Gold in the dungheap: Incest stories and family values in the middle ages

Journal of Family History

Volumn 22, Issue 2, 1997, Pages 133-149

  Archibald, Elizabeth ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 0031115771     PISSN: 03631990     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/036319909702200201     Document Type: Article

References (87)

1. See F. L. Jones, ed., Letters of Percy Bysshe Shelley, 2 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1964), II: 154.
2. In the late twentieth century, incest is generally taken to mean sexual intercourse between close family members; often it involves abusive or coercive sex with a minor. In the Middle Ages the word was used to describe sex or marriage between a much wider range of family members, related by blood or by marriage, and also between those related spiritually through the rite of baptism (for a fuller account of the prohibited degrees of relationship in the later Middle Ages, see p. 135). I shall be mostly concerned in this article with imaginative literature about nuclear family incest.
3. There is no survey of this literature, apart from the now dated and rather superficial study by Otto Rank, Das Inzest-Motiv in Dichtung und Sage (Leipzig, Germany: F. Deuticke, 1912; 2nd ed., 1926), translated by Gregory C. Richter as The Incest Theme in Literature and Legend (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992). I am currently working on a study of medieval incest stories and their cultural context. See also Archibald, "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," Forum for Modern Language Studies 25 (1989): 1-15, and "'The Appalling Dangers of Family Life': Incest in Medieval Literature," in Cathy J. Itnyre, ed., Medieval Family Roles (New York: Garland Publishing, 1996), 157-71.
4. There is no survey of this literature, apart from the now dated and rather superficial study by Otto Rank, Das Inzest-Motiv in Dichtung und Sage (Leipzig, Germany: F. Deuticke, 1912; 2nd ed., 1926), translated by Gregory C. Richter as The Incest Theme in Literature and Legend (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992). I am currently working on a study of medieval incest stories and their cultural context. See also Archibald, "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," Forum for Modern Language Studies 25 (1989): 1-15, and "'The Appalling Dangers of Family Life': Incest in Medieval Literature," in Cathy J. Itnyre, ed., Medieval Family Roles (New York: Garland Publishing, 1996), 157-71.
5. There is no survey of this literature, apart from the now dated and rather superficial study by Otto Rank, Das Inzest-Motiv in Dichtung und Sage (Leipzig, Germany: F. Deuticke, 1912; 2nd ed., 1926), translated by Gregory C. Richter as The Incest Theme in Literature and Legend (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992). I am currently working on a study of medieval incest stories and their cultural context. See also Archibald, "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," Forum for Modern Language Studies 25 (1989): 1-15, and "'The Appalling Dangers of Family Life': Incest in Medieval Literature," in Cathy J. Itnyre, ed., Medieval Family Roles (New York: Garland Publishing, 1996), 157-71.
6. There is no survey of this literature, apart from the now dated and rather superficial study by Otto Rank, Das Inzest-Motiv in Dichtung und Sage (Leipzig, Germany: F. Deuticke, 1912; 2nd ed., 1926), translated by Gregory C. Richter as The Incest Theme in Literature and Legend (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992). I am currently working on a study of medieval incest stories and their cultural context. See also Archibald, "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," Forum for Modern Language Studies 25 (1989): 1-15, and "'The Appalling Dangers of Family Life': Incest in Medieval Literature," in Cathy J. Itnyre, ed., Medieval Family Roles (New York: Garland Publishing, 1996), 157-71.
7. It is striking that over the centuries, accusations of incest have been levelled with amazing frequency against minority or heretical Christian sects - not just the early Christians but also, among others, the Albigensians, the Quakers, and modem groups such as the Branch Davidians.
8. All citations from classical and patristic sources are taken from the translations in the Loeb Classical Library series, unless otherwise noted.
9. There are many other references in this work to the charges of incest made against the Christians: see for instance II.20, IV.11, VII.1, VIII.3.
10. This phrase seems to have been proverbial in classical times ("aurum in stercore quaerere"). It is used several times by St. Jerome in his letters (Epistulae 98,22 and 107,12). For its application to medieval incest stories, see note 26.
11. See Jean-Charles Payen, Le Motif du repentir dans le littérature française médiévale (des origines à 1230) (Geneva, Droz, 1967), especially 54 ff.
12. For a fuller discussion of the reasons why incest became a popular sin in imaginative and exemplary literature about the twelfth century, see Archibald, "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society" (note 3).
13. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
14. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
15. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
16. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
17. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
18. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
19. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
20. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
21. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
22. There has been a great deal of critical debate recently about the reasons for the extraordinary proliferation of these draconian laws. See G. Duby, Medieval Marriage, trans. E. Forster (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978); and The Knight, The Priest and The Lady, trans. B. Bray (London: Allen Lane, 1984); J.-L. Flandrin, Families in Former Times: Kinship, Households and Sexuality, trans. R. Southern (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); J. Goody, The Development of the Family and Marriage in Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983); C. Brooke, The Medieval Idea of Marriage (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989); Mayke de Jong, "To the Limits of Kinship: Anti-Incest Legislation in the Early Medieval West (500-90O)," in From Sappho to De Sade: Moments in the History of Sexuality, ed. J. Bremmer (London: Routledge, 1989), 36-59; and D. Herlihy, "Making Sense of Incest: Women and the Marriage Rules of the Early Middle Ages," in Law, Custom and the Social Fabric in Medieval Europe: Essays in Honor of Bryce Lyon, ed. B. Bachrach and D. Nicholas (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, W. Michigan University, 1990), 1-16. For more detail on the prohibitions see also A. Esmein, Le Mariage en droit canonique, 2d ed., rev. R. Genestal (Paris: Librairie du Recueil Sirey, 1929); J. Fleury, Recherches historiques sur les empêchements de parenté dans le mariage canonique (Paris: Recueil Sirey, 1933); and J. Brundage, Law, Sex and Society in Medieval Europe (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987).
23. J. J. Firth, C.S.B., ed., Liber Poenitentialis, 2.38, Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, Studies and Texts 18 (Toronto, Canada: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1971), 78.
24. "Fourth Lateran Council, Canon 50." In Disciplinary Decrees of the General Councils, ed. H. J. Schroeder, OP (St. Louis and London: B. Herder Book Co., 1937), 279, 578. Hardship is the reason given for the reform; but in fact, the ecclesiastical authorities may well have been bowing to the obvious fact that the existing prohibitions were not being observed, and indeed were being exploited unscrupulously by noblemen and royalty who wanted to take new wives.
25. See my comments in "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," 10; and also Louis Haas, "Boccaccio, Baptismal Kinship, and Spiritual Incest," Renaissance and Reformation 24 (1989): 343-56.
26. See my comments in "Incest in Medieval Literature and Society," 10; and also Louis Haas, "Boccaccio, Baptismal Kinship, and Spiritual Incest," Renaissance and Reformation 24 (1989): 343-56.
27. See P. Brewster, "The Incest Theme in Folksong," FF Communications no. 212 (Helsinki, Finland: Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1972).
28. Augustine, City of God, XV.16.
29. Aquinas, Summa Theologiae 2a2ae.154.9, ed. and tr. T. Gilby, O.P., 60 vols., Blackfriars ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1968), XLIII:236 ff.
30. In his study of confessional manuals for clergy and laity, D. W. Robertson, Jr., notes that unusually horrible sins ("les péchés secrets" or "pryvytes") were not to be mentioned by confessors for this very reason; see "The Cultural Tradition of Handlyng Synne," Speculum 22 (1947): 162-85 (especially pp. 172-5). Pierre J. Payer makes a similar point in "Sex and Confession in the Thirteenth Century," in Sex in the Middle Ages: A Book of Essays, ed. Joyce E. Salisbury, Garland Medieval Casebooks 4 (New York: Garland Publishing, 1991), 126-42 (see p. 127).
31. In his study of confessional manuals for clergy and laity, D. W. Robertson, Jr., notes that unusually horrible sins ("les péchés secrets" or "pryvytes") were not to be mentioned by confessors for this very reason; see "The Cultural Tradition of Handlyng Synne," Speculum 22 (1947): 162-85 (especially pp. 172-5). Pierre J. Payer makes a similar point in "Sex and Confession in the Thirteenth Century," in Sex in the Middle Ages: A Book of Essays, ed. Joyce E. Salisbury, Garland Medieval Casebooks 4 (New York: Garland Publishing, 1991), 126-42 (see p. 127).
32. See, for instance, R. Helmholz, Marriage Litigation in Medieval England (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1974), 72.
33. See, for instance, Peter Brown, The Body and Society (New York: Columbia University Press, 1988); John Bugge, Virginitas: An Essay in the History of a Medieval Ideal (The Hague, Netherlands: Nijhoff, 1975); Clarissa Atkinson, " 'Precious Balsam in a Fragile Glass': The Ideology of Virginity in the Later Middle Ages," Journal of Family History 8 (1983): 131-43.
34. See, for instance, Peter Brown, The Body and Society (New York: Columbia University Press, 1988); John Bugge, Virginitas: An Essay in the History of a Medieval Ideal (The Hague, Netherlands: Nijhoff, 1975); Clarissa Atkinson, " 'Precious Balsam in a Fragile Glass': The Ideology of Virginity in the Later Middle Ages," Journal of Family History 8 (1983): 131-43.
35. See, for instance, Peter Brown, The Body and Society (New York: Columbia University Press, 1988); John Bugge, Virginitas: An Essay in the History of a Medieval Ideal (The Hague, Netherlands: Nijhoff, 1975); Clarissa Atkinson, " 'Precious Balsam in a Fragile Glass': The Ideology of Virginity in the Later Middle Ages," Journal of Family History 8 (1983): 131-43.
