What was the predominant image of women and womens place in medieval society? Actual historical events, such as the scandal and subsequent litigation revolving around Anna Buschler which Steven Ozment details in the Burgermeisters Daughter, suggests something off a compromise between these two literary extremes. It is easy to say that life in the sixteenth century was surely no utopia for women but at least they had some rights.Anna was the daughter of Hermann Buschler, a prominent citizen who had even been the burgermeister of the German town of Schwabisch Hall, within the Holy Roman Empire. When she was young, Anna had simultaneous affairs with a young local nobleman, Erasmus Schenk of Limpurg, and a cavalryman named Daniel Treutwein. Annas father was so upset when he discovered these affairs; he deprived her of mostly all her inheritance. Anna a scandalized woman, fought in the Hall legal system for decades, and she eventually won back some of her inheritance.Annas story suggests a rather empowered woman, largely thanks to a Germanic legal tradition, which made womens basic rights, and kept men from treating them like they were their own property. Anna had faced many difficulties, particularly the fact that as an unprofessional single woman, she needed a male to represent her in court (Burgermeisters Daughter, 111). Had she been a professional woman with marketable skills, Anna would have received proper legal status, evidence of some amount of equal rights between male and female.Furthermore, the story of Annas battle for her inheritance shows a great deal about popular opinion. Anna, known for the affairs that she had, initially lost her case. Instead of calmly accepting this ruling, she then sued the city of Hall. Eventually, public opinion turned against the once highly liked Herman Buschler for the way he treated Anna, and he ultimately lost his position as burgermeister (Burgermeisters Daughter 119-121). Annas stor...
