Literary Analysis: The Book of Margery Kemp

In The Book of Margery Kempe, Margery is portrayed as quite prolific in her desires, beliefs, and interactions with Christ. At times she appears quite emotional, strong-willed, compassionate, submissive, certain, full of grace, independent, and humble.

I saw Margery as very strong-willed when in Book 1.11 she prays to God to allow her husband to understand why she has chosen to be chaste. In her approach to him, she has no fear, but walks up to him with determination and makes a bargain, "Granteth me that ye shall not come in my bed, and I grant you to quit your debts ere I go to Jerusalem" (387). She makes this process seem so simple, when in fact she's asking quite a lot.

On Margery's Pilgrimage to Jerusalem she shows great compassion. This is expressed as she "fell down that she might not stand no kneel but allowed and wrested with her body, spreading her arms abroad, and cried with a loud voice as though her heart should have burst asunder....(388). She clearly has compassion for Christ's situation and the power of her cries reverberates to all that are around her.

Margery exhibits great submission to God as he is marrying her body to him. She was at first afraid of the burning in her breast and the Lord tells her to not be afraid. She does calm down and the Lord tells Margery, "For, daughter, thou art as sekyr (certain) of the love of God as God is God" (391). This is a very powerful statement really making the reader not doubt Margery's compassion, interactions, and love of Christ.

In Book 1.76 it is clear to me that Margery left her husband and didn't live with him during her time of following the lord. She shows great independence in her struggle to live independently and without the male figure of her husband. This obviously brought contention amongst the people where they lived and they both still followed through with their beliefs and promise that they made to each other at the beginning of the story.

Margery exemplifies herself as a humble individual as she prays for her husband and asks the Lord to allow her to stay with him to take care of him, and to ensure that he lives longer. "Then she prayed to our Lord that her husband might live a year and she to be delivered out of slander if it were his pleasance" (394).

I believe it is hard to decipher much of Margery's personality with only having excerpts of her book. I doubt the integrity of this woman, based on specific revelations made clear throughout the excerpts given that make clear her relationship with God as pure and true. Her husband even believes in her leaving him to follow the Lord, even though he doesn't himself have a relationship with the Lord. That shows the true nature of Margery.

Works Cited

David, Alfred. The Norton Anthology, English Literature (Volume A.). New York: WW Norton and Company. 2006.