36. See "The Wife of Bath's Prologue," 11. 1-162, in The Riverside Chaucer, ed. L. D. Benson et al., 3rd ed. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1987). On the other hand, spouses who chose to live celibately could achieve sanctity, even after the birth of many children; in the later Middle Ages there is a striking increase in the number of saints who had once been married, especially female saints.
37. See Brundage, 243 and 373-4. Couples related within the prohibited degrees were not always required to separate. Brundage notes (289) that in the twelfth century both French and Bolognese decretists agreed that when the degree of relationship of an incestuous couple was fairly distant, and the incest was not public knowledge, the marriage need not be dissolved. He attributes to the Bolognese Rolandus the invention of the terms "diriment impediment" (when an existing marriage must be dissolved) and "impedient impediment" (when an incestuous relationship would prevent a forthcoming marriage). In the late twelfth century, Pope Alexander III wrote to Bartholomew of Exeter urging discretion in the embarrassing case of a respectable sheriff of Devon who turned out to have been married within the prohibited degrees for many years, on the grounds that "it is more tolerable to leave some people married in contravention of the laws of man, than to separate those who are legitimately married, in contravention of the laws of God": see Dom Adrian Morey, Bartholomew of Exeter, Bishop and Canonist (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1937), 67-8 (my translation).
38. See, for instance, F. Richardson, ed., Sir Eglamour of Artois, EETS 256 (London: Oxford University Press, 1965) , and G. Schleich, ed., Sir Degaré (Heidelberg, Germany: Winter, 1929).
39. See, for instance, F. Richardson, ed., Sir Eglamour of Artois, EETS 256 (London: Oxford University Press, 1965) , and G. Schleich, ed., Sir Degaré (Heidelberg, Germany: Winter, 1929).
40. Examples of this theme are E. Rickert, ed., Emaré, EETS, E.S. 99 (London: Oxford University Press, 1908; rp. 1958) , and Philippe de Beaumanoir, "La Manekine," in Oeuvres Poétiques de Philippe de Rémi, Sieur de Beaumanoir, ed. H. Suchier, 2 vols., SATF (Paris: Firmin Didot, 1884), I, 3-263. See also M. Schlauch, Chaucer's Constance and Other Accused Queens (New York: New York University Press, 1927; rp. New York: AMS Press, 1973) ; and Archibald, "The Flight from Incest: Two Late Classical Precursors of the Constance Theme," Chaucer Review 20 (1986): 259-72.
41. Examples of this theme are E. Rickert, ed., Emaré, EETS, E.S. 99 (London: Oxford University Press, 1908; rp. 1958) , and Philippe de Beaumanoir, "La Manekine," in Oeuvres Poétiques de Philippe de Rémi, Sieur de Beaumanoir, ed. H. Suchier, 2 vols., SATF (Paris: Firmin Didot, 1884), I, 3-263. See also M. Schlauch, Chaucer's Constance and Other Accused Queens (New York: New York University Press, 1927; rp. New York: AMS Press, 1973) ; and Archibald, "The Flight from Incest: Two Late Classical Precursors of the Constance Theme," Chaucer Review 20 (1986): 259-72.
42. Examples of this theme are E. Rickert, ed., Emaré, EETS, E.S. 99 (London: Oxford University Press, 1908; rp. 1958) , and Philippe de Beaumanoir, "La Manekine," in Oeuvres Poétiques de Philippe de Rémi, Sieur de Beaumanoir, ed. H. Suchier, 2 vols., SATF (Paris: Firmin Didot, 1884), I, 3-263. See also M. Schlauch, Chaucer's Constance and Other Accused Queens (New York: New York University Press, 1927; rp. New York: AMS Press, 1973) ; and Archibald, "The Flight from Incest: Two Late Classical Precursors of the Constance Theme," Chaucer Review 20 (1986): 259-72.
43. Examples of this theme are E. Rickert, ed., Emaré, EETS, E.S. 99 (London: Oxford University Press, 1908; rp. 1958) , and Philippe de Beaumanoir, "La Manekine," in Oeuvres Poétiques de Philippe de Rémi, Sieur de Beaumanoir, ed. H. Suchier, 2 vols., SATF (Paris: Firmin Didot, 1884), I, 3-263. See also M. Schlauch, Chaucer's Constance and Other Accused Queens (New York: New York University Press, 1927; rp. New York: AMS Press, 1973) ; and Archibald, "The Flight from Incest: Two Late Classical Precursors of the Constance Theme," Chaucer Review 20 (1986): 259-72.
