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Reader, Teller, and Teacher : the Narrator of Robert Henryson's Moral Fables

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Reader, Teller, and Teacher : the Narrator of Robert Henryson's Moral Fables I I I REÀDER' TELLER ÀND TEACEER Dloral Fables The Narrator of Robert Eenryson's I by RosemarY Greentree B.A. (Hons') Submitted as a thesis for the degree of M'A' in the Department of English, University of Adelaide' Juner 19 86. \D't\., t\ì,.rco u-çl- ' CONTENTS I Introduct ion I II The Narrator gains his audience 13 III Truth and the Narrator 33 IV The moralitates of the Fables 52 V The wolfts progress as a sYmbol 82 VT The place of the Narrator 105 VTI Language, mood and order L47 VIII The journey of life 175 Appendix: Order in manuscript witnesses for the Moral Fables 188 Abbrevi at ions 208 Bibliography 2r0 SUMI,TARY the thesis describes the role of the Narrator of Robert Henryson's I'lora1 Fables, as he giveS a reading of Aesoprs Fables and teaches their lessons, directly in the moralitates and indirectly in the telling of the tales. The Narratorrs presence is a constant and unifying influence on the work, in which he i s the guide to his audience, his readers, to whom he gives a picture of life, their duties and expectations. This is achieved through direct addresses and by manipulation of the audience's responses to the tales through the style of the te1ling. An important aspect of this style is the order in which the Fables are told, and the presence of the Narrator and his changing mood form part of the thematic evidence presented for accepting the order which is used in the Bassandyne Print, a Source which presents the thirteen Fables in a formed, complete and balanced work. His presence and mood are revealed by a varying use of language and recurring metaphors; and the site of his activities is seen to vary as the Sequence progresses. The themes of the work are introduced in the early taIes, repeated with variations in others, and summarised in the last fable which concÌudes the Narratorrs relationship with his audience. This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university. To the best of my knowledge and belief' it contains no materiaÌ previously published or written by another personr êXcept where due reference is made in the text.. I consent to its being made availabl-e for photocopying and loan if applicable if it is accepLed for the award of the degree. I am happy to acknowledge the help r have received during the preparation of the thesis. It has been produced using the word processor in the Department of English; and I am grateful for this and for the assistance and encouragement of members of the Department, particularly Dr À. T. Brissenden and my supervisors, Dr T. L. Burton and Mr P. J. Wa1dron. Miss Liz Lee in the Barr Smith Library has helped me; and I have been encouraged by Dr R. J. Lyall and Prof. W. A. Ringler and the constant support of my family. CHÀPTER I: Introduction A narrator is essential to the telling of a storyt and may be as conspicuous or as imperceptible as the author desires. In seeking to influence members of an audience, a narrator may address them directly or try to affect them merely by the style of narration- The narrator of Henryson's Mora1 Fables, whom I shalI call the Narrator, uses techniques of persuasion both direct and indirect as he tells the tales he attributes to Aesop and teaches the lessons he finds in them. He acts as reader, teller and teacher; and my thesis wiIl concern his performance in these three capacities. As reader and teller, the Narrator serves as the window through which the audience may gain an experience of the fanciful world of the tales. He links this world with that of his audience, bringing the fantastic tales of the reasoning, speaking beasts to the reasoning, speaking people who attend to him; and he moves between their worlds. He must find the truth within the patent fiction of the fables, and deliver it in the moralitates which foIIow the tales. As a teacher, he demonstrates and juggles with the truth, and arranges the moral I lessons which he gives to erring man. The Narrator of the Moral Fables is the device Henryson uses to transmit the tales and their l-essons to his chosen audience, and it is tempting to look for some traces of the author in his creation.l We mây, therefore, briefly consider what we know of Henryson and his times to see whether such traces are to be found- Any specific biographical criticism of the Mora1 Fables would necessarily be very specuÌative, and I shall not attempt it. We can be sure of very little that is written of Henryson's life; but v¡e can probably safely accept that he was master of