song and legend from the middle ages-第2部分

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ee　groups：

1。　Those　belonging　to　the　legend　of　Arthur　and　the　Round　Table。　They　had　their　starting　point　in　the　history　of　Geoffrey　of　Monmouth；　which　was　partly　invented；　but　had　some　basis　in　a　tradition　common　to　the　Bretons　and　the　Welsh。　The　romances　based　upon　this　legend　sprang　up　apparently　simultaneously　in　England　and　France。　Through　minstrel　romances；　founded　upon　the　Breton　popular　tradition；　the　Arthur　legend　probably　first　found　its　way　into　European　literature。　With　it　was　early　fused　the　stories　of　the　Holy　Grail　and　of　Parzival。　In　the　twelfth　century　these　stories　were　widely　popular　in　literary　form　in　France　and　Germany；　and　later　they　passed　into　Italy；　Spain；　and　Scandinavia。　Their　influence　upon　the　life　and　thought　of　Mediaeval　Europe　is　very　important。　They　did　much　to　modify　the　entire　institution　of　chivalry。＇1＇

＇1＇　Leon　Gautier's　〃Chivalry〃；　chap。　IV。；　Section　V。


2。　The　Romances　of　Antiquity；　of　which　there　are　three　varieties：

（1）　Those　which　were　believed　to　be　direct　reproductions；　such　as　the　Romances　of　Thebes；　of　Aeneas；　of　Troy；　whose　authors　acknowledged　a　debt　to　Vergil；　Statius；　and　other　classic　writers。

（2）　Those　based　upon　ancient　history　not　previously　versified；　such　as　the　Romance　of　Alexander。

（3）　Those　which　reproduced　the　names　and　nothing　else　from　antiquity。

These　romances；　too；　were　a　common　European　possession。　The　most　important　and　influential　of　them　are　the　Romance　of　Troy；　and　the　Romance　of　Alexander。　They　appear　in　different　forms　in　the　literature　of　every　mediaeval　nation　in　Europe。

3。　There　was　in　each　national　literature　a　vast　number　of　unaffiliated　romances。　A　romance　of　this　group　usually　contained　a　love　story；　a　tale　of　adventure；　or　a　religious　experience　in　the　form　of　a　story。　They　are　not　clearly　distinct　from　the　class　of　popular　tales。　On　the　whole；　the　romance　is　more　serious　and　dignified　than　the　tale。　Examples　of　this　kind　of　a　romance　are　Hartmann　von　Aue's　〃Henry　the　Leper〃；　and　the　French　〃Flore　et　Blanchefleur〃。


III。　LYRICS。

Perhaps　no　other　part　of　its　literature　shows　more　striking　proof　of　the　common　life　and　interests　of　Mediaeval　Europe　than　does　the　lyric　poetry　of　the　period。　In　Northern　France；　in　Provence；　in　all　parts　of　Germany；　in　Italy；　and　a　little　later　in　Spain；　we　see　a　most　remarkable　outburst　of　song。　The　subjects　were　the　same　in　all　the　countries。　Love…the　love　of　feudal　chivalrypatriotism；　and　religion　were　the　themes　that　employed　the　mediaeval　lyrist　in　whatever　country　he　sang。　In　all　these　lyrics　much　was　made　of　form；　the　verse　being　always　skillfully　constructed；　sometimes　very　complicated。　The　lyric　poetry　of　Italy　was　more　learned　and　more　finished　in　style　than　that　of　the　other　countries。

In　Northern　France　the　poet　was　called　a　trouvere；　in　Provence　a　troubadour；　in　Germany　a　minnesinger。　The　traveling　minstrel　was　in　France　a　jongleur　（Provencal　jogleur）。　The　distinction　between　trouvere　or　troubadour　and　jongleur　is　not　always　to　be　sharply　drawn。　Sometimes　in　France　and　Provence　the　same　poet　composed　his　verses　and　sang　themwas　both　trouvere　or　troubadour　and　jongleur；　while　in　Germany　the　minnesingers　were　generally　both　poets　and　minstrels。

IV。　TALES　AND　FABLES。

No　distinct　line　can　be　drawn　between　Tales　and　Fables；　between　Romances　and　Tales；　nor　between　Fables　and　Allegories。　These　varieties　of　writings　merge　into　one　another。

