Can an epic woman be funny? Humor and the female protagonist in

Can an epic woman be funny? Humor
and the female protagonist in late Medieval
and early Renaissance epic
LESLIE ZARKER MORGAN
Abstract
Women characters in the chanson de geste have recently received more
attention as part of critical interest in women and their roles throughout
history. However, the humor of their roles in these poems and the facets
of that humor have not been closely examined. This article looks at women
in two di¤erent gestes, the William of Orange and royal cycles, and one
non-cyclical poem, to determine that women create humor as do men in
the same gestes: by humor, repartee and incongruity of clothing, weapons,
or action and that this humor is not in isolation but in relation to male
protagonists.
Keywords: Humor; literary role of women; literary theory and humor.
1. Introduction
Humor is not the first characteristic of female romance epic heroines that
generally comes to mind: Aude fainting has long been the image of the
female chanson de geste character. Female chanson de geste protagonists
generally fall into a few typical categories in traditional criticism: the
wrongly accused wife, the sexy Saracen, and the virago.1 Their presence
in chanson de geste or the romance epic is frequently attributed to the
influence of romance2 and they are more prevalent in later chansons de
geste (copied and written from the thirteenth century on), where they
overcome the passiveness of earlier women and o¤er di¤erent character
types wherever they appear, including in Italy. Margaret Tomalin’s
Humor 19–2 (2006), 157–178
DOI 10.1515/HUMOR.2006.008
0933–1719/06/0019–0157
6 Walter de Gruyter
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(1982) groundbreaking study The Fortunes of the Warrior Heroine in
Italian Literature discusses primarily Renaissance epics, treating a few
fourteenth-century cantari in relation to her hypothesis as revealed in her
subtitle, An Index of Emancipation. Yet even in earlier chansons de
geste female characters can take an important and sometimes humorous
role — Guiborc, for example, in the William of Orange cycle. The humor
resulting from women’s presence in the chansons de geste has not been
closely examined. It derives largely from the incongruity of their actions
with audience expectations. This article will examine major female figures
both in the William of Orange cycle (which has representatives of Italian
origin) and in Italian tradition, specifically in several Franco-Italian romance epics, to see how their behavior can be humorous, and what their
role is in textual humor.3
It is di‰cult to define and appreciate humor over di¤erent times and
cultures. Literary critical terminology in di¤erent countries also complicates analysis. Modern humor theory distinguishes laughter from humor,4 yet literary theory suggests that metanarrative commentary (direct or indirect comments from the author) assists in distinguishing a
desired reaction to characters’ actions within the text.5 Thus, looking
at the appearance of laughter, the French ‘‘rire,’’ is helpful but not
synonymous with humor.6 The critic must rather examine how chansons de geste create humor using women characters at multiple levels:
lexical (through repetition and excess at the lowest level, irony and
parody at higher levels), episodic (exaggeration, incongruity, genre
overlap) and narratival (authorial commentary in asides and chosen
structures). Incongruity (unexpected juxtapositions of words, actions,
and appearance) plays a major role, as does parody (calquing episodes
upon well-known scenes or passages in other genres). These are the same
techniques used for humor in relation to male characters, but are amplified through implied sex-roles and anticipated male-female interaction
(scripts).
The best-known Old French epics with humorous elements are arguably those of the William of Orange cycle, largely because of Rainoart’s antics.7 The Charlemagne cycle too developed comic aspects,
in Roland’s past and in his companions and relatives (for example,
Ogier the Dane and Estout); representatives of this group are the
Geste Francor and Entrée d’Espagne.8 Finally, a representative of a
non-cyclical chanson is Huon d’Auvergne, which is set in Charles Martel’s reign.
Humor and the epic female protagonist
159
2. The geste of Guillaume d’Orange (William of Orange): His family
and lineage
William’s wife Guiborc was originally a Saracen named Orable, and
plays a major role in relation to William in the Prise d’Orange, Chanson
de Guillaume, and Aliscans.9 Hers is, however, a supporting role, and she
is marked by her family: of Saracen origin, Rainoart’s sister and Gui’s
aunt, she is part of a circle tied to unconventional warriors, weapons,
and verbal tricks in which she participates.
In the Prise (usually dated to the mid-twelfth century) Guiborc is
typecast as a young bride to an old man, invoking a series of comic
precedents:
Dist Arragon: «Il fet mout grant folie,
Quar il est vielz, s 0 a la barbe florie,
Et ceste est bele et juenete meschine,
Il n 0 a tant bele en tote paiennie (TFLa; Regnier 1983: 68),10
such that mentioning her situation causes William to laugh:
Trop par est fox vielz hom qu 0 aime meschine,
Tost en est cous et tornez a folie.»
Ot le Guillelmes, si commença a rire:
«Voir, dit Guillelmes, or ne l 0 amez vos mie?» (TFLa; Regnier 1983: 69).11
William has heard of her beauty, expressed here in lyric formulae.12
Shortly after William and Guiborc meet and William and his nephews
are her prisoners, a Saracen spy picks up the hint, telling Aragon (her
stepson, son of her husband Tiebaut), who says,
«Sire, dist il, ne sui pas mençongier.
Ge les i vi a estrait conseillier
Et un et un acoler et besier.
Plus les aime ele, et Guillelme au couchier,
Que vostre pere ne le roi Haucebier» (TFLA; Regnier 1983: 104).13
The language surrounding Guiborc is not epic here: rather, it is that of
other genres, the fabliau or later novella.14 After escaping, William survives, baptizing Orable and marrying her. William’s comic acts — fighting
with a tray, disguising himself and his nephews with a dark salve to enter
Orange — are undertaken ostensibly in her honor. The poem’s premise
unites the necessity of conquering the lady and the city. Once the two
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are his, William’s career continues. Thus in the Prise, it is not Orable/
Guiborc who is comic, but the actions that William undertakes to obtain
her.
