Two Great Fable Authors from the Middle Ages-Marie de France and Ulrich Bonerius New Perspectives on the Reception of an Ancient Literary Genre

This study offers the first critical comparison between the fables composed by the Anglo-Norman Marie de France (late twelfth century) and by the Swiss-German Dominican priest Ulrich Bonerius (ca. 1350). Both poets drew heavily from classical sources, but both also injected personal comments and were quite creative each in his or her own ways. While there is no attempt here to argue that Marie might have influenced Bonerius, the comparison still allows us to recognize in many different ways how much both poets pursued parallel goals and were determined by similar ideals and values pertaining to the individual and human society. Especially Bonerius deserves greater attention and respect in medieval scholarship, as this comparative analysis illustrates quite dramatically. There are, of course, many similarities, but also significant differences between both poets, and yet they were undoubtedly masters in this genre of fables.