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The Acceptance of the Monstrous and Mystical in the Lais of Marie De France and Calvino’S Italian Folktales

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The Acceptance of the Monstrous and Mystical in the Lais of Marie De France and Calvino’S Italian Folktales ABSTRACT HUMAN WICKEDNESS AND MONSTROUS GOODNESS: THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE MONSTROUS AND MYSTICAL IN THE LAIS OF MARIE DE FRANCE AND CALVINO’S ITALIAN FOLKTALES This thesis examines positive portrayals of anatomically monstrous characters—such as shapeshifters, sirens, and witches—in the Lais of Marie de France and Italo Calvino’s Italian Folktales. It explores the ways in which physically monstrous—but essentially virtuous—figures are contrasted with morally bereft human characters. In these folktales, the juxtaposition with human characters is necessary in order for the positive qualities of the physically monstrous to become apparent. This thesis also discusses the function of monstrosity in the texts. In Marie’s Lais, unlike Calvino’s tales, monstrosity is associated with a critique of the medieval system of matrimony. Finally, this thesis will focus on the prerequisites for redemption for human characters who possess monstrous morals. In the Italian tales, villainous humans are more likely to be redeemed and reintegrated into society if they are male; female characters who question male dominance are largely condemned. Eryn Natalia Baldrica-Guy December 2016 HUMAN WICKEDNESS AND MONSTROUS GOODNESS: THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE MONSTROUS AND MYSTICAL IN THE LAIS OF MARIE DE FRANCE AND CALVINO’S ITALIAN FOLKTALES by Eryn Natalia Baldrica-Guy A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English in the College of Arts and Humanities California State University, Fresno December 2016 APPROVED For the Department of English: We, the undersigned, certify that the thesis of the following student meets the required standards of scholarship, format, and style of the university and the student's graduate degree program for the awarding of the master's degree. Eryn Natalia Baldrica-Guy Thesis Author Steve Adisasmito-Smith (Chair) English Ruth Jenkins English Samina Najmi English For the University Graduate Committee: Dean, Division of Graduate Studies AUTHORIZATION FOR REPRODUCTION OF MASTER’S THESIS X I grant permission for the reproduction of this thesis in part or in its entirety without further authorization from me, on the condition that the person or agency requesting reproduction absorbs the cost and provides proper acknowledgment of authorship. Permission to reproduce this thesis in part or in its entirety must be obtained from me. Signature of thesis author: ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis would likely not have been completed if it were not for the financial assistance of the Tokalon Alumnae Scholarship, the Professor Emeritus Eugene Zumwalt Scholarship, the James B. McClatchy Scholarship, and the CSU Fresno English Department. The members of the Department of French at Rutgers University also gave me valuable feedback on a draft of this thesis at their 2016 conference. I would like to extend my gratitude to my colleagues at the Graduate Writing Studio, William Anderson and Greta Bell, both of whom provided excellent advice as I was drafting and revising. I would, of course, like to thank my advisor, Steve Adisasmito-Smith, for his guidance during the sometimes maddening process of choosing a topic, reading critically, and—eventually— writing. Finally, I would like to thank Kevin—who has read and reread this thesis more than any person should have to—and my parents for their unending support. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................. vi LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................ vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................ 1 CHAPTER 2: THE LAIS OF MARIE DE FRANCE ............................................... 7 Marriage, Adultery, and Monstrosity in the Lais .............................................. 9 Bisclavret ......................................................................................................... 13 Yönec .............................................................................................................. 18 CHAPTER 3: CALVINO’S ITALIAN FOLKTALES .......................................... 27 The Role of Women ........................................................................................ 27 “The Wildwood King” .................................................................................... 28 “Water in the Basket” ...................................................................................... 33 “Buffalo Head” ................................................................................................ 36 “The Siren Wife” ............................................................................................. 42 CHAPTER 4: CONCLUSION ............................................................................... 47 WORKS CITED ..................................................................................................... 52 LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1. The Possibility of Redemption in the French and Italian Folktales ......... 49 LIST OF FIGURES Page Fig. 1. Detail of Christ displaying his wound to a nun, Egerton 945, f. 237v (illuminated manuscript, late thirteenth-century France), British Library. .................................................................................................... 21 Fig. 2. Image of Christ displaying his wounds, MS Additional 3704, f. 20r (c. 1460-1500, England), British Library. .................................................... 22 Fig. 3. Foliate head carving near Trieste, Italy (photo by John W. Schulze). ........ 29 Fig. 4. Greek terracotta vase (c. 550-500 B.C.) in the shape of an avian siren, The Met. .................................................................................................. 43 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION From Richard III to The Little Mermaid’s Ursula, physical strangeness has long served as a marker of evil in fiction and folklore. Beautiful protagonists abound in folktales across cultures, suggesting that attractiveness has widely been considered synonymous with virtue. Charles Perrault’s Sleeping Beauty, for instance, is blessed with the “gift that she should be the most beautiful person in the world,” and Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid is “the most beautiful” of her six lovely sisters (Perrault 35; Andersen). Even male heroes are described in attractive terms, with Rapunzel accepting a strange man’s marriage proposal after “[seeing] that he was young and handsome” (Grimm). It is far rarer to see monstrous characters, such as werewolves and witches, as sympathetic figures in folklore. As a result of its acceptance and reproduction by a society, folklore— despite its often fantastic nature—reflects values of the culture from which it arises. This thesis will focus on six folktales from Italy and France; these tales suggest that some degree of popular sympathy for the animalistic—even the monstrous—existed as far back as the twelfth century in these regions. I will focus on depictions of the favorable reception of monstrous, “othered” figures. I will also explore the prerequisites for the redemption of physically human characters who possess monstrous morals. Supernatural or corporeally monstrous characters are portrayed heroically in Marie de France’s Bisclavret and Yönec, and in four of Italo Calvino’s Italian folktales. In some of the following tales, supernatural, “othered” figures offer acceptance to those who are shut out of human society. In others, monsters are integrated, or reintegrated, into human culture because of their demonstration of 2 2 morality. This morality, it should be noted, does not always coincide with dominant social practices. I will explore the conditions for permanent acceptance, or reincorporation into human society, of monsters in these folktales. In each of the tales, the human qualities of supernatural figures become clear only when the monstrous aspects of people are acknowledged. In Bisclavret and Yönec, Marie’s use of monstrosity functions, consciously or not, as part of her critique of the institution of marriage. In the Italian folktales, monstrous creatures obscure the line between ‘normal’ and ‘unnatural,’ emphasizing the superiority of inner goodness over moral monstrosity. In both the French and Italian folktales, moral monstrosity constitutes a far greater evil than physical or social strangeness. Both Marie and Calvino took artistic liberties with the folktales they recorded, creating hybrids of folklore and traditional literature. In the prologue to the Lais, Marie explains that she has chosen to record folktales both to assist in their preservation and to distinguish herself as a writer (lines 32-40). Marie’s word choice often makes it difficult to determine if she is composing or recounting the Lais (Ewert xiii). Among scholars of Calvino, there is some contention concerning the extent to which Fiabe italiane, or Italian Folktales, qualifies as representative of Italian folklore. Beckwith, focusing on Calvino’s many deletions, rationalizations, and expurgations, believes the collection occupies a space between scholarship and popular fiction (261); in other words, the tales are neither untouched by Calvino nor are they his own creations. In contrast to Beckwith, Miele writes that Calvino “increased the value of the tales” by incorporating new elements as an additional storyteller (243). Upon hearing from a colleague that Fiabe italiane was unsuitable for both literary critiques
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