Marie de France's Lanval

Hosted by Kelly Kornell and Peter DeBaecke

Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal MS 3142, fol. 256. License: Wikimedia Commons.

In this podcast Kelly Kornell and Peter DeBaecke explore the lai Lanval by Marie de France. Composed in the later twelfth century, this shorter work of Anglo-Norman literature explores the adventures of a poor and friendless knight at the court of king Arthur who experiences a tremendous reversal of fortune and is caught between a negligent lord and a vindictive lady. Kelly and Peter discuss noble beauty, largesse, and the cosmopolitan nature of the Angevin court- how might all of this have reflected the experiences of the mysterious Marie de France, whoever she was?