The ethical thought of William of Malmesbury has received only cursory treatment in modern scholarly literature. So far, I have tried to show that the moral language and the moral thought that constituted William's intellectual context was immensely rich and multifaceted, and yet from a certain point of view homogeneous and coherent. In the rest of this chapter, I will look closely at three of William's lesser-known works, where William's moral outlook is expressed most explicitly. While William's great historical works have been subject to close scrutiny, his theology has received comparatively little attention. It is my firm conviction that the ethical mode of thought found in William's theological works may shed valuable light on his historiography. I will therefore look closely at William's ethical thought as it appears in his Commentary on Lamentations and the Miracles and Praises of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The ‘Commentary on Lamentations'

William's only attempt at biblical commentary was on the Lamentations of Jeremiah. It was probably written soon after 1130, and it seems to have had only limited circulation – although it received some praise from its readers. In the introduction, William presents the work as a compliance with an unnamed friend's admonition that he should step out of literary retirement and apply himself to the recording of important subjects. William complies, he says, because the request is beneficial to the moral habits of his friend, and harmonious with his present intentions.