Medieval True Crime with Sara McDougall
Summary
In this episode, host Matthew Gabriel interviews Sarah McDougall, author of *Justice for Jean*, which reconstructs the life of a 15th-century survivor in Dijon through court records. McDougall discusses her unexpected path from opera singer to medievalist and explains how she used a police procedural format to make historical scholarship accessible to a broader public. The conversation highlights the richness of municipal archives and the importance of informed speculation in bringing hidden voices from the Middle Ages to life.
Topics discussed
Show introduction and host welcome
Introduction of guest Sarah McDougall
Praise for the new book's narrative style
Silly question: telling young Sarah she'd be a medievalist
Sarah's childhood and early interest in playwriting
Academic pivot from Soviet history to the Reformation
Accidental discovery of medieval history
Discussion of Sarah's varied skill set and hobbies
Tangential discussion on cannibalism and movie recommendations
Reflection on the rambling path to the Middle Ages
Changing public perception and visibility of medievalists
Overview of the book 'Justice for Jean'
The rich municipal records of Dijon
The role of the Substitute Prosecutor in the narrative
How the book came to be written by accident
Decision to write for a broader public audience
Critique of academic insularity and storytelling
Broadening the definition of the medieval period
Personal motivation for studying the Middle Ages
The pedantic approach to sourcing and verification
Adopting the police procedural model
Challenges of writing about women who did not write
Influence of witness testimony research on the book
Handling the wealth of information from Dijon sources
Structure of the book and the investigator's perspective
Expanding the scope to the Duke of Burgundy
Reconstructing a life from limited evidence
Methodology for uncovering hidden voices
Informed speculation based on 20 years of research
Creativity in medievalist methodologies
Teaser for the next book set in Dijon
Discovery of new sources via archive Facebook pages
The 'Other Duchesses' category and new findings
Finding a letter from Jeanne's daughter
The abundance of unexamined archival material
Collaboration with archivists and wandering in archives
The luxury of time for archival research
Time pressures for early career researchers
Praise for archivists and librarians
Promotion of Patreon and bonus content
Painting a picture of life in 15th-century Dijon
Methodology for handling pardons and context
The value of Dijon's litigious population
Using testimony to build a social history
Identifying conflicts and relationships between neighbors
Deciphering nicknames and linguistic clues
Using digital databases like HathiTrust and Gallica
The frustration of missing key figures in records
Finding context for perpetrators in tax registers
Perpetrators returning to the community
The nature of violence and judicial outcomes
Ways to avoid capital punishment
Detention and torture as investigative tools
The rarity of beheadings in this period
Jeanne's identity as an outsider and community member
Confusion with Joan of Arc due to the name Jean
Jeanne's self-presentation and lack of other records
Identifying Jeanne's origin through dress and speech
Economic conditions in Lorraine vs. Dijon
Women's work and medical malpractice accusations
Community support for Jeanne during threats
Jeanne's personality emerging from testimony
Neighbors' perceptions of Jeanne's character
The danger and stakes of Jeanne's accusation
Understanding community values and violence
The value of intense contextualization in history
Public-facing work and popular articles
Drawing parallels between 15th-century and modern communities
Tolerance of domestic violence in the past
Understanding historical attitudes without empathy
Social media presence and university website issues
The curse of faculty websites and final remarks
Show outro and credits
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