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The Book of Margery Kempe - full chapter-by-chapter summary
This is a full chapter-by-chapter summary of The Book of Margery Kempe, the first ever autobiography
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The Book of Margery Kempe 1The Book of Margery Kempe1
Proem
This is a short2 and comforting treatise for sinful people so they can understand the mercy of God. It
will discuss God’s works and His mercy. It tells of a creature that is changed by God’s mercy and that
then learns a lot of things through the Holy Spirit. More than 20 years later she has it written down
by an Englishman living in Germany who moves back to England because the Holy Ghost wanted him
to. He wrote the book and then died, and the creature then gave the book to a priest who could not
read it. He promises to rewrite it but he defers the writing for almost 4 years because people are
talking shit about this creature. Eventually, he refers her to another man who fails. Then the priest
prays and tries again and he can read everything.
Book 1
Chapter 1
When Margery3 was 20+ years old, she got married to an honourable burgess and she quickly got
pregnant. Whilst pregnant, she got quite ill and she feared she would die. She had one thing that she
never confessed before, so after she gave birth when she was not sure that she would live she finally
started to confess, but the confessor was hasty and started to scold her before she was finished
telling everything. So she got so afraid of damnation that she became bewilderingly vexed and
troubled by spirits for a little over half a year. She has visions of demons swallowing her up and
telling her to forsake Christianity, which she does. She starts hurting herself until Jesus appears to
her and she is steadied in her wits again and starts eating normally.
Chapter 2
Margery decides to become God’s servant. However, she does not want to put aside her pride or
beautiful clothing – that people are making fun of behind her back – and when her husband tells her
to let go of her pride she refuses, for she is of high birth. She is super jealous of her stylish
neighbours and starts to brew – although her husband advises her not to – but she loses a lot of
money because she has no experience in this. She asks her husband for forgiveness. She has a horse
mill and gets herself two horses and a man to grind other people’s corn. However, one day the
horses don’t want to work and the man quits and people start to think Margery is cursed. Margery
realises it’s a punishment from God so she sets away her pride and does physical penance.
Chapter 3
One night as Margery is in bed next to her husband she hears wonderful music 4. It’s such good music
that after hearing this Margery bursts into tears ‘of high devotion’ when she hears ‘any mirth or
melody’. She says there is such joy in heaven, and people that know her are sceptic: How do you
know what is in heaven, you haven’t been there. After hearing the music she doesn’t want to have
sex with her husband anymore. However, she still does out of duty but she cries and sorrows a lot 5
because she wants to be chaste. She tries to convince her husband to live chaste as well and he says
he will when God wishes, so he continues to have sex rape her. Margery prays that her husband will
1
If you want to stay sane whilst reading this, take a shot every time she cries. I am not responsible for any
hospital visits this causes.
2
nope
3
She calls herself ‘this creature’ but I’m just gonna name her by her name
4
Probably the Pride and Prejudice 2005 soundtrack
5
You know what we call that? Rape. That’s called rape.
, The Book of Margery Kempe 2
be chaste and 3 or 4 years later he indeed does 6. Margery also does a lot of physical penance after
hearing the melody. She confesses twice or thrice a day. She has three years of great trials and
temptation which makes her happy because that means that she is entering upon the path leading o
heaven. She cries a lot for her sins and people start calling her a false hypocrite and say that she is
only crying in public so other people feel sorry for her. Many people abandon her.
Chapter 4
For the first two years, Margery finds her newfound spiritual life easy. She thinks she is so strong
because she easily resists temptation so she becomes a bit vain. Because of this, she has those
previously mentioned 3 years of temptations, of which the worst was lechery. One day a man whom
she loves tells her right before an evensong church service that he would do anything to have sex
with her, preferably if she also wants it but if not he’ll have sex with her anyway 7. This distracts her
during the entire service and the devil tells her that God has forsaken her and that is why she cannot
think any good thoughts. She then goes to this man and tells him that she will have sex with him but
he pretends he doesn’t understand what she means. She later approaches him in more clearer terms
and he says he would never have sex with her. She is very confused and she feels unworthy of God
because she was willing to sin.
