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Joan of Arc: In Her Own Words
*Compiled and translated by Willard Trask, with an historical afterword by Sir Edward Creasy. "The details of the life of Joan of Arc forma biography which is unique among the world's biographies in one respect, " wrote Mark Twain: "it is the only story of a human life which comes to us under oath, the only one which comes to us from the witness stand." Using only material compiled from the transcripts and testimonies of St. Joan's condemnation trials, Willard Trask has arranged her words into a unique autobiography. Trask was Ford Madox Ford's personal secretary, and later a National Book Award winner and a recipient of Bollingen Foundation grants for his work in medieval and primitive poetry.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
May 22, 2024
Beautiful reconstruction (from her own words) of one of the most enigmatic figures in history. This book has a very haunting feeling to it; the words seem to forewarn the end that is coming. Joan of Arc seems to me to be one of those individuals who knew that they had a specific goal to accomplish; a goal that was more important than life.
May 18, 2022
Cmon now. What’s there to hate
March 13, 2015
The dialogue throughout Joan of Arc’s trial is as compelling as any dialogue in any play I’ve ever read. This whole book was a great read. I’m mostly familiar with Joan of Arc as she’s been portrayed in movies. There were several big, cinematic-worthy scenes within this, “primary historical document�, which would have been incredible on screen, but I don’t recall ever seeing them in any Joan of Arc movies. Here are my 3 favorites:
1) She brought a dead baby back to life momentarily. According to this text Joan of Arc came across a grieving mother and her dead, unbaptized baby. The baby had been dead for 3 days (a common biblical timeframe), and its skin had blackened. Joan and some other people prayed over it and it came back to life, and its skin changed color before their eyes and the baby cooed, and then swiftly died again. So I guess it came back to life long enough for them to save its soul or whatever. It was an absolutely crazy scene, I don’t believe a word of it, but it would’ve been neat to see in a movie.
2) When she was being held captive in a tower in Rouen, she jumped out of the tower to try to flee, and got hurt in doing so and immediately recaptured. It didn’t say in this text how high she fell from. I would love to find out more about that event though, and if anybody knows exactly how high of a jump that was. Or perhaps if it never happened. I doubt a lot of the things that were in this document.
3) An angel came down to Charles, the dauphin to personally present him with a golden kingly crown. The crown was divinely crafted in heaven, and as the angel moved toward Charles through the chamber Joan walked beside the angel. One of Joan’s inquisitors then asked her if the crown smelled good, which I thought was an absolutely hilarious question. And Joan replied that it did smell good, and it will continue to smell good as long as people take good care of the crown. That is the craziest thing, why has nobody put that scene in a movie yet?
There were some other notable things from this text, such as Joan never seemed to try to pass herself off as a man. She always referred to herself in female terms. I think there is a popular perception of her as a woman pretending to be a man, but at every point throughout her narrative here she refers to herself as a maid and never tries to fool anyone otherwise. Also to go along with that, there was never a mention of her cutting her hair short, or styling it as a man’s haircut. There might be other historical sources that mention her hair, but in this document she never had anything to say about her hair, which I found interesting because it’s been a big thing in all the Joan of Arc movies and most of the artwork that I’ve seen.
Another thing was the first moment that she met Charles, she said that she immediately recognized him in the room. That has been turned into a big moment in all of the Joan of Arc movies, but it wasn’t a big moment in this text. In the movies, they show Charles deliberately trying to fool Joan, passing himself off as a commoner amongst commoners, and having someone else pose as the Dauphin up in the leader’s seat, but she always sees through their trickery. In this document she doesn’t mention any of that stuff, just basically, “I walked in the room and saw the dauphin.� Doop, dee, doop.
The final thing I noticed was that Joan never fought or killed anybody in this text. She was often in the thick of the battles, shouting commands and encouragement to her fellow troops, but she never mentioned fighting anybody. She said specifically that she never killed anyone. She had a sword though. There was a King Arthur, Excalibur moment where she found a rusty sword behind an shrine somewhere, and then as it was lifted up the rust flaked off and it looked like new again in her hands.
The Afterward, written by Edward S. Creasy offered some secular perspective on some of the things in Joan of Arc’s story, which I appreciated. He mostly focused on the military stuff though. My next look into Joan of Arc’s life will be by way of Mark Twain. I’m very interested in his perspective. Apparently his book about her was his proudest literary achievement. I’m absolutely fascinated by her story now. This book was well worth reading, and it is a keeper.
