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Signs, Interpretation and Storytelling in Medieval French and German Tristan Verse Narratives Fiona Nanette Suslak PhD Medieval Studies The University of Edinburgh 2014 2 Declaration This is to certify that the work contained within has been composed by me and is entirely my own work. No part of this thesis has been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification. Signed: (Fiona Suslak) 3 Abstract This thesis provides a comparative analysis of late-twelfth and early-thirteenth century Tristan verse narratives from the French- and German-speaking worlds, in order to gain a more nuanced picture of how these specific writers reflect contemporary debates on interpretation and fictionality in their own works. While there is a vast body of critical literature on these texts, and a large amount of this scholarship examines the way that interpretation functions in these works, critics have so far not adequately considered how the Tristan texts from this period as a body engage with contemporary medieval debates on the relationship between truth, lies and fiction, particularly in relation to fiction as a new category for vernacular literary culture. Therefore, this thesis analyses how literary practice during this period is reflected in these texts, particularly regarding truth, lies, interpretation and authority. The first part of the thesis thoroughly studies the use of verbal and visual signs in the texts, focusing on the way that characters both construct and interpret those signs. The second part of the thesis examines storytelling in these texts. This focuses firstly on the narrators’ interjections into their works, discussing for example their relationship to their sources. Secondly, this analyses how the characters within the texts tell stories to each other, particularly those relating to their own pasts. Together, these two parts argue that interpretation and authority are key concerns for the writers of these texts. In conclusion, this thesis proposes that the writers of the Tristan verse narratives are participating in a dialogue about literary practice, 4 interpretation and authority as they attempt to engage with the new narrative mode of literary vernacular romance. 5 Contents Introduction 6 Part One: Interpretation of Signs Chapter One: Visual Signs 24 Chapter Two: Verbal Signs 87 Part Two: Storytelling Chapter Three: Interjections from the Narrator 146 Chapter Four: Stories within the Story 202 Conclusion 256 Bibliography 269 Acknowledgements 288 6 Introduction There is a vast body of literature on the French and German versions of the Tristan story from the late-twelfth and early-thirteenth centuries. While a large amount of this examines the way that interpretation functions in these works, critics have so far failed to consider how the Tristan texts from this period as a body reflect contemporary debates on the relationship between truth, lies and fiction, particularly regarding fiction as a new category for vernacular literary culture. The late twelfth and early-thirteenth centuries were a time of cultural change, including debates among philosophers on issues such as universals.1 Simultaneously, during this period stories were increasingly being written down in the vernacular. The latter fact in particular has prompted modern criticism on the relationship between history and fiction, and on the development of fiction as a concept, in this period.2 The written word had previously been seen as a medium which carried authority, therefore this development led to discussion within the texts themselves on the nature of truth, lies, interpretation and authority. Although Gottfried’s text has been the focus of some important research on this development in this period, particularly regarding his relationship to Latin authorities, this has yet to be thoroughly compared with the 1 For an overview of these debates and their backgrounds, see Gordon Leff, Medieval Thought: St Augustine to Ockham (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1958; repr. 1962), pp. 104-14 and pp. 168-251. For an analysis of the influence of Alanus ab Insulis on the vernacular literature of this period, see Christoph Huber, Die Aufnahme und Verarbeitung des Alanus ab Insulis in mittelhochdeutschen Dichtungen: Untersuchungen zu Thomasin von Zerklaere, Gottfried von Straßburg, Frauenlob, Heinrich von Neustadt, Heinrich von St. Gallen, Heinrich von Mügeln und Johannes von Tepl, Münchener Texte und Untersuchungen zur deutschen Literatur des Mittelalters, 89 (Munich: Artemis Verlag, 1988). 