The　number　of　tales　in　circulation　in　Mediaeval　Europe　was　exceedingly　large。　These　tales　came　from　many　different　sources：　from　Oriental　lands；　introduced　by　the　Moors；　or　brought　back　by　the　crusaders；　from　ancient　classical　literature；　from　traditions　of　the　church　and　the　lives　of　the　saints；　from　the　old　mythologies；　from　common　life　and　experience。　Among　many　mediaeval　collections　of　them；　the　most　famous　are　the　〃Decameron〃　of　Boccaccio；　and　the　〃Geste　Romanorum〃；　a　collection　made　and　used　by　the　priests　in　instructing　their　people。

V。　DIDACTIC　AND　ALLEGORICAL　LITERATURE。

Under　didactic　literature　we　would　include　a　large　mass　of　writing　not　strictly　to　be　called　pure　literaturesermons；　homilies；　chronicles；　bestiaries；　and　chronologies。　Nearly　all　these　were　written　in　verse；　as　prose　did　not　begin　to　be　used　for　literature　until　very　late　in　the　Middle　Ages。　　The　mediaeval　mind；　under　the　influence　of　the　scholastic　theology；　grew　very　fond　of　allegory。　The　list　of　allegories　is　exhaustless；　and　some　of　the　allegories　well…nigh　interminable。　It　is　not　easy　to　say　whether　the　〃Romance　of　Reynard　the　Fox〃　is　a　series　of　fables　or　an　allegory。　The　fact　that　a　satire　on　human　affairs　runs　through　it　constantly；　warrants　us　in　calling　it　an　allegory。　Some　phase　of　the　Reynard　legend　formed　the　medium　of　expression　of　the　thought　of　every　mediaeval　nation　in　Europe。　Perhaps　the　most　popular　and　influential　allegory　of　the　Middle　Ages　was　〃The　Romance　of　the　Rose〃；　written　in　France　but　translated　or　imitated　in　every　other　country。　Dante's　〃Divine　Comedy〃　is　an　allegory　of　a　very　elevated　kind。

VI。　THE　DRAMA。

The　origin　and　line　of　development　of　the　drama　in　all　the　countries　of　Mediaeval　Europe　is　this：　Dramatic　representations　in　connection　with　the　liturgy　of　the　church　were　first　used　in　the　service；　then　they　were　extended　to　church　festivals　and　ceremonies。　By　degrees　portions　of　Bible　history　were　thrown　into　dramatic　form；　then　the　lives　of　the　saints　furnished　material。　A　distinction　grew　up　between　Mystery　Playsthose　founded　on　Bible　historyand　Miracle　Playsthose　founded　on　the　lives　of　the　saints。　These　plays　were　performed　both　in　the　churches　and　in　the　open　air。　They　were　written　usually　by　the　clergy。　Gradually　there　grew　up　a　play　in　which　the　places　of　religious　characters　were　taken　by　abstract　virtues　and　vices　personified；　and　plays　called　Moralities　were　produced。　They　were　played　chiefly　by　tradesmen's　guilds。　Alongside　the　sacred　drama　are　to　be　found　occasional　secular　dramatic　attempts；　farces；　carnival　plays；　and　profane　mysteries。　But　their　number　and　significance　are　small。　The　medivaeval　drama　is　historically　interesting；　but　in　itself　does　not　contain　much　interest。　It　is　impossible　to　give　an　idea　of　it　by　selection。　


SONG　AND　LEGEND　FROM　THE　MIDDLE　AGES。

CHAPTER　I。　FRENCH　LITERATURE。

French　Literature　of　the　Middle　Ages　was　produced　between　the　eleventh　and　the　fifteenth　centuries；　having　its　greatest　development　in　the　twelfth　and　thirteenth　centuries。　It　must　be　divided　into　two　sections　according　to　the　part　of　France　where　it　was　produced。　

I。　French　Literature　proper；　or　that　composed　in　the　northern　half　of　France。

II。　Provencal　Literature；　or　that　developed　in　Provence。

The　most　obvious　difference　between　these　is　that　the　Provencal　literature　had　little　of　the　epic　and　romantic；　but　developed　the　lyric　extensively；　especially　lyrics　of　love。

The　following　table　will　show　the　more　important　kinds　of　French　Mediaeval　Literature。＇1＇

