Fresh Verdicts on Joan of Arc

This volume of original essays seeks to shed light on the mysteries of Joan of Arc, and to explain, why even in the 20th century, she remains such a potent symbol. Contributors here employ the latest tools of historical analysis, literary criticism, adn feminist inquiry to revewl why veterans of Joan's miltiray campaigns found her to be a remarkable commander; why so many of her contemporaries and mear-contemporaries alike, found it possible to accept the validity of her mission and her voices; why modern politicians and literary and cinematic artists have used her as the symbolic vehicle for their own visions; and why the Catholic Church finally decided to canonize her in 1920. The book contains a reflective epilogue by Regine Pernoud, long the fean of Joan scholars and former director of the Centre Jeanne d'Arc at Orleans.