Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2011

Publication Title

French Studies: A Quarterly Review

Publisher

Oxford UP

Keywords

Chrétien de Troyes, Cligès

Abstract

Starting with the premise that medieval manuscripts exhibit paratextual vestiges of their auctores, redactors, copyists, and readers, this article re-examines the question of authorship and readership in Chrétien de Troyes's prologue to Cligés (c. 1176-80) through the lens of paratextual references to the implied author's signature, allusions to possible titles of his previous works, marginal annotations of interpretative readings, and cases of significant manuscript variance. Firmly grounded in the manuscript, editorial, and critical tradition of Cligés, this reading re-evaluates the tripartite thematic structure of the prologue, hypothesizing the paratextual effect that the opening list of literary tides, the suspenseful presentation of the hero, and the authoritative claim for the location of chevalerie (chivalry) and clergie (culture) in France might have had on medieval audiences and may have on modern readers. Exploring the significantly different versions in which two families of manuscripts transmit the same ideas, this reading finally shows how the prologue equivocates and subverts any one definite interpretation and engenders a sense of irony and alterity that captivates the reader and opens the threshold to new interpretations.

First Page

1

Last Page

16

Volume

65

Issue

1

Original Citation

Reis, Levilson C. "The Paratext To Chrétien De Troyes's Cligés: A Reappraisal Of The Question Of Authorship And Readership In The Prologue." French Studies: A Quarterly Review 1 (2011): 1. Project MUSE. Web. 10 Feb. 2015.

Peer Reviewed

1

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