Out of the Mouths of Babes
Book • 2025
Julie Singer's 'Out of the Mouths of Babes' explores the strange moments in medieval literature where infants, even fetuses, speak.
The book delves into the unsettling questions raised by these instances, such as the definition of a person and the role of speech in humanity.
It examines how writers imagined infants speaking with an authority untainted by human experience.
Through treatises, manuals, poetry, and devotional texts, Singer charts how these portrayals offer unique insights into medieval hopes for universal answers to life’s deepest wonderings.
The study reveals the profound significance attributed to baby talk in medieval French literature, challenging conventional assumptions about its triviality.
The book delves into the unsettling questions raised by these instances, such as the definition of a person and the role of speech in humanity.
It examines how writers imagined infants speaking with an authority untainted by human experience.
Through treatises, manuals, poetry, and devotional texts, Singer charts how these portrayals offer unique insights into medieval hopes for universal answers to life’s deepest wonderings.
The study reveals the profound significance attributed to baby talk in medieval French literature, challenging conventional assumptions about its triviality.
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Julie Singer, "Out of the Mouths of Babes: Infant Voices in Medieval French Literature" (U Chicago Press, 2025)