1) She brought a dead baby back to life momentarily. According to this text Joan of Arc came across a grieving mother and her dead, unbaptized baby. The baby had been dead for 3 days (a common biblical timeframe), and its skin had blackened. Joan and some other people prayed over it and it came back to life, and its skin changed color before their eyes and the baby cooed, and then swiftly died again. So I guess it came back to life long enough for them to save its soul or whatever. It was an absolutely crazy scene, I don’t believe a word of it, but it would’ve been neat to see in a movie.
2) When she was being held captive in a tower in Rouen, she jumped out of the tower to try to flee, and got hurt in doing so and immediately recaptured. It didn’t say in this text how high she fell from. I would love to find out more about that event though, and if anybody knows exactly how high of a jump that was. Or perhaps if it never happened. I doubt a lot of the things that were in this document.
3) An angel came down to Charles, the dauphin to personally present him with a golden kingly crown. The crown was divinely crafted in heaven, and as the angel moved toward Charles through the chamber Joan walked beside the angel. One of Joan’s inquisitors then asked her if the crown smelled good, which I thought was an absolutely hilarious question. And Joan replied that it did smell good, and it will continue to smell good as long as people take good care of the crown. That is the craziest thing, why has nobody put that scene in a movie yet?
There were some other notable things from this text, such as Joan never seemed to try to pass herself off as a man. She always referred to herself in female terms. I think there is a popular perception of her as a woman pretending to be a man, but at every point throughout her narrative here she refers to herself as a maid and never tries to fool anyone otherwise. Also to go along with that, there was never a mention of her cutting her hair short, or styling it as a man’s haircut. There might be other historical sources that mention her hair, but in this document she never had anything to say about her hair, which I found interesting because it’s been a big thing in all the Joan of Arc movies and most of the artwork that I’ve seen.
Another thing was the first moment that she met Charles, she said that she immediately recognized him in the room. That has been turned into a big moment in all of the Joan of Arc movies, but it wasn’t a big moment in this text. In the movies, they show Charles deliberately trying to fool Joan, passing himself off as a commoner amongst commoners, and having someone else pose as the Dauphin up in the leader’s seat, but she always sees through their trickery. In this document she doesn’t mention any of that stuff, just basically, “I walked in the room and saw the dauphin.� Doop, dee, doop.
The final thing I noticed was that Joan never fought or killed anybody in this text. She was often in the thick of the battles, shouting commands and encouragement to her fellow troops, but she never mentioned fighting anybody. She said specifically that she never killed anyone. She had a sword though. There was a King Arthur, Excalibur moment where she found a rusty sword behind an shrine somewhere, and then as it was lifted up the rust flaked off and it looked like new again in her hands.
The Afterward, written by Edward S. Creasy offered some secular perspective on some of the things in Joan of Arc’s story, which I appreciated. He mostly focused on the military stuff though. My next look into Joan of Arc’s life will be by way of Mark Twain. I’m very interested in his perspective. Apparently his book about her was his proudest literary achievement. I’m absolutely fascinated by her story now. This book was well worth reading, and it is a keeper.
February 8, 2008
If you're only going to read one book about Joan of Arc, make it this one.
April 24, 2014
Inspiring.
August 22, 2016
Read on, and then I will answer you. I look to God, my creator, in all. I love him with all my heart.
Awe-inspiring, mysterious, and ultimately sobering. Joan of Arc, who has long been one of my heroines, was born over 600 years ago, but she lives on through her words and the indisputable facts of her courage, campaigns, and death. The bulk of this book is an anthology of quotes by Joan, both direct from her trial and letters and as quoted by others. The translator and compiler is Willard Trask, and his work appears to be reprinted here from an earlier edition (Joan of Arc: Self Portrait, 1936). I was impressed by the chronological presentation and grateful for an English rendition of sources that are otherwise read in French or Latin.
It is not clear whether the Afterword (1851) by Sir Edward Creasy was chosen by Trask or by the publisher. Creasy, an Englishman, writes with some seeming skepticism, and though we're all entitled to our own analysis, his perspective jars with the autobiographical nature of this book. There is also one point where he quotes a passage that contradicts Trask's own quote (whether Joan had fasted the day before her first vision) which is confusing for the reader (or, a challenge to dig into the original languages). I would say the Afterword is useful in that it fleshes out the narrative, but I wonder if there isn't a better essay out there to do that.
Recommended for anyone looking for a personal insight into the life of Joan of Arc.
