Catholic Piety and Leisure and Recreation

Stephanie Sjoblom

Catholic Piety

• Religion played a large role in community life and popular culture.

• People joined in religious festivals• Some priests wanted to fix some popular

religious practices that they saw as more superstitious than religious.

• Attempted changes on this varied widely because pious peasants saw this as an attack on their true faith.

Carnival

• Preceded Lent• It was a time for people to release frustration• Dancing, drinking, plays, and processions

Home Leisure

• Culture was still very vocal

• In colder months families would gather around fireplaces.-sing, tell stories, do crafts

• Women would often gather at each other’s houses to chat and sew.

• Men would often go out to bars and talk with their friends.

Entertainments

• Entertainments became very popular with all social classes.

• Urban fairs brought about new foods, acrobats, freak shows, open-air performances and the like.

• Matadors and heavyweight champions began making an appearance.

Blood Sports

• Bull baiting-staked on a chain and attacked by dogs-the bull was then sold for meat

• Cockfighting-carefully trained-armed with steel spurs-popular because of gambling