the Àbbey School at Dunfermline and that he flourished in the latter part of the fifteenth century, during the reigns of James III and James IV, a time of political turbulence and some social changes, followed by a more peaceful period- Dunbarrs'Lament for the l'lakars'SuggeSts that his death, or at least a serious ill-ness, had occurred before the death of Stobo, in 1505.2 rh" record of admission of a Robert Henryson to the senate of the University of Glasgow in t 462 and the occurrence of this name a s a witneSs to documents, aS a notary public of Dunfermline, in L477 and L47B' are accepted as evidence of the poet by Denton Fox, in his edition of Henrysonrs works.3 These f indings are more cautiously regarded by W. Ì4. l'letcaIfe, who accepts only the record of admissionr âDd by c. Gregory Smith' H. Harvey Wood, Charles E1liot and 2 Douglas Gray.4 The work and these details suggest an author of liberal education, accustomed to a certain authority, and with a wi sh to teach- I{e may apply such a description to the author and to his Narrator. Sir Francis Kinastonrs translation of The Testament of Cresseid into Latin verse includes a fmerry, though Somewhat unsavoury tale' of Henryson's death becl, which has its appeal and is frequently quoted, but we may probabty only hope that it is true.S we may assume his great familiarity with Aesoprs Fables, among the f irst exercises in transl-ation from the Latin which were given to school pupils, and also that his works we re likely to be read by individuals' rather than be read to groups, as \'¡as the case for earlier poets. In sty]e, they are well suited to oral delivery and, indeed, the Narratorrs presence seems always to be that of a speaking voice: recounting' cajoling or admonishing, sharing thoughts of amusement or despair. we may also be tempted to think of the Narrator as a persona with a pedagogical outlook; but this i s not sufficient reason to assume that he i s doing no more than stating the views to be expected of the school-master of Dunfermline. Henryson could write, wi th apparent ease, in several styles, a proposition we can verify by reading such varied works as rThe Testament of Cresseid', 'Orpheus and Eurydice', 'Robene and Makynel 3 and rsum Practysis of Medecyne'.6 The MoraL Fables have applications beyond the lessons of the schoolroom, and are to be appreciated by adults, already acquainted with Aesop and his maxims, and prepared to accept that such tales will be accompanied by moralitates. The presence of these appendages has disturbed some thtentieth-century readers of the work. In consÍdering the telling of the Fablesr we must also consider the order of the telling, including the question of whether there is a particular order which is to be preferred. If v¡e think of the t"loral Fables simply as a collection of stories which may not be complete, then any order is possible and none is necessary./ The witnesses which give all the fables -- the Bassandyne Print, the Charteris Print, the Harleian Manuscript, the Hart Print and the Smith Print -- give them in the following order, which is considered tradi t ionaL : The Prologue I The Cock and the JasP II the Two Mice III The Cock and the Fox IV The Fox and the Wolf V The Trial of the Fox VI The Sheep and the Dog VII The Lion and the Mouse VIII The Preaching of the SwaIlow IX The Fox, the Wolf, and the Cadger X The Fox, the Wolf, and the Husbandman XI The Wolf and the Wether XII The Wolf and the Lamb XIII The Paddock and the l'louse this is the order used in the editions of Metcalfe' 4 Smith, Harvey Wood, (the first editor to consult the Bassandyne Print), EIliot' and Fox. There are three other witnessesr the Bannatyne, Asloan and Makculloch Manuscripts; and none gives alI the fables. The Bannatyne Manuscript has more of these than the other two; and some of its readings are preferred to those of any other witnesses. However, it supplies only ten of the fables, and there are several interpolations in the fifth part of the Manuscript' I contenyng the fabiltis of Esop with diuer{s uþir fabillis and poetical workis maid & compyld be diuers lernit menr .8 Bu.,rr.tyne arranged these works as follows, after his ovùn address 'To the redar': Henryson The Preaching of the Swallow Holland the Buke of the Howlat Henryson The Cock and the Fox Henryson The Fox and the Wolf Henryson The Tria1 of the Fox Henryson Orpheus and EurYdice Henryson The Bludy Serk Henryson The Prologue Henryson The Cock and the JasP Henryson The Paddock and the Mouse Henryson The Two Mice Henryson The Sheep and the Dog Henryson The Wolf and the Lamb Henryson The Lion and the Mouse Dunbar the Thrissil and the Rois Dunbar The Go1dyn Targe Anon.
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