Mark Twain’s depiction of Joan of Arc in Personal Recollections is clearly that of a saint. While his view prevails in the Church, it is by no means universally accepted. In fact, it has been hotly debated ever since Joan emerged as a public figure and leader in the Hundred Years War (1337-1453).

Her French patriots, like Christine de Pizan, celebrated Joan as a heroine sent by God. Meanwhile, Joan’s English enemies, including William Shakespeare, set about demonizing her. Though centuries have passed, modern characterizations of Joan are no less disparate. Few today are outright hostile, but many are quick to write Joan off as a lunatic or an impostor. 

What is clear, is that Joan of Arc continues to capture the imagination of generations of people. Her story, though set in the Middle Ages, tugs at the heartstrings of society and plays on the moral conscience of Christians and non-Christians alike.

In order to draw my students deeper into an investigation of Joan’s life, we take a look at a handful of contending views.

A Glowing Contemporaneous View

Christine de Pizan’s poem The Song of Joan of Arc, written in 1429 while Joan was in the height of defeating the English in battle, offers a glowing view of her. As a fellow country(wo)man, it is no wonder de Pizan embraces Joan’s image as the Maid of Heaven. Totaling 61 stanzas in all, it offers seemingly endless praise of Joan while following a chronology of her life in the public eye.

A Hostile Contemporaneous View

William Shakespeare’s Henry VI: Part I (1591) presents a very interesting albeit factually inaccurate characterization of Joan. It represents a view of her from the English side, little over a century after her death. Naturally, the English preferred to think of Joan as a religious fraud; otherwise, it would seem that God was their enemy in the Hundred Years War.

Shakespeare’s depiction of Joan fits this viewpoint, calling her a “witch” and even a “whore” at different points in the play. When Joan first arises on the scene, she is a dynamic figure, full of strength and charisma at the head of the French military. As the play progresses to her trial, Joan falters to such an extent that she uses the pretext of being pregnant as a last resort to save her from being put to death.

Shakespeare presents this highly falsified image to discredit Joan’s persona as the “Virgin Maid.” By the end of the play, he has completely stripped Joan of her dignity and justified her condemnation and death.

An Inspiring Modern View

Sierra Pictures’ movie Joan of Arc (1949), starring Ingrid Bergman, offers another favorable view of Joan. It begins with her accepting a divine calling from God to save the French from the cruel hands of the English, then shows her triumphal leadership in battle, and concludes with her unjust condemnation and cruel death at the fiery stake. There is no question this film depicts Joan as a saint truly called by God.

A Neutral Modern View

Alliance Film’s movie Joan of Arc (1999) is the most modern view of Joan that I look at with students. While it shows her religious devotion, it stops short of presenting her as a saint. Instead, it hedges between characterizing her as a selfless servant of God on the one hand versus a prideful religious fanatic on the other.

The movie follows the typical order, beginning with Joan’s religious calling back in her hometown of Domremy, transitioning into her military command, and concluding with her trial and condemnation. It is a well done movie that provokes many questions not only about who Joan really was but also about modern society’s growing secularization. 

Take Away for Students

Just as there is no consensus in the world about who Joan of Arc really was, there never ends up being a consensus in my classroom. That is not because they don’t generally all agree she was saint. Rather, their disagreement has more to do with subtle nuances related to her personality and character.

Was she always gentle-natured? Or did she have a temper? Was she a model of humility? Or did her ego flare up from time to time?

Much less concerned do they end up being about the precise words she uttered when, say, she raised the siege of Orleans or spoke to the Dauphin at his coronation. These details, they realize, are distant background in the picture of what makes Joan a saint.

In the next post, I am going to describe a number of reading, writing, and rhetorical exercises I do with the class that help them wrestle with the many questions that arise in the course of our study.