44. See Carolyn Dinshaw, "The Law of Man and its 'Abhomynacions,' " Exemplaria 1.1 (1989): 117-48 , reprinted as chapter 3 of Chaucer's Sexual Poetics (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1989), 88-112.
45. See Carolyn Dinshaw, "The Law of Man and its 'Abhomynacions,' " Exemplaria 1.1 (1989): 117-48 , reprinted as chapter 3 of Chaucer's Sexual Poetics (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1989), 88-112.
46. See Noam Flinker, "Cinyras, Myrrha, and Adonis: Father-Daughter Incest from Ovid to Milton," Milton Studies 14 (1980): 59-74. On mythography in the Middle Ages, see J. Seznec, The Survival of the Pagan Gods, tr. B. Sessions (New York: Harper, 1953); and also J. Chance, ed., The Mythographic Art (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1990). In medieval versions of the Oedipus story, his incest is often marginalized or even omitted in favor of the civil war between his sons.
47. See Noam Flinker, "Cinyras, Myrrha, and Adonis: Father-Daughter Incest from Ovid to Milton," Milton Studies 14 (1980): 59-74. On mythography in the Middle Ages, see J. Seznec, The Survival of the Pagan Gods, tr. B. Sessions (New York: Harper, 1953); and also J. Chance, ed., The Mythographic Art (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1990). In medieval versions of the Oedipus story, his incest is often marginalized or even omitted in favor of the civil war between his sons.
48. See Noam Flinker, "Cinyras, Myrrha, and Adonis: Father-Daughter Incest from Ovid to Milton," Milton Studies 14 (1980): 59-74. On mythography in the Middle Ages, see J. Seznec, The Survival of the Pagan Gods, tr. B. Sessions (New York: Harper, 1953); and also J. Chance, ed., The Mythographic Art (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1990). In medieval versions of the Oedipus story, his incest is often marginalized or even omitted in favor of the civil war between his sons.
49. See Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre: Medieval and Renaissance Themes and Variations (Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1991). The two writers who applied to it the "gold in the dungheap" metaphor were Geoffrey de Vigeois (c. 1184) in the prologue to his Chronicon Lemovicense, ed. P. Labbé in Nova bibliotheca manuscriptorum, 2 vols. (Paris: J. Henault, 1657), II: 279 (the passage is quoted and translated in Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre, 224); and Markward Welser in the introduction to his 1595 edition of the story, Narratio eorum quae contigerunt Apollonio Tyrio (see Archibald, Apollonius, 205).
50. See Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre: Medieval and Renaissance Themes and Variations (Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1991). The two writers who applied to it the "gold in the dungheap" metaphor were Geoffrey de Vigeois (c. 1184) in the prologue to his Chronicon Lemovicense, ed. P. Labbé in Nova bibliotheca manuscriptorum, 2 vols. (Paris: J. Henault, 1657), II: 279 (the passage is quoted and translated in Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre, 224); and Markward Welser in the introduction to his 1595 edition of the story, Narratio eorum quae contigerunt Apollonio Tyrio (see Archibald, Apollonius, 205).
51. See Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre: Medieval and Renaissance Themes and Variations (Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1991). The two writers who applied to it the "gold in the dungheap" metaphor were Geoffrey de Vigeois (c. 1184) in the prologue to his Chronicon Lemovicense, ed. P. Labbé in Nova bibliotheca manuscriptorum, 2 vols. (Paris: J. Henault, 1657), II: 279 (the passage is quoted and translated in Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre, 224); and Markward Welser in the introduction to his 1595 edition of the story, Narratio eorum quae contigerunt Apollonio Tyrio (see Archibald, Apollonius, 205).
52. See Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre: Medieval and Renaissance Themes and Variations (Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1991). The two writers who applied to it the "gold in the dungheap" metaphor were Geoffrey de Vigeois (c. 1184) in the prologue to his Chronicon Lemovicense, ed. P. Labbé in Nova bibliotheca manuscriptorum, 2 vols. (Paris: J. Henault, 1657), II: 279 (the passage is quoted and translated in Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre, 224); and Markward Welser in the introduction to his 1595 edition of the story, Narratio eorum quae contigerunt Apollonio Tyrio (see Archibald, Apollonius, 205).
53. See Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre: Medieval and Renaissance Themes and Variations (Cambridge: D.S. Brewer, 1991). The two writers who applied to it the "gold in the dungheap" metaphor were Geoffrey de Vigeois (c. 1184) in the prologue to his Chronicon Lemovicense, ed. P. Labbé in Nova bibliotheca manuscriptorum, 2 vols. (Paris: J. Henault, 1657), II: 279 (the passage is quoted and translated in Archibald, Apollonius of Tyre, 224); and Markward Welser in the introduction to his 1595 edition of the story, Narratio eorum quae contigerunt Apollonio Tyrio (see Archibald, Apollonius, 205).
