Francois Villon: Complete Poems (Heritage) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0802071929 ISBN 13: 9780802071927

Publisher: University of Toronto Press, 1994

Synopsis

Francois Villon was the last of the great medieval poets, as important in his own, more limited, sphere as Chaucer or Dante. His fame surpasses that of any other medieval French lyricist in spite of the modest quantity, uneven quality, and often repellent subject-matter of his work. His poems are largely autobiographical, and are rich in their descriptions of thefts, fights, nocturnal prowling, imprisonment, and exile. However, as Barbara Sargent-Baur points outs, when Villon’s work is good, it is very good, indeed unforgettable. His two major works are the Lais, a series of bequests in anticipation of his prudent departure from Paris, and Testament, which is about his primary topic, himself.

There have been many translations of Villon’s work into many languages, including English, but this is the first edition of the whole of the corpus utilizing a re-reading of all the manuscript sources and presenting for each poem a single-source text with all emendations accounted for. It is also the first annotated English version based on the best-text principle and respecting both Villon’s meaning and his metrics. A modern edition of the French texts is presented beside the English on facing pages. In an extensive commentary, Sargent-Baur identifies the poet’s literary and historical allusions, as well as place-names, legatees, and biographical data.

About this title

About the Author

Barbara N. Sargent-Baur is a professor emerita in the Department of French and Italian Languages and Literatures at the University of Pittsburgh.

From the Back Cover

A modern edition of the French texts is presented beside the English on facing pages. In an extensive commentary, Sargent-Baur identifies the poet's literary and historical allusions, as well as place-names, legatees, and biographical data.

From the Inside Flap

'An accurate edition and readable facing-page translation of Villon's poems that we can recommend in good conscience to our students.'

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Toronto Press
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802071929
• ISBN 13: 9780802071927
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 360