In the early 15th century, a remarkable literary work emerged from the heart of medieval EnglandThe Book of Margery Kempe. This text, widely regarded as the first known autobiography written in English, has captivated historians, theologians, literary scholars, and readers with its raw emotional honesty, spiritual intensity, and the unique voice of its subject. Yet the question of authorship has intrigued many who wrote the Book of Margery Kempe? While Margery Kempe is undoubtedly the source of the life story recounted in the book, the exact identity of the person who physically authored the manuscript involves a complex interplay between oral dictation, scribal labor, and spiritual confession.
Understanding Margery Kempe A Mystic and Pilgrim
Before diving into the authorship of the book, it is important to understand who Margery Kempe was. Born in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, around 1373, Kempe was a merchant’s daughter who lived during a time of great social, political, and religious change. She married John Kempe and bore fourteen children, but her life took a dramatic turn following a series of spiritual visions and a personal crisis after childbirth. These experiences launched her on a spiritual journey that would include pilgrimages to Jerusalem, Rome, and Santiago de Compostela.
Margery was not a nun or a scholar, but a laywoman who claimed to communicate with Christ and various saints. Her mysticism involved extreme displays of emotion, including loud weeping and uncontrollable sobbing during religious services. She became a controversial figure, often ridiculed and even threatened with heresy. Nevertheless, she persevered, guided by her spiritual convictions and a strong sense of divine purpose.
The Creation of the Book
Margery Kempe did not write her book in the conventional sense. As she was illiterate, she had to rely on others to transcribe her words. This introduces a unique dynamic to the question of authorship. The Book of Margery Kempe was dictated by Margery to a scribe or possibly multiple scribes over a period of years, reflecting a deeply collaborative process between speaker and writer.
First Attempts at Dictation
The earliest effort to record her life occurred around the year 1432. Margery initially employed a local priest to transcribe her spiritual experiences. Unfortunately, this first manuscript was lost or never completed. Later, she tried again, this time dictating to a man described as a worthy clerk,” who may have been her son.
This second attempt was more successful. The manuscript was finally completed with the help of another scribe, who used the notes and fragments compiled by the previous writer to create a coherent narrative. It is this version, preserved in a single surviving manuscript, that we know today asThe Book of Margery Kempe.
The Role of Scribes
Since Margery Kempe could not write herself, the scribes she worked with played an essential role. Their identities remain somewhat unclear, but it is widely believed that one of the scribes was indeed her son, who had returned from studying in Germany. Another may have been a sympathetic priest or a religious clerk who supported her mystical visions.
Despite the involvement of these scribes, the text’s language, tone, and emotional cadence suggest that the content was deeply rooted in Margery’s own voice and life experiences. Scholars often note the vivid detail and intensity of emotion in the narrative qualities that point strongly to Margery’s direct involvement in shaping the material, even if she did not pen it herself.
Structure and Themes in the Book
The Book of Margery Kempeis not a chronological autobiography in the modern sense. Instead, it is a blend of spiritual meditation, personal history, and mystical experience. Its structure is episodic, jumping from vision to vision, interspersed with reflections on suffering, sin, pilgrimage, and divine grace.
Key Themes Include
- Religious ecstasy and divine visions
- The role of women in the Church
- Personal suffering as a form of sanctity
- The power of confession and repentance
- Pilgrimage as spiritual journey
Margery’s emotional openness and insistence on direct communion with God were groundbreaking for her time. Her tears and ecstatic episodes, though criticized by some clergy, became symbols of her religious passion and conviction.
The Rediscovery of the Manuscript
The only known manuscript ofThe Book of Margery Kempewas lost for centuries and rediscovered in 1934 at a country house in Yorkshire. This discovery was a monumental moment in literary history. Until then, the text had only been known through a few excerpts published in the 16th century. The full manuscript provided a clearer window into medieval female spirituality and one of the earliest examples of English autobiography.
The manuscript, written in Middle English, is housed today at the British Library. Its language, though archaic, offers scholars and readers a fascinating look at the evolution of narrative voice, mysticism, and the religious worldview of a medieval laywoman.
Why Margery Kempe Still Matters
The Book of Margery Kempe remains a powerful testament to the spiritual life of a woman who defied the conventions of her time. In an era when women’s voices were largely silenced in public and religious discourse, Margery managed to preserve her story for posterity through a complex process of oral narration and scribal labor.
Today, scholars consider her book an invaluable resource for understanding medieval mysticism, female piety, and autobiographical literature. Feminist critics, in particular, view Margery as a proto-feminist figure who asserted her voice in a male-dominated religious culture. Her refusal to conform, her bold public piety, and her determination to tell her story make her one of the most compelling literary figures of her age.
A Shared Authorship
So, who wrote the Book of Margery Kempe? The answer lies in a shared act of creation. While Margery was the source of the experiences and visions, the actual writing was done by scribes, likely including her son and a priest. This collaborative authorship reflects the medieval tradition of oral storytelling and religious transcription. Though not a writer in the conventional sense, Margery Kempe was indeed the author of her own story through voice, memory, and spiritual will.
Her book stands as a testament not just to her personal journey, but to the broader cultural and religious shifts of 15th-century England. It offers a deeply human perspective on faith, suffering, and redemption. And in doing so, it ensures that Margery Kempe’s voice continues to be heard, centuries after it was first spoken.