Marie de France

Template:French literature (small) Marie de France ("Mary of France") was a poet born in France but lived in England and Normandy during the late 12th century. Due to the fact that virtually nothing is known of her early life, it is hard to trace exactly when and where she resided. Her manuscipts show that she wrote a form of continental French that was copied by Anglo-Norman scribes, and therefore most of the manuscripts of her work bear Anglo-Norman traits. Her most famous works are fables, which, of the hundreds which she authored, include tweleve Breton lais (or lays), the Ysopet fables, and the Legend of the Purgatory of St. Patrick. Her works are mostly dedicated to members of the French court at the time, and so, she is believed to have been a member of the court herslef in France as well. It is not known how and when she died.

Life

Marie de France was born in Normandy, France. The exact city of her birth is not known, but it is believed that the area of Normandy in which she lived is about fifty miles outside of Paris. After her childhood, she moved to England, although the year of this is unknown as well. Even though Marie's last name is still a mystery, she is thought to have been the half-sister of King Henry II, thus granting her move to England. After her move to England, she presumable began to work on her writing, and continued to create fables and myths until her death. Unfortunately, due to the nature of her identification and what is actually known about her, it is not certain when or where she died.

Works

Marie de France wrote in a number of styles and ways, many of which she reformed. The first type of literature is her lais, which were written in twelve short narrative tales. The lines of her work, which range from 118-1184 lines in length, were written in eight-syllable rhyming couplets. Another type of literature Marie is known for are her fables, because she authored over 103 short fables, complete with a prologue and epilogue during her life time. It seems that the common thread throughout her fables is that they are meant to be examplitory and set an example in morality for others to follow. Throughout Marie's fables, she focuses on animals and beasts, rarely mentioning humans at all. Of her fables, only sixty-three are believed to be original stories of Marie herself. The rest of her fabels are said to be taken from the plot lines of the ''Aesop’s fables''.

Four works have been attributed to Marie de France, including the twelve The Lais of Marie de France, the "Ysopet" fables, a retelling of the Legend of the Purgatory of St. Patrick, and, most recently, a saint's life called La Vie seinte Audree or The Life of Saint Audrey. Scholars have dated Marie's works between about 1160 at the earliest, and about 1215 at the latest, though it is most probable that they were written between about 1170 and 1205. One of her works, the Lais, is dedicated to a "noble king," another to a "Count William." It is thought that the king referred to is either Henry II of England or his eldest son, "Henry the Young King," and that the Count William in question is, most likely, either William of Mandeville or William Marshall. Due to these dedications, it is believed that Marie herself held a place in either French or English Court, to be able to socialize which such aristocrats.

Legacy

Although her actual name is now unknown, she is referred to as "Marie de France" after a line in one of her published works, which reads, "Marie ai nun, si sui de France,". Translated, this means, "My name is Marie, I am from France." Therefore, she has become known simply as "Marie de France", as her own last name is unknown. However, this has not stopped people from speculating over time who this author could have been. Some of the most widely accepted candidates for the poet are Marie, the Abbess of Shaftesbury and half-sister to Henry II, King of England; or Marie, who was the Abbess of Reading; or Marie de Boulogne. But, perhaps the most compelling of all is Marie de Meulan, wife of Hugh Talbot, which many believe to be the author.

Marie de France is the first known female author to write in French. Her English connections are suggested because of the Anglo-Norman spellings in her earliest manuscripts. Marie de France is known as one of the most revolutionary writers of her time, as it was not common practice for women to author any texts at all. Her fables are still studied by literarists as an example of what types of literature was being produced during the 12th century.

Bibliography

• Lais (Lays)
• Lanval
• Laüstic (The Nightingale)
• Eliduc
• Bisclaveret (The Werewolf)
• Chevrefoil (Honeysuckle)
• Chaitivel (The Unfortunate One)
• Milun
• Yonec
• Les Deux Amanz (The Two Lovers)
• Le Fresne (The Ash Tree)
• Equitan
• Guigemar

• Fables
• Ysopets
• St Patrick's Purgatory (Moral tale L'Espurgatoire Seint Patriz)

External links

• Marie de France Biography Retrieved August 27, 2007.

• International Marie de France Society Retrieved August 27, 2007

• Biography Base Marie de France Information Retrieved August 27, 2007.

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