Download or read book Fictions of Identity in Medieval France written by Donald Maddox and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2000-11-23 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this study of vernacular French narrative from the twelfth century through the later Middle Ages, first published in 2000, Donald Maddox considers the construction of identity in a wide range of fictions. He focuses on crucial encounters, widespread in medieval literature, in which characters are informed about fundamental aspects of their own circumstances and selfhood. These always arresting and highly significant moments of 'specular' encounter are examined in numerous Old and Middle French romances, hagiographic texts, epics and brief narratives. Maddox discloses the key role of identity in an original reading of the Lais of Marie de France as a unified collection, as well as in Arthurian literature, fictions of the courtly tryst, genealogies and medieval family romance. The study offers many new perspectives on the poetic and cultural implications of identity as an imaginary construct during the long formative period of French literature.
Download or read book Fictions of Identity in Medieval France written by and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this study of vernacular French narrative from the twelfth century through the later Middle Ages, Maddox considers the construction of identity in a range of fictions. He focuses on crucial encounters, widespread in medieval literature, in which characters are informed about fundamental aspects of their own circumstances and selfhood.
Download or read book Shaping Identity in Medieval French Literature written by Adrian P. Tudor and published by University Press of Florida. This book was released on 2019-08-05 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection considers the multiplicity and instability of medieval French literary identity, arguing that it is fluid and represented in numerous ways. The works analyzed span genres—epic, romance, lyric poetry, hagiography, fabliaux—and historical periods from the twelfth century to the late Middle Ages. Contributors examine the complexity of the notion of self through a wide range of lenses, from marginal characters to gender to questions of voice and naming. Studying a variety of texts—including Conte du Graal, Roman de la Rose, Huon de Bordeaux, and the Oxford Roland—they conceptualize the Other Within as an individual who simultaneously exists within a group while remaining foreign to it. They explore the complex interactions between and among individuals and groups, and demonstrate how identity can be imposed and self-imposed not only by characters but by authors and audiences. Taken together, these essays highlight the fluidity and complexity of identity in medieval French texts, and underscore both the richness of the literature and its engagement with questions that are at once more and less modern than they initially appear. Contributors: Adrian P. Tudor | Kristin L. Burr | William Burgwinkle | Jane Gilbert | Francis Gingras | Sara I. James | Douglas Kelly | Mary Jane Schenck | James R. Simpson | Jane H.M. Taylor
Download or read book Representing the Dead written by Helen J. Swift and published by Boydell & Brewer. This book was released on 2016 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An examination of how the dead were memorialised in late medieval French literature.
Download or read book Shaping Romance written by Matilda Tomaryn Bruckner and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2015-08-05 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines a set of five twelfth-century romance texts—complete and fragmentary, canonical and now neglected, long and short—to map out the characteristics and boundaries of the genre in its formative period.
Download or read book Sodomy Masculinity and Law in Medieval Literature written by William E. Burgwinkle and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2004-07-08 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: William Burgwinkle surveys poetry and letters, histories and literary fiction - including Grail romances - to offer a historical survey of attitudes towards same-sex love during the centuries that gave us the Plantagenet court of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, courtly love, and Arthurian lore. Burgwinkle illustrates how 'sodomy' becomes a problematic feature of narratives of romance and knighthood. Most texts of the period denounce sodomy and use accusations of sodomitical practice as a way of maintaining a sacrificial climate in which masculine identity is set in opposition to the stigmatised other, for example the foreign, the feminine, and the heretical. What emerges from these readings, however, is that even the most homophobic, masculinist and normative texts of the period demonstrate an inability or unwillingness to separate the sodomitical from the orthodox. These blurred boundaries allow readers to glimpse alternative, even homoerotic, readings.
