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Article: Telling differences: Chaucer's Tale of Melibee and Renaud de Louens' Livre de Mellibee et Prudence.(Critical essay)
- Article from:
- Philological Quarterly
- Article date:
- September 22, 2003
- Author:
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Scholars considering the relationship between Chaucer's Tale of Melibee and its source generally assume that the tale is simply a relentlessly faithful rendition of Renaud de Louens' Livre de Mellibee et Prudence. Virtually everyone who comments on the tale in relation to Renaud's version accepts that it is such a literal translation without looking carefully at the tale itself. Scholars studying Chaucer's treatment of his sources find much to comment on when he makes major alterations, as in his reworking of Il Filostrato or the Teseide, but when the alterations are slight, as in the Melibee, they are assumed to be therefore trivial.
Nevertheless, even a close ...