1st Edition

Latin and Vernacular Poets of the Middle Ages

By Peter Dronke Copyright 1991
    336 Pages
    by Routledge

    This volume presents a series of penetrating analyses of particular poems and problems of literary history illustrating the many sides of medieval poetry and the interactions of learned, popular and courtly traditions. The first and longest essay, 'Waltharius-Gaiferos', aims to characterize the diverse treatments of one of the major European heroic themes - in modes that include lay and epic, saga and ballad, and range from pre-Carolingian times to the Renaissance. There follow three interrelated essays on the medieval transformations of Ovid, and a larger group devoted to close reading of medieval lyrics. After discussing some brilliant Latin compositions, of the 9th-12th centuries, both sacred and profane, and the work of two of the most captivating 'goliard' poets, Peter Dronke looks at the earliest formations of love-lyric in two vernaculars, Spanish and English. Finally, he explores the unique symbiosis of Latin and vernacular imagery in two key moments of Dante's Divine Comedy. Ce volume contient une série d’analyses perspicaces de poèmes spécifiques et de certains problèmes de l’histoire littéraire illustrant les multiples facettes de la poésie médiévale et l’interaction des traditions érudites, populaires et courtoises. Le premier essai, "Waltharius-Gaïferos", tente de décrire les divers traitements de l’un des principaux thèmes héroïques européens selon des modes qui incluent: le lai et l’épique, la saga et la ballade et qui s’étendent sur une période allant de l’époque pré-carolingienne à la Renaissance. Suivent trois articles corrélatifs sur les adaptations médiévales des textes d’Ovide, ainsi qu’un groupe d’études voue à la lecture détaillée de la poésie lyrique médiévale. Après avoir considéré l’oeuvre de deux des plus passionnants poètes "goliards" et un certain nombre de remarquables compositions latines, sacrées et profanes, datant du 9e-12e siècles, Peter Dronke se tourne vers les pre

    Contents: Waltharius-Gaiferos; A note on Pamphilus; Pseudo-Ovid, Facetus, and the Arts of Love; Narrative and dialogue in medieval secular drama; Towards the interpretation of the Leiden love-spell; Virgines Caste; Types of poetic art in tropes; The interpretation of the Ripoll love-songs; Nuevas observaciones sobre las jaryas mozárabes; The art of the archpoet: ’Lingua Balbus’; The lyrical compositions of Philip the Chancellor; On the continuity of medieval English love-lyric; The procession in Dante’s Purgatorio; Symbolism and structure in Paradisio XXX; Indexes.

    Biography

    Peter Dronke