Download or read book House of Lilies written by Justine Firnhaber-Baker and published by Basic Books. This book was released on 2024-05-21 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A joy to read…one of the most entertaining popular history books published in recent years” (Dan Jones, Sunday Times), this is the definitive history of the Capetians, the crusading dynasty that made the French crown the wealthiest and most powerful in medieval Europe and forged France as we know it today In House of Lilies, historian Justine Firnhaber-Baker tells the epic story of the Capetian dynasty of medieval France, showing how their ideas about power, religion, and identity continue to shape European society and politics today. Reigning from 987 to 1328, the Capetians became the most powerful monarchy of the Middle Ages. Consolidating a fragmented realm that eventually stretched from the Rhône to the Pyrenees, they were the first royal house to adopt the fleur-de-lys, displaying this lily emblem to signify their divine favor and legitimate their rule. The Capetians were at the center of some of the most dramatic and far-reaching episodes in European history, including the Crusades, bloody waves of religious persecution, and a series of wars with England. The Capetian age saw the emergence of Gothic architecture, the romantic ideals of chivalry and courtly love, and the Church’s role at the center of daily life. Evocatively interweaving these pivotal developments with the human stories of the men and women who drove them, House of Lilies is the definitive history of the dynasty that forged France—and Europe—as we know it.
Download or read book The Man Who Believed He Was King of France written by Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2009-05-15 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Replete with shady merchants, scoundrels, hungry mercenaries, scheming nobles, and maneuvering cardinals, The Man Who Believed He Was King of France proves the adage that truth is often stranger than fiction—or at least as entertaining. The setting of this improbable but beguiling tale is 1354 and the Hundred Years’ War being waged for control of France. Seeing an opportunity for political and material gain, the demagogic dictator of Rome tells Giannino di Guccio that he is in fact the lost heir to Louis X, allegedly switched at birth with the son of a Tuscan merchant. Once convinced of his birthright, Giannino claims for himself the name Jean I, king of France, and sets out on a brave—if ultimately ruinous—quest that leads him across Europe to prove his identity. With the skill of a crime scene detective, Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri digs up evidence in the historical record to follow the story of a life so incredible that it was long considered a literary invention of the Italian Renaissance. From Italy to Hungry, then through Germany and France, the would-be king’s unique combination of guile and earnestness seems to command the aid of lords and soldiers, the indulgence of inn-keepers and merchants, and the collusion of priests and rogues along the way. The apparent absurdity of the tale allows Carpegna Falconieri to analyze late-medieval society, exploring questions of essence and appearance, being and belief, at a time when the divine right of kings confronted the rise of mercantile culture. Giannino’s life represents a moment in which truth, lies, history, and memory combine to make us wonder where reality leaves off and fiction begins.
Download or read book Joan of the Sword Hand written by S. R. Crockett and published by Good Press. This book was released on 2023-09-18 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In S. R. Crockett's novel 'Joan of the Sword Hand', readers are transported to the historical setting of medieval France where they witness the gripping tale of a young woman named Joan who must navigate through political intrigue and personal challenges. The book combines elements of romance, adventure, and societal commentary, making it a compelling read for those interested in historical fiction. Crockett's descriptive prose and attention to detail bring the story to life, immersing readers in a bygone era filled with knights, castles, and courtly drama. The book's exploration of gender roles and the limitations placed on women during this time period adds depth to the narrative, making it a thought-provoking read for modern audiences. Through Joan's journey, Crockett examines themes of identity, resilience, and the struggle for autonomy, making 'Joan of the Sword Hand' a nuanced and engaging literary work. Fans of historical fiction and strong female protagonists will appreciate the depth and complexity of Crockett's storytelling in this novel.
Download or read book The Futures of Medieval French written by Jane Gilbert and published by Boydell & Brewer. This book was released on 2021 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Essays on aspects of medieval French literature, celebrating the scholarship of Sarah Kay and her influence on the field.
Download or read book The Cornerstone written by Perseus and published by Da Capo Press. This book was released on 1998-05-22 with total page 482 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A tale of chivalric love and religious warfare set in thirteenth-century France recreates the time of knighthood and pageantry
Download or read book The World is Not Enough written by Zoé Oldenbourg and published by . This book was released on 1967 with total page 700 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book From Plato to Lancelot written by K. Sarah-Jane Murray and published by Syracuse University Press. This book was released on 2008-06-12 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Considered the most important figure in medieval French literature, Chrétien de Troyes is credited with inventing the modern novel. The roots of his influential Arthurian romance narratives remain the subject of investigation and great debate among medieval scholars. In From Plato to Lancelot, K. Sara-Jane Murray makes a highly original and profoundly significant contribution to the current scholarship by locating Chrétien’s work at the intersection of two important traditions: one derived from Greco-Roman antiquity, the other from the Celtic world of the Atlantic seaboard. Drawing on a broad range of sources, from Plato’s Timaeus and Ovid’s Metamorphoses to the anonymous Lais translated in the twelfth century by Marie de France, Murray demonstrates that Chrétien and his contemporaries learned the importance of translation from the Mediterranean-centered classical tradition. She then turns to the Celtic world, examining how Irish monastic scholarship, as demonstrated by the Voyage of St. Brendan and Celtic saints’ lives, profoundly influenced the cultural identity of medieval Europe and paved the way for an interest in Celtic stories and legends. With breathtaking insight and lucid prose, Murray illustrates that Chrétien’s singular genius lay in his ability to look to the future and to lay the foundations for a thoroughly new, and French, tradition of vernacular storytelling.