The Chanson de Guillaume (ca. 1150) and Aliscans (post–1185) tell one
story from di¤erent viewpoints: a terrible defeat with the loss of many
men, including close relatives, and William’s subsequent revenge for that
loss. Women play significant roles in the story, with variations in emphasis and incidents. The women involved are Guiborc; Blancheflor (William’s sister, Queen of France, Louis’s wife); Ermengard (William’s
mother); and Aelis (William’s niece, Blancheflor’s daughter).
In Aliscans, after an initial defeat, William returns to Orange, but first
the porter and then Guiborc refuse to allow him in (Regnier 1990: lines
1955–2005; Holtus 1985: lines 1778–1832). Guiborc refuses to recognize
him until he shows his nose (and wounds, according to Aliscans):15
Ançois verré la boce sor le nes
Que devant Rome li fist rois Ysorez,
C’est une enseigne que je connois assez,
Et une plaie qui est par dedelez,
Qu’en la bataille li fist Tiebaut l’Escler,
Qu’il soit porte ne guichet de¤ermez (Regnier 1990: ll. 2033–2038; cf.
Holtus 1985: ll. 1850–1856).
But it is too late. William must fight the Saracens who have caught up.
Guiborc finally allows him in upon seeing his face.16 She o¤ers to hold
the city while he goes north to his brother-in-law, King Louis, for help.
Guiborc will don armor with her women and will throw rocks to defend
the city:
Je remaindré en Orenge la grant
Avec les dames, dont il a caenz tant.
Chascune avra son hauberc jazerant,
Et en son chief un vert elme luisant,
Et au costé avra ceint son bon brant,
Au col l’escu, el poing l’espié trenchant (. . .) (Regnier 1990: ll. 2347–
2352; cf. Holtus 1985: lines 2180–2185).17
However, Guiborc is worried about William encountering other ladies
while she is alone holding the city, so he makes a vow to her:
Tenez ma foi, ja vos ert af ı̈ee,
Que je n’avré chemise remüee,
Humor and the epic female protagonist
161
Braie ne chauce, ne ma teste lavee,
Ne mengeré de char ne de pevree,
Ne bevré vin ne espice colee
A mazelin ne a cope doree,
Se l’eve non, icele m’iert privee,
Ne mangerai foasce buletee,
Fors le gros pain ou la paille iert trovee,
Ne ne jerré desor coute emplumee,
N’avrai soz moi lincel, cortine ovree,
Fors la sëre de ma sele afeutree,
Et itel robe comme j’avrai portee,
Ne ja ma bouche ne sera adesee,
S’iert de la vostre besiee et savoree (. . .)’’ (Regnier 1990: ll. 2390–2405;
cf. Holtus 1985: ll. 2224–2239).18
Male-female jealousy is not one expected in an epic, and William’s extreme response certainly provokes humor initially as well as later di‰culties during his travels.
During William’s visit to his brother-in-law the King of France, the
females of his extended family interact in a very undignified way. One
must wonder whether the audience enjoyed the prospect of women fighting. At the occasion of Blancheflor’s crowning, William’s entire family is
at court, and when he asks for assistance no one comes forth until his
mother, Ermengard, o¤ers her own treasure and herself, white-haired as
she is (Ferrante 1974: 224–225, ll. 2709–2728; Régnier 1990: 133, ll.
3097–3114). Blancheflor and William insult each other, and Aelis saves
the situation, in a female parallel to the usual nephew-uncle pairing.19
Only Ermengard might be seen as comic in this episode — the mater
familias, white-haired, on a horse saving the situation. That image evokes
the subsequent view when William returns home. Before William leaves,
he recruits Rainoart from the kitchen and the poem could be divided in
two here: after Rainoart with his oversize antics. Those antics on the
part of (one whom we subsequently learn is) Guiborc’s brother, prepare
the reader for Guiborc’s strategies.
When William returns to Orange, Guiborc is fully armed and defending the city under attack:
Dame Giborg ot la brayne endosee,
L’aume lacé et ot ceinte la spee.
Anc n’i ot dame, n’i fust mult bien armee,
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Sus au fenestres de la grant tor qaree.
Li civaler ont la porte gardee.
L’asauz fu granz e grant la meslee,
Les dames ont meinte pere getee,
A maint paien o[n]t la teste casee,
Si qe gissent seschuns geule baee (Holtus 1985: ll. 3990–3998; cf. Regnier 1990: ll. 4140–4149).20
Guiborc wears unfeminine garb, and referred to as one of ‘‘li civaler,’’ a
male profession. Furthermore, in Aliscans the author repeats the earlier
technique of requiring sight of William’s nose for entry, but this time
one request su‰ces (Regnier 1990: ll. 4224–4240; Ferrante 1974: 234–
235).21
In the Chanson de Guillaume, the plot line is similar but begins before
the battle. The poem is also shorter, running to 3354 lines in WatheletWillem’s edition to the 8185 of Aliscans in Régnier’s edition. Here, verbal
cleverness and play in general figures more importantly, not only for Guiborc but also in the episodes with Gui, a young relative of hers. Gorging
at table is also a continuing source of amusement, and in strong contrast
to the Aliscans illustration of William fasting during his trip to court for
reinforcements (here there is no jealousy scene or vow to Guiborc before
he leaves). During first stage of the battle, Guiborc assembles men ostensibly to feast but truly to provide the initial battalions for William, asking
his permission to lie so that they will follow him (compare Drusiana in
Bovo of the Geste Francor), which makes William laugh.22 Gui makes
clever excuses to join William’s fight though he is too young and small,
saying he knows how to lie. There is only one round of non-recognition
for William; the doors are opened upon his return from Laon seeing the
king. Actions and verbal plays provide counterpoint to the constant grim
fight against pagans. Guiborc’s behavior is an extension here of that seen
in other chansons and elsewhere in the same poems: she is an unusual
warrior with unusual (non-epic) weapons, and is a larger-than-life character. She plays not just one role, the feudal wife, but goes beyond it. The
use of exaggeration and of non-epic stones are themes encountered again;
Flohart in Aliscans itself, for example.23
These William poems, therefore, do not depict the expected epic struggle alone. Rainoart’s tinel and his gluttony (and not only his: Gui and
William are both qualified trenchermen) overshadow the echoes of Roncevaux in the Archamp battle. The matron, Ermengard, is seen as rich
Humor and the epic female protagonist
163
virago in battle gear. Furthermore, her performance predicts Guiborc’s
subsequent appearance. Guiborc’s unexpected or non-epic attributes
evoke humor through their contrast with the situation: that she should
lie in order to get troops is obvious, and should not need permission;
Gui’s meta-lie (he should hardly need to say he is lying either) follows
her example. Her wearing armor, requiring a vow of her husband, and
managing Orange to the extent of refusing her husband and lord entry
all are humorous in reference to William and expected social structures,
not in themselves.
