Margery Kempe Essay

Throughout the Middle Ages, Christianity dominated many aspects of society, among all classes of people. The Book of Margery Kempe exemplifies this domination, without a background of religion, there would be no context for which the book to exist. In fact, it can be argued that the most important characters are religious figures, such as Jesus . With this emphasis on religion, one common activity among those who could afford it was pilgrimages and a large part of her story consists of Margery Kempe’s travels to many different religious sites, imagery of her piety in devotion. The entire narrative emphasizes her faithfulness, but the pilgrimages in particular reveal how different her motivations are, as opposed to those around her. Religious …show more content…
Movement was limited because the majority of travel occurred on foot or by horse; it was another four hundred years before the invention of trains, let alone cars. The ability to travel was also restricted by socioeconomic status. Terence Bower States this in his article, “Margery Kempe as Traveler,” through the quotation: “... since travel (as a voluntary act) ‘demonstrated one’s freedom from necessity’ and identified one as ‘above the commons,’ it became an important mode of achieving noble status...” ( Bower 7). This status symbol, seems to have been a main reason for many people’s pilgrimages, however this is not the case for Margery Kempe. In the beginning of her life, it seemed as though her destiny was to be a dutiful housewife; she was born in Lynn, where her father was the mayor, and she went on to marry his successor. If Margery Kempe had not gone on her pilgrimages, she would have spent her entire life in the same place taking care of her fourteen children. It is easy to understand why she may have wished for an escape from this life. Yet, throughout her narrative it is not an escape that she seems to yearn for, but rather an entrance into what she views as a better life: a place among the