Awe-inspiring, mysterious, and ultimately sobering. Joan of Arc, who has long been one of my heroines, was born over 600 years ago, but she lives on through her words and the indisputable facts of her courage, campaigns, and death. The bulk of this book is an anthology of quotes by Joan, both direct from her trial and letters and as quoted by others. The translator and compiler is Willard Trask, and his work appears to be reprinted here from an earlier edition (Joan of Arc: Self Portrait, 1936). I was impressed by the chronological presentation and grateful for an English rendition of sources that are otherwise read in French or Latin.
It is not clear whether the Afterword (1851) by Sir Edward Creasy was chosen by Trask or by the publisher. Creasy, an Englishman, writes with some seeming skepticism, and though we're all entitled to our own analysis, his perspective jars with the autobiographical nature of this book. There is also one point where he quotes a passage that contradicts Trask's own quote (whether Joan had fasted the day before her first vision) which is confusing for the reader (or, a challenge to dig into the original languages). I would say the Afterword is useful in that it fleshes out the narrative, but I wonder if there isn't a better essay out there to do that.
Recommended for anyone looking for a personal insight into the life of Joan of Arc.
March 29, 2016
In this short "autobiography" Willard Trask translated and arranged the recorded words of Joan of Arc in a way that allows her to tell her own story. Her words come mainly from records of her trial supplemented by eyewitness (earwitness?) accounts and correspondence (Trask does not make any great effort to cite his sources and admits to altering indirect discourse to first person speech in some instances). In the main text the quotes are presented without commentary other than a few words describing the date, the occasion, the recipient, and/or the question to which she is replying.
There is a brief afterward (written in 1851) which is supposed to give an overview of her life, but it not really worth reading. It was clearly written as a completely separate piece and stops abruptly without saying anything about Joan's arrest and trial (which take a significant portion of the preceding book). I really am not sure why it was included other than maybe to flatter Sir Edward S. Creasy.
This was a very interesting look into Joan's mind to see how she thought of herself (or at least how she portrayed herself to others) without having to wade through anyone's pet theories. The scholarly documentation is a bit lacking, but it's a great read for anyone interested in the Maid of Orleans.
There is a brief afterward (written in 1851) which is supposed to give an overview of her life, but it not really worth reading. It was clearly written as a completely separate piece and stops abruptly without saying anything about Joan's arrest and trial (which take a significant portion of the preceding book). I really am not sure why it was included other than maybe to flatter Sir Edward S. Creasy.
This was a very interesting look into Joan's mind to see how she thought of herself (or at least how she portrayed herself to others) without having to wade through anyone's pet theories. The scholarly documentation is a bit lacking, but it's a great read for anyone interested in the Maid of Orleans.
February 13, 2017
Though it was, perhaps, an unlucky thing for Joan of Arc that she was on the witness stand in the first place, how lucky for us that her words there were recorded and then translated and placed in biographical order by Willard Trask. It is remarkable to read her words and see her faith in action. Not to mention how cool and collected she seems to be when standing before her accusers, answering their tedious questions. (They seemed particularly bothered by the fact that she refused to dress as a woman.)
Because I personally knew little of Joan of Arc other than: saint, burned at stake, beloved by the French and countless others (and possible model for Brienne of Tarth!), I would have benefited from a timeline or quick sketch at the front of the book reminding me what about her life I'd forgotten since I was in my high school French class ages ago. But that seems more like my flaw than a flaw of this book, so five stars all around!
This book will appeal to those who are interested in: Joan of Arc, lives of the Saints, visions, belief, French history, and anyone intrigued by primary court transcript translations from the 15th century.
Because I personally knew little of Joan of Arc other than: saint, burned at stake, beloved by the French and countless others (and possible model for Brienne of Tarth!), I would have benefited from a timeline or quick sketch at the front of the book reminding me what about her life I'd forgotten since I was in my high school French class ages ago. But that seems more like my flaw than a flaw of this book, so five stars all around!
This book will appeal to those who are interested in: Joan of Arc, lives of the Saints, visions, belief, French history, and anyone intrigued by primary court transcript translations from the 15th century.
August 9, 2014
This book is essentially just a collection of things Joan of Arc actually said according to witnesses, letters and the notes of her trial. In this case translated into English.
Her personality really shines through in every word--if anyone thinks someone like Katniss Everdeen is unrealistic, they obviously have never met Joan of Arc. Not only is she tough, single-minded and probably often somewhat difficult, she's clever and funny and terrified when she's got good reason to be. It's amazing listening to her expertly parry her examiners. Clearly this comes not out of any great way with words or debating skill, but a pure heart and single-minded focus on God. It's no wonder that centuries after her horrible death she still stands out like a classic hero while her examiners look like petty villains.