3. The geste du roi: Charlemagne, his family and his men
To turn to the geste du roi, women there too act humorously in relation
to men and generic conventions. The Entrée d’Espagne (the manuscript
dates to the first half of the fourteenth century) presents a number of
women who are o¤ered to Roland or o¤er themselves to him; they are
humorous only because of their numbers and, in one case, as a foil to
Roland’s obliviousness (ll. 12562–12564; all references to Thomas’s edition). The section where female characters play an important role is during Roland’s absence from Charlemagne’s court while he is wandering
in the East. That section begins with line 11398 where Roland flees the
Christian camp after having been slapped by the emperor. Roland saves
a ship’s captain from Turkish robbers, and then dozes o¤ on the ship. The
author’s commentary begins the segment and alerts the reader to Roland’s upcoming encounters with women:
Pensés, vos que escotés mes parole e mes dis,
Se mais fustes d 0amor de dame tant epris
Que jelosie n 0ist et faites dous devys
D 0amer et desamer, dont une fievre mis:
Sor ce fu le niés Karles cumbatu e pensis (Thomas 1913: ll. 11765–
11769).
The poet compares Roland’s feelings toward his sovereign, amer and desamer, with those of a lover toward his dame. During the next few days,
the rescued captain o¤ers Roland both his treasure and his daughter
Salomé, praising her continually, in return for being saved.24 Roland escapes, saving face only by pretending to have made a vow for a pilgrimage to Mecca that he must complete.
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Upon traveling across the Persian plains, Roland encounters armies
massed around a legal hearing where the Soldan presides. Roland o¤ers
to defend the maligned Dionés in battle against the would-be-husband’s
champion. The reader hears her story and versions of the incident for
428 lines before encountering the girl herself, who finally urges her father
and brother to accept Roland (calling himself ‘‘Lionés fil la fée’’) as their
champion (l. 12064). Dionés is described at length:
Angle resanble qi desande de nue
Vis oit bien feit e gardeüre agüe,
La char oit blanche come nif desendue,
Color vermoil come graine vendue,
Boche petite, danteüre menue,
Oil oit riant, qant ert plus ireschue;
Sa blonde crine ne vos ai manteüe;
Soz ciel n 0a home, tant ait chiere bartue,
Ne la querise avoir en si braz nue.
Rolant la garde, trestot le sang li mue;
Non la voudroit le ber avoir veüe
D 0Audein li mambre, tot le vis li tresue (Thomas 1913: ll. 12553–
12564).
But, note the last two lines: Roland’s reaction is just to think of Aude — a
‘‘jab-line’’ to use the technical term — immediately following the lyric
description (12563–12564).25 During the fight, the pagan champion o¤ers
Roland his sister, provoking Roland to mutter:
En requoi dist: «Foi que doi saint Donis.
«Qui veult moilers havoir a suen devis,
«Passent la mers en ces reignes Perssys,
«Troup in avront, ja non ert si zaitis» (Thomas 1913: ll. 12771–12775),
knowing that Dionés will be o¤ered to him when he succeeds in this battle. After his victory, Dionés is in fact o¤ered to him but he turns her
down for a job as army marshal.26 When Sanson, Dionés’s brother, jokes
to Roland that his father must be jealous to send Roland out to collect an
army, Roland is grossly o¤ended, saying,
-De ce», respont Rolant, «non soit il esfraé,
«Ne d 0ele ne de nulle, tant i ait grant beauté.
«Et sacés une riens, et si voil quel [nouté]:
«Hom que de tel delit seroit trop intazé,
Humor and the epic female protagonist
165
«Le cris d 0onor doit estre de li molt eslunzé.
«Qui de sun bons segnor panse desloiauté,
«Diables li governe tant qu 0il ert perilé» (Thomas 1913: ll. 113615–
113621).
Roland swears that such an action would be disloyalty to his lord. Roland thus re-evokes the Narrator’s earlier meditation upon love of one’s
lord and love of a lady with which the female episodes in the East began.
