AlthoughThe Decameron and The Canterbury Tales have often been linked, this is the first ever major study of the two most popular collections of medieval framed narratives to examine them both beyond shared general similarities and also to look at the search for individual analogue or source material, which has proved so inconclusive. Thus, the present study examines the texts and their internal dynamics primarily as a whole and reveals many surprising
similarities which have hitherto remained unnoticed. The two collections are examined in the light of their literary diversity, their shape as a form of quodlibet debate, their discussion of literature and its autonomy using the oppositions of utile diletto and 'sentence' 'solaas', and the specific way that
individual narratives are treated so as to create a labyrinthine web for the reader to both negotiate and enjoy.
- ISBN10 0198123787
- ISBN13 9780198123781
- Publish Date 3 October 1996
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Oxford University Press
- Imprint Clarendon Press
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 364
- Language English