional in the traditional manner we tend to associate literature with. The large body of mystical narratives, for instance, is certainly not imaginative or fanciful, while the various authors also draw deeply from literary sources. Similarly, many historical chronicles contain literary texts, and scholars have long recognized that in the pre-modern world genre differentiations were not as strict as in modern times. The vast body of epistolary literature underscores the necessity to refrain from strict categories when we examine texts at large as major contributions to the public discourse. This phenomenon matters centrally when we turn to women’s writings.…
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Citation: Classen, Albrecht. "Helene Kottannerin". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 May 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=15223, accessed 23 November 2024.]