Rethinking medieval and modern sexualities through the ‘harlot saint’ Thais

ongoing

This project examines the uses, abuses, and controversies of the early Christian figure of Thais, sex worker turned saint, as a transformative lens onto the complex cultural intersection of sex and religion in the Middle Ages. THAISIS aims to answer two questions: how did this severe, shocking narrative, depicting a repentant woman walled up as a recluse, function across medieval European culture as a representation of sex work, conversion, and religious solitude? And how can modern scholars and others engage more productively with such a difficult, even offensive story? My research into Thais, an understudied example of the 'harlot saint' trope which originated in the stories about the early Christian Desert Fathers, pays attention both to the medieval incarnations of her life and identity, and to how she has evolved beyond the Middle Ages. My methodology incorporates the concerns of the burgeoning field of medievalism studies, along with more traditional literary and historical methods, to create a picture of the Thais figure as it evolved and continues to evolve. This was a story calculated to provoke strong reactions in its own time, and it continues to do so in the modern day, from the cynical novel portrait by Anatole France in 1895, to the portrayal of Thais's story as a psychodrama under patriarchy in Time's Up, Jenna Soleo-Shanks's 2019 adaptation of the tenth-century play by Hrotsvit of Gandersheim. Building on foundational work carried out during two short research fellowships, THAISIS will develop and refine my ongoing research into this saint and her story towards two key goals: shaping and completing a groundbreaking monograph on Thais's role in medieval and postmedieval literature and religious culture, and developing public engagement opportunities to bring the difficulties and complexities of her story to a wider audience, offering new ways to engage with aspects of history that disturb or even offend.