54. There may have been some hint of this concept in classical incest stories. In Sophocles's final play, Oedipus at Colonus, Oedipus ends his life in exile as the patron saint of Athens, which will be blessed because his bones rest on Athenian territory. Clearly his terrible crimes do not prevent him from having some sort of supernatural power. And Ovid's Myrrha, once pregnant, regrets her passion for her father and the trick she used to get into his bed: She appeals to the gods for some existence that is neither life not death, and is turned into a myrrh tree, weeping penitential tears of resin.
55. There are several twelfth-century versions of this popular story: Hartmann von Aue's Gregorius, ed. H. Paul, 13th ed., rev. B. Wachinger (Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1984), and the anonymous French Vie du Pape Grégoire, ed. H. B. Sol (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1977). A shortened version is included as c. 81 in the widely read and translated Gesta Romanorum, ed. H. Oesterley (Berlin: Weidmann, 1872). There were many popes named Gregory, but the legend is not attached to any of them; the name appears to be used generically.
56. There are several twelfth-century versions of this popular story: Hartmann von Aue's Gregorius, ed. H. Paul, 13th ed., rev. B. Wachinger (Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1984), and the anonymous French Vie du Pape Grégoire, ed. H. B. Sol (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1977). A shortened version is included as c. 81 in the widely read and translated Gesta Romanorum, ed. H. Oesterley (Berlin: Weidmann, 1872). There were many popes named Gregory, but the legend is not attached to any of them; the name appears to be used generically.
57. There are several twelfth-century versions of this popular story: Hartmann von Aue's Gregorius, ed. H. Paul, 13th ed., rev. B. Wachinger (Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1984), and the anonymous French Vie du Pape Grégoire, ed. H. B. Sol (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1977). A shortened version is included as c. 81 in the widely read and translated Gesta Romanorum, ed. H. Oesterley (Berlin: Weidmann, 1872). There were many popes named Gregory, but the legend is not attached to any of them; the name appears to be used generically.
58. See Karin Morvay, Die Albanuslegende: Deutsche Fassungen und ihre Beziehungen zur lateinischen Überlieferung, Medium Aevum: Philologische Studien 32 (Munich: W. Fink, 1977). This story is also included in the Gesta Romanorum as c. 244, though the protagonist is not named.
59. F. Tubach gives twelve entries for incest in his Index Exemplorum: A Handbook of Medieval Religious Tales, FF Communications 204 (Helsinki: Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1969), nos. 2728-39; only one has a male protagonist. In all but one of the stories with a female protagonist, whether or not the incest was initiated by her, the plot focuses on her subsequent actions (often including infanticide) and her reluctance to confess. For further comment on misogyny in the exempla see Ruth Mazo Karras, "Gendered Sin: Misogyny in John of Bromyard's 'Summa Predicantium,'" Traditio 47 (1992): 233-57.
60. F. Tubach gives twelve entries for incest in his Index Exemplorum: A Handbook of Medieval Religious Tales, FF Communications 204 (Helsinki: Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1969), nos. 2728-39; only one has a male protagonist. In all but one of the stories with a female protagonist, whether or not the incest was initiated by her, the plot focuses on her subsequent actions (often including infanticide) and her reluctance to confess. For further comment on misogyny in the exempla see Ruth Mazo Karras, "Gendered Sin: Misogyny in John of Bromyard's 'Summa Predicantium,'" Traditio 47 (1992): 233-57.
61. A striking example of this type of exemplum is "De Amore Inordinato" (about Forbidden/Excessive Love), c. 13 in the Gesta Romanorum.
62. An exception in which the son is held responsible and plays a further role in the plot is the poem "Le Dit du Buef," ed. A. Jubinal in Nouveau recueil de contes, dits, fabliaux et autres pièces, 2 vols. (Paris: E. Pannier, 1839), I:42-72. The Pope prescribes a penance for the incestuous mother and son and their daughter: They are to wander the world sewn into cowhides for seven years. On the night when they meet again, all three die; miracles occur in the place of their death. But none of them are named, and no specific saint's cult is linked to this story. I do not know any account of a son deliberately initiating an affair with his mother, other than one in which the cynical protagonist is testing his mother, who has not recognized him, to see if it is true that women are inordinately lustful: For a Middle English version of this story, see Mary Macleod Banks, ed. An Alphabet of Tales, no. 710, 2 vols., EETS 127 (London: K. Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1905), 475-6. Here the mother admits the unrecognized son to her bed, but he does not make love to her; in the morning she dies of shock on discovering the truth, and he takes a vow of silence for the rest of his life.
