Middle Ages à la carte: meanings, tensions and challenges of medievalism

Abstract

In the twenty first century, we witness a widespread interest in all things medieval. However, while this rise in curiosity has contributed to an increase in the study of medievalism, it has negatively influenced the academic disciplines dedicated to the Middle Ages, mainly due to questions related to the value of this research area. In order to reflect on the meanings, tensions and challenges of medievalism, this essay begins by examining the popular images of Middle Ages, their causes and the preconceptions they involve. It goes on to consider the changing role of medievalism given the methodological transformations experienced by the discipline and the role played by contemporary scholars of the Middle Ages in our societies. Finally, it contends that the distinction between ‘usefulness’ and ‘relevance’ may be the key for Medieval Studies to remain relevant against a political and social discourse trying to discredit the knowledge and the responses/solutions that scholarship of the Middle Ages can offer to contemporary problems.