Summary
Lady Rectitude continues her catalogue of exceptional women as Christine works to construct the various edifices within the City of Ladies.
After her discussion of women's education, Lady Rectitude switches to a more somber subject – the horrors of rape and other forms of sexual violence against women.
Rectitude begins by emphasizing how important chastity is for women, as it is one of the virtues that is a reflection of a woman's moral and physical state (virginity). She then condemns rape and those who seek it, using the example of Lucrece (an ancient Greek woman who was raped by Prince Tarquin before taking her own life) to illustrate both the reprehensible nature of rape and the sacrifices made by women when it comes to their own bodies.
Remaining on the subject of rape, Lady Rectitude argues that women are erroneously blamed for sexual violence by men, who argue that women are actively seeking to be ravished and that their motives cannot be trusted.
Rectitude openly refutes these claims, placing women firmly in the position of victims of this violence. Moreover, Rectitude argues that it is men who are the promiscuous ones in relationships while women are endowed with constancy, especially when they are in love.
At the end of Rectitude's speech, Christine has finished constructing the buildings of the City and has populated it with noble, worthy women.
Rectitude announces that her sister, Lady Justice, will aid Christine in completing the city.
Analysis
In the second part of Lady Rectitude's speech, she focuses on the physical attacks that women receive at the hands of men. While Christine experienced an "assault" of sorts at the beginning of the text through her engagement with Mathéolus's criticisms, Lady Rectitude here reminds readers of the very real physical vulnerability that women have in society.
That such a large portion of The Book of the City of Ladies is dedicated to the denouncement of rape and sexual assault is significant in two major ways: first, the book emphasizes how pervasive rape really is, and how women are not safe in the world despite proclamations by male authors that men are the more virtuous sex. Second, the emphasis on rape helps establish that The Book of the City of Ladies is not only interested in defending women but also strives to hold men accountable for their actions that turn women into victims. By condemning rape throughout her speech, Lady Rectitude subtly reminds the reader that men are most often the perpetrators of this violence and that they should not be able to write the narrative surrounding sexual assault.
Indeed, at this time in history male writers frequently did control the narrative about rape and sexual violence. Lady Rectitude alludes to the shocking but then popular notion that women were secretly desiring of being raped, and that this desire was one of the reasons why the could not be trusted.
Her retelling of the story of Lucrece helps illustrate how blatantly incorrect this idea is, as Lucrece famously took her own life after she was raped by Tarquin, the son of the last king of Rome. However, in addition to simply refuting this claim, Lady Rectitude also uses the story of Lucrece to showcase how women's responses to such horrifying circumstances have had lasting impacts on society. The rape of Lucrece catalyzed a massive rebellion in Rome that ultimately led to the restructuring of the Roman government from a kingdom to a republic, and Lady Rectitude credits Lucrece's brave sacrifice with altering the course of history altogether.
Thus, this section of the book does not merely condemn rape and sexual violence; it also shows how various women have overcome their victimization at the hands of men through strength, virtue, and loyalty.