2 Examples include D. H. Green, The Beginnings of Medieval Romance: Fact and Fiction, 1150-1220 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002), and Walter Haug, Literaturtheorie im deutschen Mittelalter: Von den Anfängen bis zum Ende des 13. Jahrhunderts, 2nd edn (Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1992; repr. 2009). 7 other Tristan texts.3 Although there has been some comparison between Gottfried’s and Thomas’ works, it is important to discover how all these writers viewed their work with regard to its truth or authority; was the concept of independent fiction in the vernacular beginning to emerge from these texts? The importance of connecting the discussion of fictionality to the way that characters interpret particular signs in the texts, especially regarding the truth or falsehood of a particular assertion, has not been adequately addressed. The characters of the Tristan stories are depicted engaging in interpretation so much in the texts that it is ideal material for writers who want to explore the relationship between truth, lies, fiction, interpretation and authority. This analysis will show that all of the writers of these texts are using their works as a location for discussing how interpretation functions, for example how characters interpret specific signs and how those signs acquire meaning. This will demonstrate that a key concept of fiction is an awareness of differing and sometimes equally valid interpretations that may or may not be truth or falsehood. There is therefore a connection between the interpretation of signs and narratives as seen in these texts and the bigger picture of literary practice in French- and German- speaking cultures from the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. A comparative study of these issues within the Tristan texts will not only lead to a greater understanding of the texts themselves, but also of medieval culture more generally. There are seven extant versions of the Tristan story from the French- and German-speaking worlds dating from the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. They are Béroul’s Roman de Tristan, Thomas’ Roman de Tristan, Marie de France’s 3 Mark Chinca, History, Fiction, Verisimilitude: Studies in the Poetics of Gottfried’s ‘Tristan’, MHRA Texts and Dissertations, 35, Bithell Series of Dissertations, 18 (London: Modern Humanities Research Association for the Institude of Germanic Studies, University of London, 1993). Chinca provides an excellent analysis of Gottfried’s poetics, particularly relating to the boundaries between history and fiction. 8 Chievrefueil, the anonymous Folie Tristan de Berne and Folie Tristan d’Oxford, Eilhart von Oberge’s Tristrant und Isalde and Gottfried von Strassburg’s Tristan.4 Most of these works are fragmentary; Béroul’s work is missing both the beginning and the end of the story, Thomas’ is lacking the beginning and Gottfried’s is lacking the ending. Eilhart von Oberge’s work is the only complete version of the romance under discussion here. The earlier manuscripts of Eilhart’s text are also fragmentary, but the full text is available from a later reworking, which is referenced in this thesis. The remaining three texts (Marie’s Chievrefueil and the two Folies Tristan) are all shorter texts which depict one specific episode of the legend. The two Folies also provide summaries of the romance as a whole which can be related to one or other of the longer versions of the story.5 This discussion is limited to texts dating from the 4 Béroul, ‘Le Roman de Tristan’, in Tristan et Iseut: Les poèmes français, la saga norroise, ed. by Daniel Lacroix and Philippe Walter ([Paris]: Librairie Générale Française, 1989), pp. 23-227; Thomas, ‘Le Roman de Tristan’, in Tristan et Iseut, ed. by Lacroix and Walter, pp. 329-481; Marie de France, ‘Le Chèvrefeuille’, in Lais de Marie de France, ed. by Karl Warnke, trans. by Laurence Harf-Lancner ([Paris]: Librairie Générale Française, 1990), pp. 262-69; Anon., ‘Folie Tristan de Berne’, in Tristan et Iseut, ed. by Lacroix and Walter, pp. 277-305; Anon., ‘Folie Tristan d’Oxford’, in Tristan et Iseut, ed. by Lacroix and Walter, pp. 229-75; Eilhart von Oberg, Tristrant und Isalde, ed. by Danielle Buschinger and Wolfgang Spiewok, Greifswalder Beiträge zum Mittelalter, 12, WODAN, 27 (Greifswald: Reineke, 1993); Gottfried von Straßburg, Tristan, 3 vols (Stuttgart: Philipp Reclam Jun., 2001-02), I, 9th edn (2001); II, 7th edn (2002); III: Kommentar, 6th edn (2002). All references to the primary texts throughout this thesis will be to these editions. The ‘Folie Tristan de Berne’ will be referred to throughout as the Folie Berne. The ‘Folie Tristan d’Oxford’ will be referred to throughout as the Folie Oxford. Marie de France’s work will be referred to as Chievrefueil. References to Thomas’ work will indicate which manuscript is being referenced, as featured in the edition listed above.