Jacqueline Murray has been a Professor of History at the University of Guelph since September 2001, where she was also Dean of Arts. Previously she was a member of the Department of History at the University of Windsor. In 1987, Jacqueline graduated from the University of Toronto with a Doctor of Philosophy in Medieval Studies. Her research specializes in sex, gender, and sexuality, masculinities and embodiment, as well as marriage and family in premodern Europe. She is a Visiting Fellow at St Michael’s College from 2022-2024.
My first connection to St Mike’s started even before I arrived in Toronto. As an undergrad at UBC, I became fascinated with the Middle Ages. Medieval history became a huge part of my life, my passion and eventually my vocation. In those days, medieval history revolved around kings and popes; politics and religion. Then, Father Michael Sheehan from the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies (PIMS) visited UBC and delivered a series of lectures about the lives of ordinary medieval people, and particularly about marriage and the family.
He opened my eyes to a completely new approach to the study of the Middle Ages and I knew I wanted to be part of it. This was in the 1970s when feminism was challenging society and women’s history was just emerging. I wanted to integrate these important perspectives into my study of the Middle Ages, so I decided to do my honours thesis on how women were treated in a medieval law code. I had the chance to speak with Father Sheehan about the feasibility of this research and he was encouraging. I think his endorsement helped convince my supervisor, the great political historian, Janos Bak, to let me pursue a topic that was considered rather daring at the time!
My encounter with Father Sheehan changed my life forever. I came to U of T to pursue graduate work with him and my first steps in Toronto were across the St Mike’s quad to Father Sheehan’s office. While I originally intended to follow his lead and study marriage and the family, to my surprise (and to Fr Sheehan’s!!!) the medieval sources led me in a different direction: to the church’s understanding of human sexuality. These same sources led me to my current research on medieval masculinity, a topic central to understanding the history of the Middle Ages.
I consider St Mike’s and PIMS to be an intellectual home. From my days as a graduate student, I have had the opportunity to really connect with the thriving medieval community and to hone my skills as an historian. These days, I am using a broad array of sources including hagiography, sermons, medical texts, and chronicles, in other words, historical, religious, and theological texts to explore human sexuality, masculinity, and male embodiment– that is men’s experience of having a human body that is sexed male. I am finding this research helps to illuminate medieval understandings of chastity, misogyny, and patriarchy. Because most medieval sources were written by male authors, they capture a masculine perspective on questions about being human. My research also reveals some of the foundations of our contemporary society’s ideas and values that emerge from the Middle Ages.
My work has brought me many rewarding experiences, for example, to organize and host the conference “Masculinities in the Pre-Modern World: Continuities, Change, and Contradictions,” (November 2020). Seventy-five speakers engaged with over 200 participants from around the world (thanks to Zoom). The conference demonstrated the power of technology to bridge distances, connect people, and erase the geographic and demographic limitations that have hindered scholarly collaboration in the past. It was such an exciting and enriching experience. Since then, I’ve edited two collections of essays based on the conference: Patriarchy, Honour, and Violence: Masculinities in Premodern and The Male Body and Social Masculinity in Premodern Europe. Both these books were published by our neighbours, The Centre for Renaissance and Reformation Studies at Victoria College. I am also currently working on a book, tentatively titled, Men’s Bodies, Men’s Minds: Masculinity in the Medieval West, which I hope to complete during my Visiting Fellowship at St Mike’s.
There is so much to be discovered right here on campus! My ongoing affiliation with St Mike’s will allow me to deepen my ties with colleagues and students, building on lifelong relationships while forging new academic friendships that will allow me to continue to contribute to our important on-going academic conversation.
When I think back on my journey, I remind myself that the road isn’t straight – it has unexpected twists and turns, but in life there are no wrong paths, only, as the poet Robert Frost said, “the road not taken”.
My path has led me back to my academic home at St Mike’s, a constant in my life whether as a student hanging out in the PIMS Common Room, or as a scholar retracing my footsteps to seek out such an important part of my past.
I relish and honour this homecoming and look forward to sharing it with all of you.
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