Weeping as Forensic Evidence in Piers Plowman

The essay considers the ‘materiality of tears’ in PPl as ‘forensic evidence’ in fictional judicial processes. O’Sullivan raises questions of the authenticity and legitimacy of tears, echoing and subverting arguments made by Swift, Jones, and Knight in the same volume. In addition, O’Sullivan considers the place of gender in the shaping of the conceptions and perceptions of tears. (adapted from the book’s introduction)