Women and Power in the Plays of Hroswitha of Gandersheim

        You will be reading three plays by Hroswitha. These plays are set during the Late Roman Empire when the Roman government actively persecuted Christians. The plays have very strong female characters. In this paper you will reflecting on Hroswitha’s plays. What are the main messages that Hroswitha is trying to convey with the events in these play? What aspects of Christianity are emphasized by the actions within the plots of the plays? What themes are most prominent in the words that the young women use when speaking to their male adversaries? What are the virtues of these female heroines that are most highly praised in the plays? From these plays what can you infer about women and society in 10th century Europe when Hroswitha was alive? Readings: ​​Gallicanus http://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/roswitha-gallicanus.asp Dulcitius​ http://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/roswitha-dulcitius.asp Callimachus https://archive.org/details/playsofroswitha00hrotuoft/page/50