63. An exception in which the son is held responsible and plays a further role in the plot is the poem "Le Dit du Buef," ed. A. Jubinal in Nouveau recueil de contes, dits, fabliaux et autres pièces, 2 vols. (Paris: E. Pannier, 1839), I:42-72. The Pope prescribes a penance for the incestuous mother and son and their daughter: They are to wander the world sewn into cowhides for seven years. On the night when they meet again, all three die; miracles occur in the place of their death. But none of them are named, and no specific saint's cult is linked to this story. I do not know any account of a son deliberately initiating an affair with his mother, other than one in which the cynical protagonist is testing his mother, who has not recognized him, to see if it is true that women are inordinately lustful: For a Middle English version of this story, see Mary Macleod Banks, ed. An Alphabet of Tales, no. 710, 2 vols., EETS 127 (London: K. Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1905), 475-6. Here the mother admits the unrecognized son to her bed, but he does not make love to her; in the morning she dies of shock on discovering the truth, and he takes a vow of silence for the rest of his life.
64. N. Davis, ed., Dux Moraud, in Non-Cycle Plays and Fragments, EETS S.S. 1 (London: Oxford University Press, 1970), 106-31; W. Heuser discusses five analogous exempla in "Dux Moraud, Einzelrolle aus einem verlorenen Drama des 14 Jahrhunderts," Anglia 30 (1907): 180-208. See also Richard L. Homan, "Two Exempla: Analogues to the Play of the Sacrament and Dux Moraud," Comparative Drama 18 (1984): 241-51.
65. N. Davis, ed., Dux Moraud, in Non-Cycle Plays and Fragments, EETS S.S. 1 (London: Oxford University Press, 1970), 106-31; W. Heuser discusses five analogous exempla in "Dux Moraud, Einzelrolle aus einem verlorenen Drama des 14 Jahrhunderts," Anglia 30 (1907): 180-208. See also Richard L. Homan, "Two Exempla: Analogues to the Play of the Sacrament and Dux Moraud," Comparative Drama 18 (1984): 241-51.
66. N. Davis, ed., Dux Moraud, in Non-Cycle Plays and Fragments, EETS S.S. 1 (London: Oxford University Press, 1970), 106-31; W. Heuser discusses five analogous exempla in "Dux Moraud, Einzelrolle aus einem verlorenen Drama des 14 Jahrhunderts," Anglia 30 (1907): 180-208. See also Richard L. Homan, "Two Exempla: Analogues to the Play of the Sacrament and Dux Moraud," Comparative Drama 18 (1984): 241-51.
67. The church did sometimes take the line that it was better not to separate an incestuous couple (see note 21). There is an interesting exception to this literary rule in Marguerite of Navarre's Heptaméron, c. 30, tr. P.A. Chilton (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1984). Here a mother sleeps with her son, knowing his identity; she has a daughter by him and sends her away, but the siblings meet and marry without knowing their true relationship. They are allowed to remain married in blissful ignorance, but their mother must do penance for the rest of her life. The narrator comments cynically that this is a punishment for her initial belief in her own virtue (it may also be a criticism of the laxity of the church).
68. Tubach does also cite exempla in which the incestuous woman dies without repenting (see note 30).
69. There are some incest stories in which the protagonist is not saved - notably the legend of Judas, believed to have been exposed as a baby, and later to have killed his father and married his mother: see Paull F. Baum, "The Medieval Legend of Judas Iscariot," PMLA 31 (1916): 481-632. This story clearly became attached to him because of his role as Christ's betrayer; such villainy was likely to have been preceded by other heinous crimes, such as parricide and incest, and no redemption is possible for him. Some incestuous fathers never repent and die violently (for instance Antiochus in Apollonius of Tyre); some incestuous mothers also die uncontrite.
70. C. Hieatt, trans., Karlamagnús Saga, cc. 36-7, 3 vols. (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1975-80), 1:117-8. See also R. Lejeune, "Le Péché de Charlemagne et la Chanson de Roland" in Studia Philologica: Homaneje offrecido a Dámaso Alonso, 3 vols. (Madrid: Gredos, 1961 ), II:339-71 ; and S. Martinet, "Le Péché de Charlemagne, Giselle, Roland et Ganelon," in Amour, mariage et transgression au moyen âge, ed. D. Buschinger and A. Crepin, Göppinger Arbeiten zur Germanistik 420 (Göppingen, Germany: Kummerle, 1984), 9-16.
71. C. Hieatt, trans., Karlamagnús Saga, cc. 36-7, 3 vols. (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1975-80), 1:117-8. See also R. Lejeune, "Le Péché de Charlemagne et la Chanson de Roland" in Studia Philologica: Homaneje offrecido a Dámaso Alonso, 3 vols. (Madrid: Gredos, 1961 ), II:339-71 ; and S. Martinet, "Le Péché de Charlemagne, Giselle, Roland et Ganelon," in Amour, mariage et transgression au moyen âge, ed. D. Buschinger and A. Crepin, Göppinger Arbeiten zur Germanistik 420 (Göppingen, Germany: Kummerle, 1984), 9-16.