Dionés continues to pine for him, and other ladies flock to him, but he
is oblivious and this makes him the center of a comic episode where his
appearance is mocked:
Char le duc estoit loing et quarés et menbru;
La janbe ot loinge et grose, li pié chanbrés agu,
Le chuises plates, et dougiés por le bu,
Anples le spaules, et por le piz gros fu;
Les main longues et blance, le bras gros e nervu,
Le cols et loing et gros bien demi pié et plu;
La bouce avoit polie, les dens blans et menu;
Le nés ot loing a droit, et non mie bosu;
Vair oil ot et riant, s’il n’estoit ireschu,
Le front anples et aut et de zufet tot nu,
Char il esoit ja chauf, ce avons entendu;
Blons furent ses zavoil come fin or batu (Thomas 1913: ll. 13650–
13661).27
Thus, in the Entrée, women play a small role, as minor obstacles in Roland’s path to perfection.28 Dionés is in many ways a caricature of the
‘‘lady in distress.’’ She is third in a series of pro¤ered pagan brides and
protagonist in a comic young bride-old husband scheme, much like Guiborc. But she does not provoke the same response in Roland as Guiborc
does in William. Her appearance in a short epic segment evocative of a
romance (because of the individual adventure aspect) suggests a comic vignette. The joke involves Roland’s inability to understand love, which is
further developed in romance epic. Here, as in the William cycle, humor
revolving around Dionés is not negative, nor does it reflect poorly on the
woman. Rather, it feeds into both parody of the epic convention and the
lesson o¤ered by the poem. Suard (2000: 34–35) suggests, ‘‘Le véritable
héros [and I would add la véritable héroı̈ne] se reconnaı̂t ā son aptitude
ā faire éclater les cadres préétablies. Cette fonction oblige le public de
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la chanson de geste ā detourner les yeux des cadres et critères habituels de la valeur pour voir celle-ci surgir de personnage ou de situation
inhabituels.’’29
Moving further into the Franco-Italian tradition, the Geste Francor
(the manuscript of which also dates to the first half of the fourteenth century) contains a series of geste du roi stories, in which we find a virago
(mother of Queen Berta who comes to the rescue of her daughter), as
well as a female jongleur, and three falsely accused wives.30 Six of the
nine segments contain important female characters. In two, the women
are particularly humorous. Bovo’s wife Drusiana cleverly works her way
around Bovo’s desire for vengeance on his mother, arranges for Pepin’s
men to side with Bovo and furthermore persuades Pepin to swear perpetual aid to Bovo:
‘‘Bovo,’’ fait ela, ‘‘se ben vos reme[n]brée,
Ço qe vos est venu e inco[n]trée,
De tante pene cu[n] aveç endurée
Par tot li mo[n]do e davant e darée,
E in preson é a morte çuçée,
Or vos oit Deo a tal porto menée
Qe retorné estes in la vestra citée,
E da vestri enemisi vos estes delivrée;
E vestre per vu avés ben vençée.
Or no[n] avés plu de querir meslée
Vu avés qui de França li bernée;
Li rois meesmo aveç qui amenée.
Çascun en soja tant honorée,
Como çascun v 0avese ençe[n]drée.
Se i vol pax, par Deo, no la vée’’ (Morgan forthcoming: ll. 3972–
3986).31
She creates her e¤ects by doing rather than talking. Since Bovo sends all
the Franks to her as her prisoners, she is free to let them wander in her castle, playing chess, though Bovo wishes them killed. The parallel to Guiborc
in the Song of William lies in her making decisions for the best of the family territory, carrying them out, and having her husband accept them.
The second segment of interest is that of Berta ai piedi grandi, who, like
Blançiflor in Macario (the last poem of the Geste Francor), is an exiled
queen. It is her mother, Queen Belisant of Hungary, who is the most truly
comic figure of the Geste Francor; a virago to a greater extent than
Humor and the epic female protagonist
167
Ermengard since she does not just threaten to act but does so. She keeps
her husband terrified:
Mais tanto la dotava, porq’ela era si fe
No la olsava por le viso nul ho[n] guardé.
Par toto li regno se fasea si doté,
No la olsava nul ho[n] de nient contrasté (Morgan forthcoming: ll.
2465–2470),
and drags the imposter posing as Berta out of the French palace by her
hair, keeping even Pepin at bay:
E dist, ‘‘Malvés, vu m’avı́ engané!’’
Non oit la raine avec le tençé;
Por le çavi ela l’oit pié.
La raina fu de grande poesté;
Contra son voloir e soa volunté,
Fora de li leto ela l’oit tiré.
Sor li palés par força l’oit mené,
Por le çavi donando gran collé. (. . .)
E prende li rois si l’oit çoso afolé;
E si le dist, ‘‘Fel traito renojé,
O est ma file? Tosto me rendé,
Colsa como no, en malora fusi né!’’ (Morgan forthcoming: ll. 2629–
2632; 2635–2642).32
This sole example of female-to-female humor is violent, and in reaction to
Pepin’s foolishness in not noticing the substitute’s lack of big feet. However, Belisant does not use weapons, just her own two hands, appropriate
to the situation of woman-on-woman. It is rather the physical handling
of another woman that is humorous in a slapstick way: participating in
physical and violent action is incongruous. Even Pepin laughs when she
says she would have knifed him if they had not found Berta:
‘‘Deo vos oit secoru, e la majesté sant,
Car por cel Deo, qe naque en Oriant,
Se mia filla tornea nen aumes a . l p[re]sant,
Morto v’averoie a un coltel tre[n]çant;
Ne da le mi man nen ausés guarant.’’
Li rois l’olde, s’en rise bellemant (Morgan forthcoming: ll. 2746–2751).
In the Geste Francor there are many humorous portions, children fighting with unusual weapons, giant-size protagonists who overdo eating, and
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other standards of epic humor.33 Berta ai piedi grandi’s mother is another
stereotyped comic role, that of an overbearing woman who browbeats her
spouse and any other male who gets in her way, one again more associated with genres other than epic. She too is excessive, going beyond concern for her daughter, in taking troops to France. Larger-than-life, she is
one more in a series of imposing ancestors for the French royal line, not
unlike male progenitors. This Queen Belisant, like Dionés in the Entrée, is
a foreigner, but a Hungarian rather than a Saracen. Though she claims
the credit for rescuing her daughter Berta, in fact Berta had already
done much for herself by bearing a child (who will become Charlemagne)
to the legitimate king, her spouse. These examples are all about family
and lineage, and humor is predictable, like greatness or evil, through the
family line: female and male lines are equally endowed.
