The Cambridge Companion to Medieval French Literature The Cambridge Companion to Medieval French Literature. Edited by S arah K ay and S imon G aunt . Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2008. xxii+275 pp. Hb £45.00; $90.00. Pb £17.99; $29.99.

Abstract

This excellent publication buzzes with the vibrancy of literary texts themselves and the vitality of current scholarship in the field. Energetically written essays offer lucid explanations of key issues, such as the complex social division between clergy and laity (Emma Campbell, Ch. 14), but also challenging perspectives on established works, as when addressing the mechanics of parody in short comic tales (Sarah Kay, Ch. 11). The volume's 16 contributions are divided into four integrated sections appropriately defined as questions, highlighting the inquiring spirit fostered by its chapters: ‘What is a medieval French text?’, ‘What is a medieval French author?’, ‘What is the value of genre for medieval French literature?’ and ‘How can we read medieval French literature historically?’ Essential threads of inquiry recur, underlining the significance for medieval studies of, for example, types of remaniement, or issues of manuscript transmission. Thematic connections also knit chapters together, such as the exploration of ideas of coherence across Section I. Cross-references across chapters provide a helpful plurality of reflections on a particular form, with the fabliau (Chs 9, 11 and 13), or issue, as with patronage (Chs 5, 7 and 8). Individual chapters achieve a satisfying balance between expository argument and illustration through worked textual/visual examples (all quotations include English translation). Several contributions stand, not as summaries of primary texts and previous scholarship, but as instances of innovative scholarship in themselves: Kay's analysis of comic tales or Jane Taylor's interrogation of ‘verbal virtuosity’ (p. 156) in later lyrics. The third and fourth sections furnish provocative insights into the social embeddedness of medieval literature, whether through matters of performance (Helen Solterer, Ch. 12) or the malleable treatment of political structures (James Simpson, Ch. 13). Contributors to these sections take a refreshing step back to address basic questions: Keith Busby, opening Section III, considers the very purpose of thinking about genre in regard to medieval textuality. The volume's pedagogical value, already considerable owing to the vigorous clarity of writing (the editors choose to eschew any extensive use of theory) on a remarkable range of canonical and lesser known texts, is further enhanced by its appendages: at the front, a tabular comparative chronology of historical events, medieval French and Anglo-Norman text production and selected cultural events in France and its neighbours; at the back, an annotated list of printed and electronic resources for medieval language and literature, a bibliography of primary texts discussed (plus additional important items), and suggested further reading relating to the general topic of each chapter. Just two small criticisms of the volume may be ventured: first, although contributors are world-leading scholars who are often the authors of recent monographs on the topics they discuss (such as Sylvia Huot: see FS, LXII (2008) 329–30), it is a shame that only English-speaking scholarship is represented, in that other major critics (Jacqueline Cerquiglini-Toulet or Michel Zink) are absent; second, while many crucial points of critical contention are addressed, the figure of Johan Huizinga, popularly accredited with theorizing ‘the waning of the Middle Ages’, is notably absent from discussion of later literature. In sum, however, the Companion is a superb resource for stimulating interest in students and scholars alike in the earliest centuries of French literary production.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 37 citations exist upstream.