72. C. Hieatt, trans., Karlamagnús Saga, cc. 36-7, 3 vols. (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1975-80), 1:117-8. See also R. Lejeune, "Le Péché de Charlemagne et la Chanson de Roland" in Studia Philologica: Homaneje offrecido a Dámaso Alonso, 3 vols. (Madrid: Gredos, 1961 ), II:339-71 ; and S. Martinet, "Le Péché de Charlemagne, Giselle, Roland et Ganelon," in Amour, mariage et transgression au moyen âge, ed. D. Buschinger and A. Crepin, Göppinger Arbeiten zur Germanistik 420 (Göppingen, Germany: Kummerle, 1984), 9-16.
73. See A. Micha, "Deux sources de la Mort Artu: II, La naissance incestueuse de Mordred," Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 66 (1950): 371-2; for further bibliography and discussion, see Archibald, "Arthur and Mordred: Variations on an Incest Theme," in Arthurian Literature VIII, ed. R. Barber (Cambridge, 1989), 1-27, esp. pp. 3-4. Victoria Guerin argues that Mordred's incestuous parentage was already known to Geoffrey of Monmouth, although he did not spell it out: See her comments in The Fall of Kings and Princes: Structure and Destruction in Arthurian Tragedy (Stanford, CA.: Stanford University Press, 1995), 8-15. In the synopsis that follows, I give Malory's version of the story; see The Works of Sir Thomas Malory, ed. E. Vinaver, 3rd ed. rev. P.J.C. Field, 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990), 41-56 and 1227-43 (pagination continuous).
74. See A. Micha, "Deux sources de la Mort Artu: II, La naissance incestueuse de Mordred," Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 66 (1950): 371-2; for further bibliography and discussion, see Archibald, "Arthur and Mordred: Variations on an Incest Theme," in Arthurian Literature VIII, ed. R. Barber (Cambridge, 1989), 1-27, esp. pp. 3-4. Victoria Guerin argues that Mordred's incestuous parentage was already known to Geoffrey of Monmouth, although he did not spell it out: See her comments in The Fall of Kings and Princes: Structure and Destruction in Arthurian Tragedy (Stanford, CA.: Stanford University Press, 1995), 8-15. In the synopsis that follows, I give Malory's version of the story; see The Works of Sir Thomas Malory, ed. E. Vinaver, 3rd ed. rev. P.J.C. Field, 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990), 41-56 and 1227-43 (pagination continuous).
75. See A. Micha, "Deux sources de la Mort Artu: II, La naissance incestueuse de Mordred," Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 66 (1950): 371-2; for further bibliography and discussion, see Archibald, "Arthur and Mordred: Variations on an Incest Theme," in Arthurian Literature VIII, ed. R. Barber (Cambridge, 1989), 1-27, esp. pp. 3-4. M. Victoria Guerin argues that Mordred's incestuous parentage was already known to Geoffrey of Monmouth, although he did not spell it out: See her comments in The Fall of Kings and Princes: Structure and Destruction in Arthurian Tragedy (Stanford, CA.: Stanford University Press, 1995), 8-15. In the synopsis that follows, I give Malory's version of the story; see The Works of Sir Thomas Malory, ed. E. Vinaver, 3rd ed. rev. P.J.C. Field, 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990), 41-56 and 1227-43 (pagination continuous).
76. See A. Micha, "Deux sources de la Mort Artu: II, La naissance incestueuse de Mordred," Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 66 (1950): 371-2; for further bibliography and discussion, see Archibald, "Arthur and Mordred: Variations on an Incest Theme," in Arthurian Literature VIII, ed. R. Barber (Cambridge, 1989), 1-27, esp. pp. 3-4. Victoria Guerin argues that Mordred's incestuous parentage was already known to Geoffrey of Monmouth, although he did not spell it out: See her comments in The Fall of Kings and Princes: Structure and Destruction in Arthurian Tragedy (Stanford, CA.: Stanford University Press, 1995), 8-15. In the synopsis that follows, I give Malory's version of the story; see The Works of Sir Thomas Malory, ed. E. Vinaver, 3rd ed. rev. P.J.C. Field, 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990), 41-56 and 1227-43 (pagination continuous).
77. Otto Rank, The Myth of the Birth of the Hero: A Psychological Interpretation of Myth, tr. F. Robbins and S.E. Jelliffe (New York: R. Brunner, 1957). Arthur and Mordred offer an interesting contrast to Lancelot and his illegitimate son Galahad, also the result of a night of ignorant lust. It seems ironic, and tragic, that Arthur's youthful slip should bring about the destruction of the king and his whole world, whereas Lancelot's night with Elaine, brought about by magic like the tryst between Uther and Ygrayne in which Arthur was conceived, produces the perfect Grail knight.