4.
Huon d’Auvergne: A non-cyclical example
In the brief selections discussed so far, it is evident that women serve exemplary functions in relation to nobility as well as provoking humor. Our
last example continues that trend. Huon d’Auvergne (dated in the earliest
[Berlin] manuscript colophon to 1341), is an extremely serious chanson.
It takes on courtly love, criticizing its morality, goals and the literature
that glorifies the courtly ideal at all levels: lexical, behavioral and formal.
Huon’s wife Ynide is the source of the action for the entire poem. Charles
Martel desires her and therefore her husband must be disposed of in order
to assure his access to her.34 However, Ynide is an intelligent and religious woman, and refuses to accept the King of France’s homage. Her
role is strongest at two points: the beginning, where Charlemagne begins
to court her, and one inserted manuscript gathering (¤. 33Ra–42Vb),
which narrates Charles Martel’s embassy to bring her to court during
her husband’s absence. Ynide, while not humorous in herself, is mistress
of the ironic response.
At the beginning of the poem, Ynide participates in a religious observance at St. Denis with the queen and her ladies:
Ynide fu darer, qui apres chami[n]e,
Que estoit vestue de la sage rosine,
Le çaveus blons sor spal li gist sa c[r](i)ne,
Un ce[r]cle au cef qui d’or vaut une mi[n]e;
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169
Et oit baudrer de soie outre ma[r]ine,
Le mameletes ponga[n]t sor la pet[ri]ne.
Boce pitete, dentaure as cisine;
Oil vair e gros riant de tiel co[n]vine
Com de fauco[n]s qua[n]t prant la sauvesi[n]e.
N’ ait hom si egrot, qua[n]t plus mal li afine
S’il pur veist la dame palatine,
Qi fust content d’avoir altre mecine.
De grant biauté fu Ynide revestue,
Que tot les autres parent a li une nue. (ll. 367–380, my transcription)
Note that the description of the body precedes that of the face, rather
than being written in the conventional cap-ā-pied order, as one might
expect, which emphasizes the body as being center of interest. Charles
Martel and his jongleur watch the ladies and Charles Martel likes Ynide’s
appearance. Again, a lyric beauty provokes an unexpected response
(compare Dionés and Guiborc, above). Although King Charles Martel
is in disguise, Ynide recognizes him (ll. 435–451). He asks for the rose
she is carrying; she thanks him and says that she is married, so no thank
you. He insists, saying that love is the important thing; she replies again
to leave her alone. When he repeats his request, she says she will ask her
husband and if he agrees, she will (ll. 475–478). At this point, Charles
Martel gives up and becomes extremely love sick. Ynide’s role with her
husband is that of a supportive and helpful wife, with expected and correct behavior, i.e. not bothering him with her problems, so much so that
her husband is upset with her for not revealing the King’s interest when
he finds out that his mission to hell derives from her denial of the king–
he hits her (ll. 1095–1102).
While Huon is gone, Saudin the jongleur and eleven others go to Ynide
at Auvergne to make Charles Martel’s case for bringing her to court. She
stands firm and alternates her replies first forthrightly (no) and then ironically for the first six appeals: that is, the second, fourth, and sixth are
ironic. She then reverses and finishes in ironic mode: the seventh is ironic,
as are the ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth. In her second, she knows
white from gray (5063–5064); in her fourth, the words and music of his
speech are separated (5096–5097); in her sixth, she knows wheat from
oats (5138–5139); in her seventh, she cites a proverb, it’s correct to blow
on what’s hot (to cool it o¤ ? this is unclear; 5154–5155); in her ninth, she
is not a country bumpkin, but from a good family and is well-trained:
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L. Z. Morgan
‘‘Uger,’’ fit ille, ‘‘formans m’avés lastrine,
Quant vos me requerés le secrois de ma aitine.
M’avés vos, ami, por si sample mescline,
Qe mes oilç nen conoise la rose da la spine?
Ne fui pas norie in selve ne in galdine,
Ma voiremant, a l’ile abrois o amenine
Si ne fu pas ma mere chue ni guercine,
Mais née de broces file a . u duch de Saline.
Son per fu sir de Flandre tr(o)sque sor la marine,
Si fist perser son cors de ci ensalumine.
E dame sui a . l cuens qe Universe domine,
E sir ert de Braibant, d’Alvergne et de Cassine,
E sanator Romans por la vertu divine’’ (Morgan 2003: ll. 5172–5184).
In the tenth response, fruit and tree resemble each other, she says when
invited to stay with Charles Martel’s daughter (5215); in her eleventh, if
Huon agreed to the preaching of the archbishop it would be fine (5243–
5244); in her twelfth, she says she understands the latin (5267–5269), that
is, ‘‘I know exactly what is going on.’’ The play of opposites from practical fields — gray and white, rose and thorn — contrasts with the messengers’ learned appeals citing classical and biblical sources. Her terseness
also contrasts with their wordiness, yet she hits the point each time in
her response, producing humor — a smile — not a belly laugh.
