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Xerox University Microfilms 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 74-10,911 BAKELAAR, B ette Lou, 1936- FRCM VERSE TO PROSE; A STUDY OF THE FIFTEENTH-CENTURY VERSIONS OF CHRESTIEN'S EREC AND CLIGÈS. The Ohio S tate U n iv ersity , Ph.D ., 1973 Language and Literature, modem University Microfilms, A XEROX Company, Ann Arbor, Michigan 0 1974 BETTE LOU BAKELAAR ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICRGFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED. FROM VERSE TO PROSE: A STUDY OF THE FIFTEEiVTH-CENTUIO: VERSIONS OF CHRESTIEN'S EREC AND CIIG&S DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Bette Lou Bakelaar, A.B., M.A. ***** The Ohio S tate U niversity 1973 Reading Committee: Approved By Dr. David A. Griffin Dr. Charles G. S. Williams Dr. Johanna S. Belkin Dr. Hans E. K eller Adviser Department of Romance Languages acknowledgments It gives me great pleasure, at this time, to acknowledge and ex­ press my deepest appreciation for the guidance and support which Dr. Hans E. Keller has given me in the execution of this study. His out­ standing scholarship and genuine interest in the field of Middle Rrench literature have been a constant source of inspiration. thanks also go to Thomas G. VJhitney, who was most h e lp fu l in suggesting and writing the computer programs v*iich are the basis of Chapter IV. He was untiring in his efforts to explain the mysteries of computer science to this uninitiated scholar. The computer part of our study could not have been carried out had the Department of Romance Languages of the Ohio State University not generously provided the necessary computer time. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to my fam ily, whose moral support and concem have encouraged me to complete the present study. 2.x VITA December 19, J.936........................................ Bom - Newark, New Jersey 19^ 8....................................................................A.B., Wilson College, Chambersburg, Penn^lvania 1 9 5 9........... ........................................................ M.A., I'liddlebury College, Middlebuiy, Vermont 1959-I 9 6I.. ............... ..................................... Instructor, Department of French, Wilson College, Chambersburg, Penna. 1961^1903..........................................................Teaching Assistant, Department of Romance Languages, New York Univer­ sity, New York City 1963-1965.................................. «.....................Instructor, Department of French, Wilson College, Chambersburg, Penna. I 965-I 9 6 7........... .............................................Assistant Professor, Department of French, V£Llson College, Chambersburg, Penna. 1 9 5 7 -1 9 7......... 1 ................................................Assistant Professor, Department of French, Vh.ttenberg University, S p rin g field , Ohio 1972- 1973 ......................... ...Research Associate, Department of Romance Languages, The Ohio State U niversity, Columbus, Ohio FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: French Literature Medieval French Literature. Professor Hans E. Keller Eighteenth Century French Literature. Professor Hugh M. Davidson Nineteenth Century French Literature. Professor Charles Carlut i i i table oy CONTENTS Page ..........................................................................................................i i VITA.......................................................................................... i i i Chapter I. General Introduction..... ................. 1 II. Erec and Cliges; A Conparison of the Verse and Prose Versions .......... .37 III. The prose Erec and Cliges; A Literary Comparison.....121 IV. Erec and Cliges: A Question of Authorship ...................195 V • Conclusion .................. 270 APPENDIX...................................................................................................................... 277 BIBLIOGRAPHY.............................................................................................................. 33l IV (Siapter One General Introduction 1.1. Conflict—internal and external, political as well as religious- dominated the history of France in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. French and Burgundians struggled for power; England and France were en­ gaged in the Hundred Years' War; the establishment of the Avignon papacy s p li t th e Church in to two fa c tio n s . Such an atmosphere was not conducive to the development of a rich cultural life; France, which had enjoyed the high degree of civilization characteristic of the twelfth-century Renais­ sance and the thirteenth-century Gothic, was no longer a leader in the a r t s . The French, involved in the aforementioned struggles, no longer ap­ preciated the literary genres which had been so popular at an earlier date. They found it difficult to relate to a Roland and his battles with the Saracens or to an Arthurian hero and his fantastic loves and adven­ tures; they were too deeply engaged in the events of their everyday lives, events which would determine the future of their homeland. Other genres were called upon to take the place of the chanson de geste and the roman courtois. The chix>nicle became an important means of expression and the one inqwrtant narrative form because of its historical nature (Froissart, Coranynes); the theatre was the most populai^ non-narrative form (miracle and mystery plays, farces); ornamental lyric poetry was cultivated (Mr^- chaut, Deschançs, Christine de Pisan, Alain Chai*tier). Prom the above 1 2 enumeration, the lack of interest in the fictional narrative is appa­ re n t . The state of the French language during the Middle French period, furthermore, was not equal to the production of masterpieces to be com­ pared with those of the twelfth centuryt for example. literature, ex­ plains Pierre Quiraud, ^ is the product of both culture and language; when these two factors are not at the same level of development, the re­ sult is "oeuvres médiocres," but "lorsqu'en revanche, la maturité d'une langue coincide avec 1' épanouissement d'une culture, alors s'ouvre un grand siècle littéraire." The French language in the fourteenth and fif­ teenth centuries was in a state of transition. A new language—modem French—was bom about the middle of the fourteenth century with its dis­ tinct phonetic, grammatical and lexical characteristics. There was, however, a part of the French-speaking world which, seemingly, contradicted these general tendencies—the state of burgundy. ^ The dukes of Burgundy, more prosperous than the kings of France, and ri­ valing them in power and territory, were able to maintain a very rich court life where the arts were held in high esteem, while at the same time involving themselves deeply in the conflicts of their times. Jean i^chner ^ reports that "A l'époque où Charles VII trouve avec peine une Le Moyen Français. "Que sais-je?", Wo. 1086 (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1966), p. 121. In this study, we shall use the term Burgundy to refer to the state of Burgundy and Bourgogne to refer to the province. La Littérature et les moeurs chevaleresques a la cour de Bourgogne (iMeuchatel: Secretariat de l 'Université, lyjjU), p. 0 . 3 poularde pour garnir sa table (Martial d'Auvergne dixit), Philippe le Bon commande des tapisseries, feuille te des manuscrits précieux, fait bombance." After the death of Charles V (I 38O), Burgundy became the center of French culture, and it is throu^ the court of Burgundy that the modem critic must judge an inçortant aspect of fifteenth-century French civilization. The