One medieval writer read polygamy as Islamic law’s cure for covetousness

Evidence

Mahomets stomack grew weak, and one sort of meat begun to loath him; Chodaige ( =Khadijah) was stale, and others fancied him: he therefore purpos’d in his Law (then in hatching?) to allow all sorts of carnall liberty: and to incourage them by his example, solemnly … espoused Aysce ( =‘A’ishah) the beloved child of his sonne in law Abubocher … — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 1573 (#contradicts, via linked claim)

Yet Muhammad did not marry until the age of twenty-five and then remained monogamous for another twenty-four years, until Khadîja’s death in 619. Perhaps more significant is that his polygamy begins in Medina, where he has become an important political and military leader: like many an Arab potentate before him, Muhammad used marriage to forge important political alliances and to reflect his political and economic prestige. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 224 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Medieval writers imagined polygamy as a Muslim demographic war weapon; European writers explained Muhammad’s marriage laws as mere licentiousness — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 1573; Most Christian writers distorted Islamic marriage law, with some believing polygamy unlimited — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 754 (+1 more)

Related

• European writers explained Muhammad’s marriage laws as mere licentiousness (similarity 0.92)
• Muhammad’s polygamy was political alliance-building, not lust (similarity 0.87)
• Medieval Europeans could not recognize polygamous unions as marriages at all (similarity 0.81)
• Most Christian writers distorted Islamic marriage law, with some believing polygamy unlimited (similarity 0.81)
• Muhammad’s polygamy was standard evidence against his prophethood (similarity 0.81)
• Medieval polemic framed Muslim polygamy as a breeding strategy against Christendom (similarity 0.81)
• Medieval attacks on Islam centered on its denial of chastity and reason (similarity 0.80)
• Muhammad’s marriages alone barred prophethood for medieval Christians (similarity 0.80)
• Medieval Christians used Islam’s marital norms to claim moral superiority (similarity 0.79)
• Early Christian anti-Islamic polemics focused on polygamy, divorce, and Muhammad’s marriage to Zaynab (similarity 0.79)
• Muslim biographers’ frankness about Muhammad’s marriages fueled medieval Christian scandal (similarity 0.79)
• Polemical categories like adultery fail when applied to another religion’s marriage law (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Medieval writers imagined polygamy as a Muslim demographic war weapon #expands (0.80)
• European writers explained Muhammad’s marriage laws as mere licentiousness #contradicts (0.80) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 1573
• Muhammad’s polygamy was political alliance-building, not lust #complicates (0.75) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 224
• Most Christian writers distorted Islamic marriage law, with some believing polygamy unlimited #expands (0.72) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 754