Her personality really shines through in every word--if anyone thinks someone like Katniss Everdeen is unrealistic, they obviously have never met Joan of Arc. Not only is she tough, single-minded and probably often somewhat difficult, she's clever and funny and terrified when she's got good reason to be. It's amazing listening to her expertly parry her examiners. Clearly this comes not out of any great way with words or debating skill, but a pure heart and single-minded focus on God. It's no wonder that centuries after her horrible death she still stands out like a classic hero while her examiners look like petty villains.
August 28, 2015
Without the English mistrial this book could not exist, the bulk of her words and statements were taken from her trial records, either being stated by her, or from the deposition of witnesses at her trial testifying to her character. This is a quick read, a few hours max, but it was so delightfully simple and clean. Joan was not an overly complicated person, she was devout and determined and patriotic. I'm not saying her character is one-sided, I'm saying that it is easy to grasp the fullness of her mission and her chutzpah in a hundred and fifty pages of her words. Recommended. (Also, if you aren't overly familiar with Joan of Arc, there is a really great synopsis of her life and campaigns at the end which can help fill in some of the gaps.)
August 20, 2007
This wasn't really what I expected, but it was worth reading if you're interested. Most of the passages were compiled from transcripts and documents such as surviving copies of letters written (dictated) by Jheanne, which tells her story literally "in her own words," but the passages are rather selective. I am still looking for a translation of the transcripts from her trial and other documents to avoid that problem, but I liked this book generally because it traces her journey and reconstructs events using her own statements.
October 20, 2016
This ingenious book is an autobiography of Joan of Arc, created by taking the text from her trial and reordering it into a first-person chronological story. The result is powerful - for some reason I would like to see it accompanied by Mary MacLane's I Await the Devil's Coming: each has a power to its writing that well matches the other.
As an afterword, the book contains an account of the earliest part of Joan's mission, an 1851 writing by historian Sir Edward S Creasy, which reads splendidly and is a fine way to slowly say goodbye to this book.
As an afterword, the book contains an account of the earliest part of Joan's mission, an 1851 writing by historian Sir Edward S Creasy, which reads splendidly and is a fine way to slowly say goodbye to this book.
May 27, 2012
Quite simply this is the story of Joan of Arc without the fluff and guesswork. All of the writing is taken from her trial documents and eyewitness reports, and the translation makes for surprisingly good reading. It’s a short read with a commentary afterwards. Her faith and her audacity surprise me every time I pick this book up.
August 25, 2009
I was very glad I read Mark Twain's Joan of Arc book before this one. This book is filled with quotes attributed to Joan, but there isn't much background. So I was glad I knew the story and circumstances behind this book.
April 13, 2011
I loved this. It is a simple little book, but so poignant. You really get a sense of her purpose, and how strongly she felt about it. The last section of the book, covering the trial, is heartbreaking.
May 16, 2024
� “I would rather die than do what I know to be sin.�
� “You Englishmen, who have no right in this Kingdom of France, the King of Heaven sends you word and warning, by me Jehanne the Maid, to abandon your forts and depart into your own country, or I will raise such a war-cry against you as shall be remembered forever.�
� “I fear nothing but treachery.�
� “Master Peter, where shall I be this night? By God’s grace shall I be in Paradise.�
� “I have asked my voices for three things: one is my freedom; another, that God will help the French and watch over the towns that acknowledge them; and the other, my soul’s salvation.�
� “You Englishmen, who have no right in this Kingdom of France, the King of Heaven sends you word and warning, by me Jehanne the Maid, to abandon your forts and depart into your own country, or I will raise such a war-cry against you as shall be remembered forever.�
� “I fear nothing but treachery.�
� “Master Peter, where shall I be this night? By God’s grace shall I be in Paradise.�
� “I have asked my voices for three things: one is my freedom; another, that God will help the French and watch over the towns that acknowledge them; and the other, my soul’s salvation.�
April 3, 2016
I wish I had read the afterword first; it provided a bit of framework for the historical "action" that Joan of Arc's words filled in for the bulk of the book. If you already know the basics of this heroine's life, this would be an excellent read right off the bat. If you are "new" to Joan's life (like I am), I would recommend brushing up on the background before reading this one.