Ynide arranges for Charles’s representatives to be lodged and fed, then
retires for the evening. The next morning, after another series of bons
mots that consists of comparing classical figures, Ynide sentences King
Charles Martel’s ambassadors to be stripped naked, whipped through
town and escorted to the borders. In these episodes, Ynide continues an
anti-clerical and anti-royal message delivered throughout the poem by
her husband: the worldly representatives of God are wrong to press their
advantage, and will be punished. During the exchanges between Ynide
and the messengers, not only is the worldly inappropriateness of their
suit made clear; Saudin’s lyrical tribute to love is so long and exaggerated
that it is humorous, and the terse irony of Ynide’s responses make the
foolishness of lyric love clear.
The Berlin version is one of the two versions of Ynide’s story. The
other, and ultimately more widespread, does not have a humorous role
for women. In the Padua manuscript (Biblioteca Vescovile cod. 32, late
fourteenth or early fifteenth century) and the prose version by Andrea da
Humor and the epic female protagonist
171
Barberino, known as Ugone d’Alvernia, (late fourteenth or early fifteenth;
many copies and widely known) a ‘‘Potiphar’s wife’’ story begins the tale.
There Sofia, Charles Martel’s daughter, attempts to seduce Ugone
(¼ Huon) and is burned by her father for her crime. When Charles Martel
sends messengers to Nida (¼ Ynide), she relates the embassy to her
brother, who removes the messenger’s tongue, nose and an eye. There
the female protagonist does not utilize verbal cleverness or personal
strength, but resorts to her family in the expected way, and is therefore
not humorous.35
5. Conclusions
The types of humor in these example poems range from verbal humor to
slapstick. The ‘‘Narrator’s’’ vocabulary and turns of phrase chosen amplify the e¤ect. Major theories of the source of humor suggest incongruity, catharsis and superiority as primary reasons for humor (Attardo
1994: 46–53). Of these, incongruity explains most of the e¤ects here. Guiborc in the William cycle does not act as expected within her role: she
holds the city for her husband, but by herself dressing in armor and fighting as a continuation of her support for him. She also however has a
weakness incongruous to a warrior: she is jealous, requiring her husband
to swear an elaborate oath. She is furthermore persistent, not giving up in
the face of adversity or even in unsure situations. When Guiborc asks
William several times to reveal his face, for example, producing incongruity through exaggeration and repetition (one might after all expect a
spouse to recognize her mate even in Saracen armor), and this occurs
twice in one poem (Aliscans).
In the Entrée, Dionés follows the rules, but Roland does not understand: he does not know how to appreciate her charms or react appropriately to her, though he is supposedly tutoring her brother in courtliness
(ll. 13704–13725). The narrative frame of Dionés’s appearance contributes to Roland’s learning process: education as a noble and loyalty to a
ruler are essential. The author’s role in guiding incidents provides further
and reinforcing humor: it is metanarrative twice over, with comments on
storytelling (for example, in the segment discussed, the captain o¤ers to
tell a story of love to pass the time) and with Roland’s own asides to
the ‘‘audience.’’ It plays on intergeneric roles; in the epic, the hero is not
a romance protagonist, as demonstrated by Dionés. The composition
172
L. Z. Morgan
of the story and jab lines at the end of descriptions after the first few
contribute to humor in what has been called the ‘‘romance zone’’ of an
epic.36
The Geste Francor too o¤ers women in incongruous positions for an
epic: the twin-story of Berta ai piedi grandi includes the caricature of an
overbearing mother-in-law. The older woman keeps her husband under
her rule, is independently wealthy, and physically powerful. Yet she is
part of the tradition too, a strong royal ancestor, providing the French
with intelligence and strength for the future from the female side.
The Ynide sections of Huon d’Auvergne (Berlin) portray a psychologically strong woman from a noble and well-educated background. But her
presence as mover of action in a chanson de geste is incongruous: she does
not need to be rescued from rampaging Saracens in the East, nor does she
need male relatives to rescue her from a royal prerogative over her lands.
In fact, it is she who orders her male relatives in Auvergne to move
against the French king.
These women share certain characteristics: they are outsiders, Saracens
in two cases; in others a Hungarian older woman, and a woman from
Bruges. They are loyally monogamous and members of noble bloodlines.
They act rather than allow themselves to be acted upon. They are beautiful (with the possible exception of the Hungarian mother-in-law) and the
portraits traced of them are variations on courtly description. Yet they
also play di¤erent parts from that of the usual courtly lady: Dionés does
nothing herself; she awaits Roland’s reactions to her charms and only
provokes laughter in relation to Roland. Guiborc and Belisant both use
physical force for humor on occasion; Drusiana and Guiborc use their
wits to outwit their husbands (in a positive way so as to help them); and
Ynide is verbally clever to save her honor in her husband’s absence. Each
relies upon male others for humor and is not in herself humorous; it is
female interaction with others that results in humor. Rarely do women
interact with each other and when they do it is not generally a source of
humor: the one humorous example found derives from male lack of
attention.
The techniques used to create humor — exaggeration, excess, repetition
to the point of overuse, verbal contrasts, use of lyric language in epic, altered portraits — are also used for other characters and in other scenes in
the same poems. In fact, the women in these romance epics are used to
aid the parody of the primary male characters and genre conventions: in
Aliscans and the Chanson de Guillaume, to point out the weaknesses in
Humor and the epic female protagonist
173
the French nobility and combat Saracens; in the Geste Francor, to mock
French nobility in person but to praise its ancestors; in the Entrée d’Espagne, to mock Roland in order to emphasize the need for a wellrounded person and loyalty to one’s ruler; and in Huon d’Auvergne, to
criticize King Charles Martel and the hypocritical stand of the church
with the French monarchy without denigrating Catholic dogma. Ermengard, Guiborc, Belisant, Drusiana, Dionés, and Ynide together represent
humor found in and around female epic protagonists. Within the support
of the feudal structure, outsiders — women — safely critique the status
quo, and together with their menfolk, participate in variations of scenes
juxtaposed throughout the four groups of texts examined here. The
women’s speech and behavior, abetted by authorial structure, create a
lack of accord (that is, incongruity or décalage) from the expected chanson de geste characters and form that leads to humor.
