ABSTRACT
Urbanus magnus demonstrates that there were multiple hierarchies, both within the household and outside. Simply put, the text reveals that almost every member of medieval society – lord and servant alike – was subordinate to some people and superior to others. However, it is not enough merely to identify the various roles and interactions across the strata of medieval society; these also need to be interpreted. Throughout this chapter, the behaviour discussed in Urbanus magnus is compared with some modern sociological and anthropological theories of social relationships and interactions. While scholars have previously focused on religious duty to God or the pleasure of entertaining as a basis for understanding didactic literature relating to social relations, the household, and hospitality, I contend that sociology and anthropology can provide additional means of understanding the hierarchical structure of medieval social life. Social interactions within the household and outside – especially hospitality – were used to cement relations in a strictly hierarchical society, and similar behaviour has been prevalent in other times and places, and theorised by these disciplines.