Download or read book The Legend of Charlemagne in Medieval England written by Phillipa Hardman and published by Boydell & Brewer. This book was released on 2017 with total page 491 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first full-length examination of the medieval Charlemagne tradition in the literature and culture of medieval England, from the Chanson de Roland to Caxton. The Matter of France, the legendary history of Charlemagne, had a central but now largely unrecognised place in the multilingual culture of medieval England. From the early claim in the Chanson de Roland that Charlemagne held England as his personal domain, to the later proliferation of Middle English romances of Charlemagne, the materials are woven into the insular political and cultural imagination. However, unlike the wide range of continental French romances, the insular tradition concentrates on stories of a few heroic characters: Roland, Fierabras, Otinel. Why did writers and audiences in England turn again and again to these narratives, rewriting and reinterpreting them for more than two hundred years? This book offers the first full-length, in-depth study of the tradition as manifested in literature and culture. It investigates the currency and impact of the Matter of France with equal attention to English and French-language texts, setting each individual manuscript or early printed text in its contemporary cultural and political context. The narratives are revealed to be extraordinarily adaptable, using the iconic opposition between Carolingian and Saracen heroes to reflect concerns with national politics, religious identity, the future of Christendom, chivalry and ethics, and monarchy and treason. PHILLIPA HARDMAN is Readerin Medieval English Literature (retired) at the University of Reading; MARIANNE AILES is Senior Lecturer in French at the University of Bristol.
Download or read book La Paracl te written by Rod Randall and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 181 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of Abelard and Heloise is set in Medieval France. It is a compelling tale of romance and suffering at the hands of those who could not accept the couple's perplexing mix of sensualism and intellectualism. It portrays the triumph of love, friendship, and being true to oneself in spite of prevailing moral dicta. "Ironically, the main character, Alberic, from whose point of view the story revolves, lives in the throws of an epoch of great enlightenment...but seems to miss the meaning of it all--the fate of so many of us today who vicariously live other people's lives, but forget to live our own"--Cover verso.
Download or read book Transforming Tales written by Miranda Griffin and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2015-08-27 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Transforming Tales argues that the study of transformation is crucial for understanding a wide range of canonical work in medieval French literature. From the lais and Arthurian romances of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, through the Roman de la Rose and its widespread influence, to the fourteenth-century Ovide moralisé and the vast prose cycles of the late Middle Ages, metamorphosis is a recurrent theme, resulting in some of the best-known and most powerful literature of the era. Transforming Tales is the first book in English to explore in detail the importance of ideas of metamorphosis in French literature from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries. This book's purpose is twofold: it traces a series of figures (the werewolf, the snake-woman, the nymph, the magician, amongst others) as they are transformed within individual texts; and it also examines the way in which the stories of transformation themselves become rewritten during the course of the Middle Ages. Griffin's approach combines close readings and comparisons of literary texts with readings informed by modern critical theories which are grounded in many of the ideas raised by medieval metamorphosis: the body, gender, identity and categories of life. Literary depictions and reworkings of transformation raise questions about medieval understandings of the differences between human and animal, man and woman, God and man, life and death—these are the questions explored in Transforming Tales.
Download or read book Theorizing Medieval Race written by Victoria Turner and published by Legenda. This book was released on 2019-09-23 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a wide-ranging study of Old French texts from c.1150-1350, Victoria Turner explores how racial identity is not only paradoxical but even fluid in the medieval Christian literary imagination, where Arthurian heroes may have Saracen ancestors and where a Saracen may set an example of good Christian behaviour.
