Considered the most important figure in medieval French literature,
Chretien de Troyes is credited with inventing the modern novel. The
roots of his influential Arthurian romance narratives remain the
subject of investigation and great debate among medieval scholars.
In ""From Plato to Lancelot"", K. Sarah-Jane Murray makes a highly
original and profoundly significant contribution to current
scholarship by locating Chretien's work at the intersection of two
important traditions: one derived from Greco-Roman antiquity, the
other from the Celtic world of the Atlantic seaboard.Drawing on a
broad range of sources, from Plato's ""Timaeus"" and Ovid's
""Metamorphoses"" to the anonymous Ovidian tales translated in the
twelfth century and Marie de France's ""Lais"", Murray demonstrates
that Chretien and his contemporaries learned the importance of
translation from the Mediterranean-centered classical tradition.
She then turns to the Celtic world, examining how Irish monastic
scholarship, as demonstrated by the Voyage of St. Brendan and
Celtic saints' lives, influenced the cultural identity of medieval
Europe and paved the way for an interest in Celtic stories and
legends.With penetrating insight and lucid prose, Murray locates
Chretien's singular genius in his ability to look to the future and
to lay the foundations for a thoroughly new, and French, tradition
of vernacular storytelling.
General
Imprint: |
Syracuse University Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Series: |
Medieval Studies |
Release date: |
June 2008 |
First published: |
June 2008 |
Authors: |
K. Sarah-Jane Murray
|
Dimensions: |
229 x 152 x 27mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Hardcover
|
Pages: |
336 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-8156-3160-6 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
0-8156-3160-X |
Barcode: |
9780815631606 |
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