This session will explore two of the most powerful medieval women’s experiences: pregnancy and childbirth. Papers may cover any topic related to gestation and delivery ca. 300-1500, such as medical practices, complications during pregnancy and/or delivery, related anxiety and expectations, popular attitudes toward pregnant women, beliefs about external stimuli and their effects on the fetus, multiple births, holy births, patron saints, prayers, charms, beliefs surrounding maternal behavior and the gender of the fetus, difficult births and cesarean sections, relationships between gestation/childbirth and season, etc. Papers may be grounded in a range of relevant disciplines and offer inter- and intra-cultural comparative perspectives.

If you are interested in participating in this session, please e-mail a 250-word abstract for a 20-minute paper to d.hayes.1@alumni.nyu.edu. The deadline for submission of proposals is September 15, 2002. Those selected will be forwarded to the International Medieval Congress Administration as part of a full session proposal.