Mary and the Theological Framework of the Querelle des Femmes (Interferences and Transferences with Cultural Debates in Fifteenth-Century Castile)

Abstract

This article looks at the theological dimension of the Querelle des Femmes. It seeks to contribute to the mapping of the Marian debates, taking as its point of reference the work Las çinco figuratas padadoxas by Alonso de Madrigal. It looks in more profundity at his study with the aim of clarifying —through its contents, thematic emphasis and arguments— how the Marianism of the time acted as a sounding board for social issues related to the debate of the Querelle des Femmes. Secondly, I propose to look into the role assigned to Mary in the treatises in defence of women from this first period of the Querelle and at the potential for female representation that was attributed to it. To conclude, an interpretative hypothesis is set out based on the evidence provided by the levels of lexical, thematic and ideological transference that took place between Marianism, the Querelle des Femmes and other important sites of social and political debate in fifteenth-century Castile.