637. What It’s Like to Be Middle-Aged (in the Middle Ages)

Freakonomics Radio

The simplicity of life back then is appealing today, as long as you don’t mind Church hegemony, the occasional plague, trial by gossip — and the lack of ibuprofen. (Part two of a three-part series, “Cradle to Grave.”)

• SOURCES:
  • Jordan Cavalier, performer at the New Jersey Renaissance Faire.
  • Matt Schwarz, harpist at the New Jersey Renaissance Faire.
  • Phillipp Schofield, professor of history at Aberystywth University.
  • Neslihan Şenocak, professor of history at Columbia University.

• RESOURCES:
  • A People's Church: Medieval Italy and Christianity, 1050–1300, co-edited by Agostino Paravicini Bagliani and Neslihan Şenocak (2023).
  • The Routledge Handbook of Medieval Rural Life, edited by Miriam Müller with a contribution by Phillip Schofield (2021).
  • Monty Python and the Holy Grail, film (1975).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Are You Having a Midlife Crisis?" by No Stupid Questions (2022).