Date of Award
2021
Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
This project analyzes the Paston Letters to better understand the emotional communities of an English gentry family in the fifteenth century. The letters examined are exchanged among - John the elder, his two sons, John II and John III, his wife Margaret Paston and their daughter-in-law, Margery Brews Paston. The textual analysis uses historical and sociolinguistic methods, paying particular attention to the language of emotion, such as swear words, words of endearment, and words of expression. The project relies on Melissa Mohr, Geoffrey Hughes, Alexander Bergs, and Barbra Rosenwein. These letters reveal people’s emotions and whether they maintained their emotional community by following a social script or deviated from it.
Recommended Citation
Sweeney, Mary, "Social Scripts and Emotional Communities Revealed in the Paston Letters" (2021). History Undergraduate Honors Theses. 1.
https://scholarworks.seattleu.edu/hist-theses/1