The Honeysuckle and the Hazel Tree: Medieval Stories of Men and Women

This book presents translations of four major practitioners of octosyllabic verse, the dominant literary form of 12th- and 13th-century France. The introduction discusses the varying views of women and love in the texts and their place in the courtly tradition. From Chretien de Troyes Terry includes an early work, Philomena . The other great writer of this period was Marie de France, the first woman in the European narrative tradition. Lanval is newly translated for this edition, which also features four of Marie’s other poems. The collection includes The Reflection by Jean Renart, known for his real settings; and the anonymous Chatelaine of Vergi , a fatalistic and perhaps more modern depiction of love.