78. According to Fanni Bogdanow, much more attention is paid to Arthur's incest in the so-called Post-Vulgate Roman du Graal, which was known to Malory; see c. 6 of her study The Romance of the Grail (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1966), 138-55.
79. There is much explicit moralizing in the French and English versions of the Grail story, but no reference is made there to Arthur's sin (of course, Arthur does not go on the Grail Quest).
80. The familiar Arthurian material is interestingly reworked in Thomas Hughes's Senecan tragedy The Misfortunes of Arthur (1588), in which Mordred is openly known as Arthur's son, and Arthur regards his incest as the cause of the civil war that destroys his kingdom; see my comments in " 'The Price of Guilt' : The Incest Theme in Thomas Hughes's The Misfortunes of Arthur," forthcoming in Poetica (Tokyo). Among recent studies of the incest theme in Renaissance and Jacobean drama, see L. Bueler, "The Structural Uses of Incest in English Renaissance Drama," Renaissance Drama n.s. XV (1984): 115-45; B.T. Boehrer, Monarchy and Incest in Renaissance England (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992); and R.A. McCabe, Incest, Drama and Nature's Law 1540-1700 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
81. The familiar Arthurian material is interestingly reworked in Thomas Hughes's Senecan tragedy The Misfortunes of Arthur (1588), in which Mordred is openly known as Arthur's son, and Arthur regards his incest as the cause of the civil war that destroys his kingdom; see my comments in " 'The Price of Guilt' : The Incest Theme in Thomas Hughes's The Misfortunes of Arthur," forthcoming in Poetica (Tokyo). Among recent studies of the incest theme in Renaissance and Jacobean drama, see L. Bueler, "The Structural Uses of Incest in English Renaissance Drama," Renaissance Drama n.s. XV (1984): 115-45; B.T. Boehrer, Monarchy and Incest in Renaissance England (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992); and R.A. McCabe, Incest, Drama and Nature's Law 1540-1700 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
82. The familiar Arthurian material is interestingly reworked in Thomas Hughes's Senecan tragedy The Misfortunes of Arthur (1588), in which Mordred is openly known as Arthur's son, and Arthur regards his incest as the cause of the civil war that destroys his kingdom; see my comments in " 'The Price of Guilt' : The Incest Theme in Thomas Hughes's The Misfortunes of Arthur," forthcoming in Poetica (Tokyo). Among recent studies of the incest theme in Renaissance and Jacobean drama, see L. Bueler, "The Structural Uses of Incest in English Renaissance Drama," Renaissance Drama n.s. XV (1984): 115-45; B.T. Boehrer, Monarchy and Incest in Renaissance England (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992); and R.A. McCabe, Incest, Drama and Nature's Law 1540-1700 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
83. The familiar Arthurian material is interestingly reworked in Thomas Hughes's Senecan tragedy The Misfortunes of Arthur (1588), in which Mordred is openly known as Arthur's son, and Arthur regards his incest as the cause of the civil war that destroys his kingdom; see my comments in " 'The Price of Guilt' : The Incest Theme in Thomas Hughes's The Misfortunes of Arthur," forthcoming in Poetica (Tokyo). Among recent studies of the incest theme in Renaissance and Jacobean drama, see L. Bueler, "The Structural Uses of Incest in English Renaissance Drama," Renaissance Drama n.s. XV (1984): 115-45; B.T. Boehrer, Monarchy and Incest in Renaissance England (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992); and R.A. McCabe, Incest, Drama and Nature's Law 1540-1700 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
84. The familiar Arthurian material is interestingly reworked in Thomas Hughes's Senecan tragedy The Misfortunes of Arthur (1588), in which Mordred is openly known as Arthur's son, and Arthur regards his incest as the cause of the civil war that destroys his kingdom; see my comments in " 'The Price of Guilt' : The Incest Theme in Thomas Hughes's The Misfortunes of Arthur," forthcoming in Poetica (Tokyo). Among recent studies of the incest theme in Renaissance and Jacobean drama, see L. Bueler, "The Structural Uses of Incest in English Renaissance Drama," Renaissance Drama n.s. XV (1984): 115-45; B.T. Boehrer, Monarchy and Incest in Renaissance England (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992); and R.A. McCabe, Incest, Drama and Nature's Law 1540-1700 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
85. See Bueler, 129.
86. In this discussion, I follow the convention of referring to Shakespeare as the author of the play, but in fact there has been much critical debate about this: The first two acts are thought to be substandard, perhaps showing the hand of another writer. A quarto attributed to Shakespeare appeared in 1609, but the play was not included in the collected works until the 1664 edition of the Third Folio. Further, it is not clear how the play is related to George Wilkins's novel The Painful Adventures of Pericles, Prince of Tyre (1608), which was apparently based on a play by Shakespeare's company.
87. Where Shakespeare changes a name in the traditional story, I give the traditional name followed by Shakespeare's innovation.