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Preface

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 May 2024

Edited and translated by
Brian Murdoch
Affiliation:
University of Stirling
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Summary

This collection offers translations of three tales, originally in verse, from medieval Germany. The first—whose author is anonymous—is the story of Duke Ernst (Herzog Ernst); the second, by the well-known and prolific writer Konrad von Würzburg, is that of Henry of Kempten (Heinrich von Kempten; the work is also known as Otto mit dem Bart); and the third, by an author of whom we know very little, but who names himself as Heinrich, is about a figure who is very well known, Reynard the Fox (Reinhart Fuchs). The three tales, two about knights and adventure and one about the trickery of a cunning fox, are all entertaining, but they are also all essentially political, and their messages are not exclusively medieval. The first two, although exciting and adventurous (and Ernst in particular travels and meets exotic and strange creatures), both show young men in conflict with the state, or its embodiment in the emperor, and both men learn the necessity of compromise in order to maintain the stability of the state. The third story first shows us the familiar fox up to his usual pranks but then becomes darker as the fox becomes the most untrustworthy adviser at the court of the lion king in a disturbing fable about the acquisition of power.

For help in the production of this book, several votes of thanks are due, first to the many students with whom I read and discussed these texts over a good number of years at the University of Stirling. In the production of this book, I owe a great debt of gratitude to the two readers, who made informed, detailed, and extremely useful comments; this is an aspect of academic work that deserves much credit and thanks (although in the time-honored but quite genuine formula, any remaining errors are my responsibility!). My professional and my personal thanks go, too, to the indefatigable Jim Walker, whose expertise, advice, and endless patience have meant a great deal to me over the many years we have worked together, when he has supported me in publishing books on both modern and medieval literature.

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Three Political Tales from Medieval Germany
<i>Duke Ernst, Henry of Kempten, and Reynard the Fox</i>
, pp. vii - viii
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
Print publication year: 2024

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  • Preface
  • Edited and translated by Brian Murdoch, University of Stirling
  • Book: Three Political Tales from Medieval Germany
  • Online publication: 09 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781805433071.001
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  • Preface
  • Edited and translated by Brian Murdoch, University of Stirling
  • Book: Three Political Tales from Medieval Germany
  • Online publication: 09 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781805433071.001
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Preface
  • Edited and translated by Brian Murdoch, University of Stirling
  • Book: Three Political Tales from Medieval Germany
  • Online publication: 09 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781805433071.001
Available formats
×