Chapter 5
One day when she is crying and praying in Church she hears Jesus’ voice telling her she will go to
heaven because he has forgiven her. He tells her to just call him Jesus and to stop eating meat and
eat the sacrament every Sunday. He says he shall give her all the answers to the questions clerics will
ask her and tells her to stop praying as much as she does now. Instead, she can pray till six o’clock
and she should then lie still and speak to Jesus in thought. He tells her to go to the anchorite at the
Preaching Friars and tell them the revelations he will share with her. The anchorite is very impressed
and tells her to tell him everything she hears from God.
Chapter 6
Margery hears Jesus more times. She also sees St. Anne 8 pregnant and she becomes her servant and
she helps her raise Mary and goes with her and Joseph to Elizabeth, mother of St. John the Baptist
and she also travels with Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem and helps Mary give birth to Jesus.
Chapter 7
She is there when the wise men give Mary the present and when the angel tells Joseph and Mary to
go to Egypt. She cries a lot.
Chapter 8
Another time whilst praying she sees Mary and she tells Margery that her seat is ready in Heaven
and that she gets a +1. She says she wants her confessor to be her +1 and Mary asks her why she
didn’t choose her husband or children. She says she can never repay the goodness the confessor has
done for her and Mary says she will extend Margery’s +1 and also allow her husband & children into
heaven.
Chapter 9
Another time when she is praying at night that her husband might be chaste 9 Jesus tells her to fast
on Friday and he will kill her husband. That Wednesday when her husband wants to have sex rape
6
Before this happens she gives birth to a couple more children.
7
You know what we call that? Rape. That is also rape.
8
Mother of Mary
9
The story is not told in the correct chronological order.
, The Book of Margery Kempe 3
her she calls out for Jesus and suddenly he cannot touch her anymore. That Friday she hears a very
loud sound and a three-pound stone falls on her but when she cries out for Jesus it doesn’t hurt
anymore. Other people hear about this and call it a great miracle. Others don’t believe it and say it is
a token of vengeance rather than mercy.
Chapter 10
Margery visits a bunch of places for spiritual health (York and some other places).
Chapter 11
As Margery and her husband are returning from York her husband asks her if she would have sex
with him if someone threatened to behead him if she did not have sex with him. She says she would
rather have him killed than have sex with him. She asks him why they haven’t had sex in the past 8
weeks and the man tells her that he is afraid to touch her. She tells him to mend his ways and ask for
God’s mercy because she told him 3 years ago that he would suddenly be killed, and she is still
waiting for that to happen, but if he mends his ways she will pray for him that he might stay alive. He
refuses. He sets 3 requirements (1) that she has sex with him again, (2) that she mays his debts
before she goes to Jerusalem and (3) that she breaks the Friday fast. She says she will never break
the Friday fast. He says he will then have sex with her, she prays, Jesus tells her to tell her husband
that she will pay his debts before she goes to Jerusalem in exchange for him not having sex with her
and for him allowing her to keep her Friday fast. Her husband agrees
Chapter 12
Margery meets one monk who has a high position and who dislikes her 10. However, after he hears
her speak he likes her and asks her to ask God whether or not he is saved. Jesus tells Margery that
the priest has sinned in lechery and despair and in keeping of worldly goods but that he will be saved
if he leaves his sin. Margery doesn’t want to tell the priest yet because she fears he will say she is
lying. When she tells the monk he treats her to a great dinner and afterwards he follows her advice.
Chapter 13
When Margery is in Canterbury everyone dislikes her because she cries so much. She is reproached
for crying this much and a priest tells her that she must be enclosed in stone so nobody will hear her
anymore. She tells him a tale of somebody that sinned a lot and then confessed and did penance and
he pays people to chide him. Then one day he arrives people like the people here in Canterbury who
chide him and he laughs because he doesn’t have to pay them. The conclusion is that she thanks
them for mocking her. She gets accused of being a Lollard and they want to burn her, but two young
men help her back to her inn. After this, she has a period where she constantly talks to Jesus and
cries a lot.
Chapter 14
Margery thinks it is very joyful to be rebuked for God’s love, so every time she is chided she is happy.
She imagines herself dying for Jesus but because she fears death she imagines a soft death for
herself. Jesus tells her that he is honoured she is willing to suffer but she shall not die or be injured,
even though the world doesn’t understand her. He says that she is truly his daughter because she
strives to please him, truly his mother for weeping for his pains and Passion, and truly a sister for
weeping for another man’s sins.
10
I don’t fault him for that
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