Medieval French Romance

Romance was one of the major genres of the European Middle Ages. Emerging in the twelfth-century from both oral and written traditions, medieval romance evolved in verse and prose until by the sixteenth century the recognizable form of the classic novel was starting to appear. In Medieval French Romance, Douglas Kelly provides a clear and comprehensive survey of the many branches and subgenres of romance. He traces the evolution and adaptation of lays, chronicles, epic, chansons de geste, allegory, and other prose and verse forms, describes the elements that characterized each of these genres, and explains their relationship to and influence on romance. Chretien de Troyes, the most celebrated of the romance writers, asserted in the second half of the twelfth century that a true romance was distinguished from mere storytelling by la molt bele conjointure - the beautiful combination of elements, which made a story meaningful and entertaining for its audience. Certain stories and heroes were favorite themes in medieval romance, such as the Arthurian cycle, including Lancelot, Perceval, and the other knights of the Round Table; the Grail quest; Tristan and IseuDouglas Kelly also introduces the reader to the literary and cultural context in which romances were commissioned, written, and read. He shows how the writing was influenced by both the intended audience and the patron or patroness - for there were many noble ladies who patronized and commissioned romance writers. He explains why, for serious subjects, prose was considered more "truthful" than verse. In a section that will be particularly useful to serious students of medieval literature yet also fascinating to the general reader, Professor Kelly explores such romance topics as the transmission and adaptation of texts, philology and editing of manuscripts, style, prosody, genres, and social and moral ideals. A unique and extremely valuable feature of the book is the detailed chronology for each of the texts, including variant versions, adaptations, and interpolations. The book also includes a glossary of special terms and an extensive bibliography of primary and secondary sources. For students, scholars, and the general reader alike, Medieval French Romance is an indispensable guide to understanding medieval romance as la molt bele conjointure.