However, her words are extremely interesting. Courageous, blunt, freethinking in ways that remind me in many ways of the early church apostles. I am not convinced at this point, though, that the voices she heard were genuine messengers from God. I intend to do further research on this intriguing individual, though, to help understand what she did hear/know that drove her to do all that she did.
I was extremely amused at what a big deal Joan's captors made of her wearing soldier's clothing, rather than traditional woman's clothing.
However, her words are extremely interesting. Courageous, blunt, freethinking in ways that remind me in many ways of the early church apostles. I am not convinced at this point, though, that the voices she heard were genuine messengers from God. I intend to do further research on this intriguing individual, though, to help understand what she did hear/know that drove her to do all that she did.
I was extremely amused at what a big deal Joan's captors made of her wearing soldier's clothing, rather than traditional woman's clothing.
June 17, 2009
The book is written in the first person directly from Inquisition transcripts which creates a haunting relationship between the reader, Joan, and the Inquisitors.
Directed right to the heart, the story is sculpted by the author through the selection of letters and transcripts (not a complete translation of all letters). An amazing experience of fear, hope, faith, and love with the constant awareness and presence of the Inquisitors and the inevitable outcome.
I first read this book over ten years ago and it has made an indelible inprint in my mind and soul. I also highly recomend the film, The Passion of Joan of Arc, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer.
Directed right to the heart, the story is sculpted by the author through the selection of letters and transcripts (not a complete translation of all letters). An amazing experience of fear, hope, faith, and love with the constant awareness and presence of the Inquisitors and the inevitable outcome.
I first read this book over ten years ago and it has made an indelible inprint in my mind and soul. I also highly recomend the film, The Passion of Joan of Arc, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer.
October 1, 2017
Joan of Arc, one of my favorite historical heroines, expresses herself in her own words in this book, which makes it very dear. Although a very young maid, she writes with a grace and wisdom beyond her years. This is a book to be read and re-read and treasured forever. Because the book is small, it fits perfectly in a pocket or a bag, and can be slipped out for moments of reading at quiet times during the day. I would not give up my copy for anything.
August 12, 2010
Having already read through the trial I really didn't count on learning anything from this book, but it was amazing the way Joan's character came out when the events were placed chronologically. I also liked the interspersion of Joan's letters when they helped the story along. An essay was added at the end that, for me, illuminated Joan's place in history.
February 28, 2007
this is a great little book that I picked up while on a camping trip. Only those interested Joan's story will find this book worth-while as it is her story from her own written words compiled by Willard Trask.
July 26, 2011
The book overall was very interesting and a very fast read. I enjoyed the format, and the fact that it was not a flat out biography of Joan's life. I believe that in order to really appreciate the book in its entirety the reader should have some knowledge of Joan of Arc before reading this.
January 2, 2014
An amazing piece of work.
The translation of transcripts from Joan's own words are powerful and encouraging to me as a mere mortal.
Her belief in what she was doing at the time and the voices she heard screams to me to find my own way and forge my own path.
What a wonderful soul.
The translation of transcripts from Joan's own words are powerful and encouraging to me as a mere mortal.
Her belief in what she was doing at the time and the voices she heard screams to me to find my own way and forge my own path.
What a wonderful soul.
March 21, 2008
This is an excellent little book that provides Joan of Arc's extant words in chronological order. It's a great supplement to Joan of Arc, by Pernoud and Clin.
October 26, 2011
It's Joan of Arc..in her own words..what's not to like. Best line "Wretched boy! Why did you not tell me French blood was flowing? Where are those who would arm me? To horse! To horse!"
January 19, 2015
It was nice to read her own words however I read it as a companion to a historical biography which helped me understand what was going on around her at the time.
January 26, 2024
Read this for speech, it is phenomenally written, and it shows her story so well! I was hooked right when I started reading, and I loved every second of it! I really wanted to just sit down and read it, but I was at school as I read it so I was unable!! It truly gives so much depth to her as a person, and I’m not sure if this is actual things she wrote, but it really feels so real!
July 28, 2024
"and the voice said that i should raise the siege before orléans. and it told me to go to vancouleurs, to robert de baudricourt, captain of the town, who would give me men to go with me.
and i told the voice that i was a poor girl who knew nothing of riding and warfare."
and i told the voice that i was a poor girl who knew nothing of riding and warfare."
Read
November 17, 2021An extremely readable mediated autobiography constructed from Joan's own words at her infamous trial that unfortunately led to her execution. An interesting figure of faith, presented here with more nuance and a lot less legend and folklore than the story most of us are likely familiar with.
December 12, 2024
I wish I believed in anything so strongly
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