Loyola College in Maryland
Notes
Correspondence address: [email protected]
1. Cook (1993: 264) mentions three stereotyped categories: ‘‘l’épouse, mere des héros; la
méchante reine, dont les complots mettent en péril l’avenir du héros; et la maı̂tresse,
finement amoreuse du héros et souvent complaisante,’’ categories, which, as he notes,
are exceeded in the late chanson de geste by the examples which he too brings.
2. See, for example, Lachet (1986: 79): ‘‘Celle-ci [la femme] commence à jouer un rôle
appréciable, quoique secondaire le plus souvent, dans les épopées qui remontent au
dernier tiers du XII e siécle, à une époque où l’influence du roman se fait déjà sentir’’.
Sarah Kay (1995: 31) argues that the Chanson de Roland is a male-centered anomaly.
She addresses specifically the ‘Saracen princess’ story, which, as she points out, is not
found in romances. She says, ‘‘the allegations of ‘romance influence’ on the chansons de
geste are sometimes better explained as instances of ‘romance influence’ on the critics
themselves, since their values and perspectives have been to some extent conditioned by
the cultural success of romance to which they themselves have contributed’’ (1995: 5).
3. I use the term ‘‘romance epic’’ for the chanson de geste and its later descendants in
poetic form, whatever the language (Gallic or Italianate), to avoid awkwardness in
English of distinguishing chanson de geste, chanson d’aventures, etc.
4. ‘‘The assumption behind this identification of humor and laughter is that what makes
people laugh is humorous, and hence the property is incorrectly seen as symmetrical —
what is funny makes you laugh and what makes you laugh is funny. This leads to the
identification of a mental phenomenon (humor) with a complex neuro-physiological
manifestation (laughter)’’ (Attardo 1994: 10).
5. See Kay on metanarrative analysis (1993: 237).
6. Cerquiglini-Toulet (1998) notes that smiling is seen as an attractive characteristic in a
woman, that it does not necessarily designate emotion.
174
L. Z. Morgan
7. There are two manuscripts of importance for the William cycle in Italy: in Milan, at
the Trivulziana, the manuscript known as A 3 is Trivulziana 1025, from the end of the
thirteenth century. It contains the Couronnement, Prise, Aliscans, Charroi, Enfances
Vivien, Chevalerie Vivien, Bataille Loquifer, Moniage Renouart, Moniage Guillaume II;
and the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice holds Fr. 8 (252), CIV, 5, a fourteenth-century manuscript, which contains Aliscans (Ferrante 1974: 10).
8. One might also mention the Pelèrinage de Charlemagne, already discussed by Cobby
(1995). However, the di‰culties of dating the text, and the fact that it is not from
Franco-Italian territory, force me to omit it from the center of my analysis, though
it shares certain elements with the texts I will be discussing, including the Queen who
begins the action by challenging Charlemagne.
9. In the Enfances, she is married to Tiebaut; in the Moniage she dies at the beginning;
and in the Coronation of Louis and Charroi de Nı̂mes she is not present. The Couronnement seems to be the oldest, dating to 1131–1150; it is followed by Charroi de Nı̂mes,
dated to 1140–1165. The Prise d’Orange is dated to 1160–1165 (Ferrante 1974; Regnier
1983: 40, 1199–1216). The Chanson de Guillaume also dates to the mid-twelfth century
(Regnier 1990: 7). Aliscans and Moniage Guillaume (both versions) are dated to the late
twelfth century (though the first manuscript of Aliscans is mid-thirteenth century). As I
edit this paper, Bennett’s volumes, both as a critical guide and an edition and translation, have just come out (2000a, 2000b). Unfortunately, I have not been able to consult
them in time for this editing. The earlier translation of the Song of William into English
is not complete and is in archaized English (Stone 1951; it goes to l. 2598), and I therefore do not translate quotes. For a more complete translation, the Bennett will be a
welcome addition.
10. ‘‘It is madness in him, for he is old and his beard is snow-white, and she is a young and
beautiful girl, there is none so fair in all pagandom’’ ll. 618–620, (Ferrante 1974: 159).
11. ‘‘When William hears him he begins to laugh’’ l. 629 (Ferrante 1974: 159).
12. I will not go into variations between the di¤erent versions in various manuscripts here
(see Lachet, Parodie ‘‘C-La Peinture de l’Amour’’ [1986: 155–158]).
13. ‘‘I have seen them taking secret counsel / and kissing and embracing one another. /
She loves them [the Christians] more than your father or the King Haucebier’’ ll.
1477–1480 (Ferrante 1974: 183).
14. The cuckolded husband and men suspecting cuckoldry are stock figures of Boccaccio’s
Decameron and of fabliaux (e.g., Decameron Day 3, story 8; ‘‘La Borgoise d’Orliens’’).
For Guillaume and Orable/Guiborc, see again Lachet, ‘‘D-La Chanson de Malmariée’’ (1986: 158–162).
15. In the Chanson, the porter refuses once and Guiborc twice to let William in; in Aliscans, both refuse twice. The section quoted is translated:
By the apostle we seek in Noiron,
I would have to see the bump on your nose
that King Ysorez gave you before Rome.
That is a mark which I know well enough;
and a wound which you have on your side
that Tiebaut the Slav gave you in battle,
before gate or doorway is unlocked for you (Ferrante 1974: 212).
16. In Aliscans he shows his nose just before the Saracens arrive, when it is too late, but in
the Chanson he does not get that far. He shows his nose finally in the Chanson after
having defeated the Saracens and before Guiborc will let him in. Cf. Combarieu de
Grès (1993), who argues that Guiborc no longer recognizes William because he has
changed in his attitude (psyche) as well as in his appearance.
