Animals in Medieval Literature Lecture 4 Language Animals

Animals in Medieval Literature Lecture 4

Language • Animals as non-linguistic creatures • Jacobus de Vorgaine, Legenda aurea: – 5 categories of creatures of which only man speaks – Speech = mark of superiority/lack • Animal speech often a result of divine or diabolical intervention – Book of Numbers 22. 21 -35: Balaam’s ass

Balaam’s Ass Français 152, fol. 78 v

Language in Fables/ the Renart • In the fable tradition animal speech is less surprising? • Animal speech = part of broader parodic and satirical framing of text • Roman de Renart similarly takes animal speech for granted • Renart’s discourse associated with hunger? ‘Le texte renardien ne nourrit pas: la gueule, l’estomac creux, le désir continuent à béer. La logophagie renardienne, contrairement à sa conception traditionelle, ne nourrit pas son homme. ’ (Scheidegger, pp. 221 -2)

The Renart and Historical Debates about Language • French = one of the most widely used vernaculars in medieval Western Europe • From the late 12 th c. French identified with the French royal court was increasingly seen as a model of literary expression – Guernes de Pont-Sainte-Maxence – Marie de France – Aimon de Varennes

‘Franco-English jargon’ Texts • Not accurate witnesses of real cultural and linguistic contact • Anglicized French = a mixture of different inaccuracies • Comment on the attempt to lay claim to French as an international language identified with French monarchy? • Undermine any notion of French as a single, unified language (Ardis Butterfield)

‘Franco-English jargon’ Texts • Renart teinturier/Renart jongleur episodes use anglicized French as part of a disguise • Renart’s anglicized speech = parody of English • Renart’s linguistic control relies on performance of the imperfect command of French by the nonnative speaker • Renart’s anglois (English) = a form of French • What is perceived as linguistic difference = the performance of stereotypes of difference

Renart, vv. 2403 -2416 - Godehere, fait il, bel sir, Ne sai rien de ton raison dir. - Et Diex vos saut, fait il, amis, Dom estes vos? de quel païs ? Vos ne futes pas nez de France Ne de la nostre connoissance. - Naie, seignor, mes de Bretaing, S’avra tot perdu mon gaaing Et fot cerchié par men conpaing, Ne trover neant que m’ansaing. Toute France et tote Angleter Fout cerchié por mon conpaing quer ; Si voil Paris torner ainçois, Tant avrai mout bien pris françois. - Godsavyers! he said, dear sir, Me not know nothing of your meaning. - May God keep you my friend, he said, Where are you from? From which country? You were not born in France Or any other country we’ve heard of. - Nay, my lord, but from Britaing, Me will have lost all that I gaigned And me **** looked for my compaingon Me not found nothing to me inform. All France and all England **** looked to seek my compaignon; Next me wants to before turn to Paris So me shall very good learn French.

Renart, vv. 2465 -2477 Renart tenoit le chief anclin: - Par foi, fait il, dant Isangrin, mauvés lecher fout il desvez ; comment fout il donques pelez ? dites moi conment il a non fout il dont apelez anon ? Isangrin rit, qant celui ot, Et por le non d’Anon s’esjot. Mout l’amast il ja a savoir. - Oïl ver, con fout il pelez ? - Renart ot non li desfaez qui grant honte et dolor nos maine. Renart kept his head lowered : - by my faith, he said, lord Ysengrin, Bad scoundrel he **** crazy; How **** he then call’d? Tell me how he’s named (a non) **** he then called a name (Anon)? Ysengrin laughs when he hears this, Tickled on account of the name ‘Anon’. He certainly really liked knowing this one. - Yes, truly, how **** he call’d? - Renart is the name of the scoundrel who causes us great shame and suffering.

The Renart and Language • Roman de Renart brings to the fore the artificial qualities of Franco-English jargon • Renart’s speech opens gap between language, origin, and ethnicity • Complicates question of language: not just about human/animal attributes • Animal language part of parody of linguistic tensions between England France • Parody doesn’t simply reaffirm the superiority of the native speaker of French

References • Ardis Butterfield, The Familiar Enemy: Chaucer, Language, and Nation in the Hundred Years War (2009) • E. Schulze-Busacker, ‘Renart, le jongleur étranger : analyse thématique et linguistique à partir de la branche Ib du Roman de Renart (vv. 2043 -2580 et 2857 -3034)’, in Proceedings of the Third International Beast Epic, Fable and Fabliau Colloquium (Münster, 1979), ed. Jan Goossens and Timothy Sodmann, Niederdeutsche Studien, 30 (1981), pp. 380 -91

Seminar • How would you characterise Renart’s trickery in the last 3 sections of the text? How do his tricks compare with those in earlier sections of the work? Are there any differences that you notice? • Analyse the role of disguise in these later parts of the text. How might this connect with 1) earlier episodes of Branch I and 2) other depictions of the fox in medieval sources (e. g. bestiaries and fables)? • Have a look at the illuminations accompanying the Renart teinturier/Renart jongleur scenes in Paris Bn. F, MS fr. 12584. How might these images comment on the text?