＇1＇　This　classification　is　adapted　from　M。　Gaston　Paris'　excellent　sketch　〃La　Litterature　Francaise　au　Moyen　Age〃；　1890；　and　Saintsbury's　〃Short　History　of　French　Literature〃；　1889。


I。　Narrative　Literature。

1。　The　National　Epics。

2。　Romances　of　Antiquity。

3。　Arthurian　Romances。

4。　Romances　of　Adventure。

5。　Tales　and　Fables。

6。　Chronicles。

II。　Didactic　Literature。

1。　Allegories〃The　Romance　of　the　Rose〃。

2。　Satires。

3。　Homilies；　etc。


III。　Lyric　Literature。

THE　NATIONAL　EPICS。

The　French　national　epics　（called　〃Chansons　de　Gestes〃；　songs　of　heroic　deeds）　are　those　narrative　poems　which　are　founded　on　early　French　history；　and　recount　the　deeds　of　national　heroes。　They　are；　for　the　most　part；　based　on　the　deeds　of　Charlemagne　and　his　nobles。　They　are　peculiar　to　Northern　France。　Their　date　of　production　extends　from　the　eleventh　to　the　fourteenth　century；　their　best　development　being　in　the　eleventh　and　twelfth。

These　epic　poems　number　more　than　one　hundred。　They　vary　in　length　from　one　thousand　to　thirty　thousand　lines。　The　whole　mass　is　said　to　contain　between　two　and　three　million　lines。　Like　all　folk　epics；　they　are　based　upon　earlier　ballads　composed　by　many　different　poets。　These　ballads　were　never　written　down　and　are　completely　lost。　The　epic　is　a　compilation　and　adaptation；　presumably　by　a　single　poet；　of　the　material　of　the　ballads。　In　every　case　the　names　of　the　poets　of　the　French　epics　are　lost。　They　were　trouveres　and　their　poems　were　carried　about　in　memory　or　in　manuscript　by　the　jongleurs　or　minstrels；　and　sung　from　castle　to　castle　and　in　the　market　places。　The　best　of　them　are：　〃The　Song　of　Roland〃；　〃Amis　et　Amiles〃；　〃Aliscans〃；　〃Gerard　de　Roussillon〃；　〃Raoul　de　Cambrai〃。　Of　these　the　oldest　and　confessedly　the　greatest　is　The　Song　of　Roland；　from　which　our　extracts　are　taken。

The　Song　of　Roland　is　based　upon　the　following　events　（the　events　as　narrated　in　the　poem　differ　widely　from　those　of　the　actual　history）：　Charlemagne　has　warred　seven　years　in　Spain；　when　Marsile；　king　of　Saragossa；　the　only　city　that　has　withstood　the　emperor；　sends　a　feigned　submission。　Roland；　the　king's　nephew；　offers　to　go　to　Saragossa　to　settle　the　terms　of　the　treaty。　He　is　rejected　as　too　impetuous；　when　he　suggests　that　Ganelon　go。　This　bitterly　annoys　Ganelon；　and　when　he　meets　Marsile　he　makes　a　treacherous　plot　by　which　Charlemagne　is　to　be　induced　to　go　back　to　France；　with　Roland　in　command　of　the　rear　guard。　The　plan　works；　and　when　the　advanced　party　of　the　French　army　is　out　of　reach；　the　Saracens　fall　upon　the　rear　guard　in　the　pass　of　Roncevalles　and　completely　destroy　it。　The　death　of　Roland；　the　return　and　grief　of　the　king；　and　his　vengeance　on　the　pagans　form　the　central　incident　of　the　poem。　Ganelon　is　afterwards　tried　for　his　treachery；　condemned；　and　executed。

THE　SONG　OF　ROLAND。

Stanza　I。　The　king；　our　Emperor　Carlemaine；　Hath　been　for　seven　full　years　in　Spain。　From　highland　to　sea　hath　he　won　the　land；　City　was　none　might　his　arm　withstand；　Keep　and　castle　alike　went　down　Save　Saragossa；　the　mountain　town。　The　King　Marsilius　holds　the　place；　Who　loveth　not　God；　nor　seeks　His　grace：　He　prays　to　Apollin；　and　serves　Mahound；　But　he　saved　him　not　from　the　fate　he　found。

King