Humor and the epic female protagonist
175
17. I shall remain in Orange, the great,
with the ladies, there are so many here.
Each one will have a Moorish coat of mail
and on her head a green shining helmet,
at her side she will gird a good sword,
at her neck a shield, a sharp spear in her hand (Ferrante 1974: 216–217).
18. You have my word, which I have sworn to you,
that I shall not take this shirt o¤,
or my pants or hose either, or have my head washed,
I shall not eat meat or taste pepper
I shall not drink wine or any spiced drink
from a wooden cup or a golden goblet,
except water, that must be allowed me.
I shall not eat kneaded hearth cakes,
only coarse bread that is made from the cha¤;
I shall not rest on a feathered mattress
. . . or touch any other mouth until they have kissed and tasted yours . . . (Ferrante
1974: 217–218).
19. On the basis of the nephew-uncle bond, see Farnsworth (1913). There is also an extensive online bibliography on Germanic kinship by James Marchand at http://www.
textfiles.com/occult/germanic.txt.
20. Lady Guiborc had donned her shirt of mail,
laced on a helmet and girded a sword;
there was no woman who was not armed that day,
and at the windows of the great square tower.
The knights guarded the gates below,
the assault was fierce and the combat rough,
the ladies threw down quantities of stones;
many Saracens had their heads crushed
and lay dead and bloody, their mouths open (Ferrante 1974: 234).
21. A la fenestre voit Guiborc la vaillant
Qui se devoit armer d’un jazerant (Regnier 1990: ll. 4221–4222; cf. Holtus 1985: ll.
4070–4071).
Note the scene afterwards, when William calls upon her to keep her part of the promise
and they kiss twenty times (Regnier 1990: ll. 4249–4251; cf. Holtus 1985: 4098–4099)!
There are di¤erences between Aliscans and the Chanson: when Guillaume returns
from Archamp where all are dead, he arrives at the city in lines 2210–2328: at l. 2215
is William’s request to the porter; at 2237, his request to Guiborc, then he fights pagans
but does not yet lift his helmet; in 2308, he turns again to Guiborc, and she asks him to
show his nose. She volunteers to guard the city with 700 women (2408–2453, esp. ll.
2445–2451); and on his return from Laon, she lets him in immediately, without requesting identification. So the identification issue is slightly di¤erent in the two poems.
22. In the Geste Francor, Drusiana allows King Pepin and his men freedom of the castle
when Bovo sends his prisoners to her and arranges for their liberation, ll. 3781–3912.
All references to the Geste Francor are to Morgan (forthcoming).
23. I do not include Flohart as a humorous female character as she is a monster. However,
it would interesting to examine her role compared to that of male battle monsters. She
is not a court figure, nor does she have a mate in the text, and therefore her role is limited more than the clearly female court figures discussed in this article. For a discussion
of Flohart and her role, see Campbell (1993). Also, I cannot include all the various
176
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
L. Z. Morgan
aspects of di¤erence between Guiborc as seen here and as seen in Aliscans. William’s
appeal to the King is worded as directly for Guiborc here, for instance.
The subtext to this scene is a storm when the Captain o¤ers to tell the tale of Galienne
and Charlot, comparing Roland thus to the young emperor in exile who married a Saracen princess in Spain (Thomas 1913: ll. 11806–11812).
Jab lines are ‘‘non-final punch lines’’ (Attardo 2001: 29).
O¤ering a foreign soldier an upper-class bride but expecting him to refuse is a test motif found in various chansons d’aventures, and demonstrates the nobility of the candidate who refuses. See also, for example, Beuve d’Hantone; Mainet; Aquilon de Bavière;
and numerous other chansons.
A more lengthy treatment of this episode can be found in Morgan (2002a).
See Bradley-Cromey (1993) for extended argument of Roland’s development through
the Entrée d’Espagne. Roland’s/Orlando’s development in various epics is a disputed
matter; it is an ongoing critical discussion, for example, about Boiardo’s Orlando Innamorato, between di¤erent schools of criticism.
‘‘A true hero [or heroine, I would add] can blow away conventions and the preexisting genre framework, obliging the audience to re-examine its presumptions’’ (my
translation).
The chansons are, in order of appearance, Enfances Bovo d’Antona; Berta ai piedi
grandi; Chevalerie Bovo d’Antona; Karleto; Berta e Milone; Enfances Uggieri il Danese;
Orlandino; Chevalerie Uggieri il Danese; and Macario. The names are given somewhat
arbitrarily, as there are no titles in the manuscript, and they could be either French or
Italian. Transcriptions are Morgan (forthcoming). Square brackets designate an abbreviation written out, parentheses my addition to the manuscript text.
Drusiana also succeeds in freeing Bovo’s mother (Blondoia), much against his will,
again by outmaneuvering him. Further discussion of humor in Geste Francor appears
in Morgan (2002b).
Drusiana’ s origin is unknown in this manuscript since the beginning is missing, and
the Bovo story thus begins truly in medias res. In some versions she is the daughter of
a foreign (non-Catholic?) prince (introduction, Geste Francor).
Theodor (1913) lists epic humor by type; critics who followed him have done similarly,
listing ‘‘humor of character,’’ ‘‘humor of situation,’’ etc. See for example, Ménard
(2002) most recently.
References here are to the Berlin version, Kupferstichkabinett 78 D 8 (olim Ms.
Hamilton 337), published in Morgan (2003: 425–462).
For more information on Huon d’Auvergne, see Morgan (2003: 425–462).
Sturm-Maddox (1996–1997) speaks of the ‘‘romance zone’’ and its significance in the
Entrée d’Espagne.
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