Jean Renart

Jean Renart (fl. first third of 13th c.). Author, probably from Picardy, to whom three verse romances have been generally attributed: L'Escoufle, Le Lai de l'ombre, and Le Roman de la rose ou de Guillaume de Dole; less certain is his authorship of Galeran de Bretagne.

Critics consider Jean Renart as a major creator of the ‘roman réaliste’, an important step in the evolution of Old French romance. His work departed from Arthurian romance by omitting marvellous events and by including contemporary personages and geographical sites. He excels in detailed, realistic descriptions of social events that must have appealed to his courtly audiences. He is also a master of astute characterization through dialogue. L'Escoufle, probably his earliest work, expands the model of the ‘roman idyllique’ found in Floire et Blanchefleur; it describes at some length the adventures of two young noble lovers, Guillaume, son of the count of Normandy, and Aelis, princess of Rome, who were born on the same day and were childhood companions. The lovers become separated during their escape from disapproving parents when Guillaume chases after an escoufle (a bird of prey) which stole the alms-purse given by Aelis as a love-token. In the seven years that elapse before their fortuitous reunion, Aelis behaves as a resourceful heroine who supports herself by embroidering.

A briefer and more lyrical narrative, the Le Lai de l'ombre, which alludes to L'Escoufle, is notable for its ambiguous presentation of love in a flirtatious debate between a lady and a knight. The Lai is the only work claimed directly in a manuscript by ‘Jean Renart’. The author's most brilliant work is his last, Le Roman de la rose ou de Guillaume de Dole; it combines the realistic attention to social detail of L'Escoufle with the psychological finesse and courtly refinement of Le Lai de l'ombre. The poet incorporates 46 fragments of lyric poetry into a narrative where songs and story are mutually enhancing. In a variation upon the wager motif wherein two knights place a bet upon the chastity of the wife or friend of one of them, the romance recounts how Lienor, Guillaume de Dole's sister, defends her honour against the treacherous seneschal by means of clever verbal manipulation. She earns the admiration and hand in marriage of Emperor Conrad, who had previously loved her only as a distant object of desire. The narrator's skilful embroidery of lyric and narrative effects a subtle critique of love and honour as presented in courtly literature.

[Roberta Krueger]

Bibliography

• R. Lejeune, L'Œuvre de Jean Renart (1968)
• M. Zink, Roman rose et rose rouge (1979)