A Short History of French Literature

had its revenge; a satirical and didactic literature arose in the Fubleaux, the Romance of Reynard the Fox, and the second part of the Romance of the Rose. The prevailing taste is for moral allegory. The drama is still feeling its way, and prose asserts itself in the works of two great chroniclers, Villehardouin and Joiiiville. The 14th century is an arid waste. The social and intellectual edifice of the Middle Ages slowly falls to ruins; writers only repeat those who have preceded them, and replace imagination by ingenuities and technical juggleries. The theatre is not yet definitely constituted, and in prose one great name only is found, that of Froissart, the famous chronicler. In the 15th century, in spite of a vigorous effort in dramatic literature (mysteries, moralities, farces, and sotties), and the names of two great writers like Villon and Commines in verse and prose, the decadence that had manifested itself in the previous century continues in other branches. The minds of men were ripe to accept the new influences of the Renaissance. CHAPTER I EPIC POETRY Epic poetry in French literature is generally divided into three large groups:2 1 To give a definition of v/hat is meant by esprit gaulois, in a concise form, is an impossibility. In its most general aspect it may be described as a revolt against and a parody of authority and respectability, a wish to shock Mrs. Grundy, which too often results in coarseness and even obscenity. s This div...