Yale University Library Yale University Library Subject Guides - French Language and Literature

General

Bossuat, Robert. Manuel Bibliographique de la Littérature Française du Moyen Age. Melun: Librairie D'Argences, 1951.
----------. 2d Supplément, 1954-60. Paris:Librairie D'Argences, 1961.: SML Reference Z2171 B67 (LC)
A meticulous bibliography of medieval French literature and the tools for its study. The introduction lists general works (e.g. surveys of medieval literature, dictionaries, bibliographies, collections of texts, lists of dissertations). Part 1 covers L'Ancien Français and Part 2, Le Moyen Français. Both parts have sections for particular types of literature (Roman courtois, littérature didactique, poésie lyrique), which are in turn subdivided for individual authors and anonymous titles. Each entry lists major editions, translations, adaptations, and secondary studies, including books and articles. Head notes provide background information on many works and types of works and on the scholarly debates they have inspired. Indexes include authors, titles, and critics.
Continued by:
Vielliard, Françoise. Manuel bibliographique de la littérature française du moyen âge de Robert Bossuat. Premier supplément, 1949- 1980. Paris: Editions du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1986- 1991.: SML Reference Z2172 B68 1986 Suppl (LC)
: SML Reference Z6203 I585 (LC); Also available on CD-ROM opposite the SML Reference Desk.

A semi-annual record of articles in journals and collections covering many facets of medieval culture. Arranged topically, with subdivisions for specific countries. Includes sections on language and literature proper and on related subjects (e.g. folklore, hagiography, historiography, manuscripts).
Knudson, Charles A. and Misrahi, Jean. "French Medieval Literature" in Fisher, John H., ed. The Medieval Literature of Western Europe: A Review of Research, Mainly 1930-1960. New York: New York University Press, 1966.: SML Reference PN671 F57 (LC)
An evaluative survey of scholarly work on medieval French literature from 1925 to 1960, which identifies trends, outlines rival theories on important issues, and describes many specific titles. Covers the following topics: background and bibliography; chansons de geste; the troubadours; lyric poetry in northern France; romance; Le Roman de Renart; fabliaux; drama; Le Roman de la Rose; Rutebeuf; Marco Polo; fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

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Lyric Poetry

SML: Xx81 F884
A catalog of early French lyric poems and the manuscripts in which they appear. Part 1 lists the manuscripts alphabetically by repository, describes each briefly, and prints the incipits of its contents. Part 2 lists the individual poems themselves with references to the manuscripts and printed editions in which they can be located. Part 3 is an alphabetical author index. Cf. Spanke (no. 27a below).
Corrected, expanded and reorganized by:
Spanke, Hans. G. Raynaud's Bibliographie des Altfranzösischen Liedes neu Bearbeitet und Erganzt. Leiden: Brill, 1955.: Music Library: ML128 S698;S7

Linker, Robert White. A bibliography of old French lyrics. University, Miss.: Romance Monographs, inc., 1979. (Romance monographs, no. 31): SML Reference Z2174 P7 L55 (LC)
Constitutes a reworking and updating of the material Gaston Raynaud's Bibliographie des chansonniers français [no. 27 above] and subsequent corrections and additions to that work. In two parts, the first listing bibliographies of manuscripts, descriptions of major manuscripts, a general bibliography of lyrics published in anthologies, periodicals, etc., and works on types of lyrics and on metrics and music of the poems; the second part is the bibliography of the lyrics themselves, arranged by name of the trouvère, then by initial word (anonymous poems are listed separately by first word). There is a cross-index of Raynaud and Linker entry numbers. [Balay BE1200]

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Drama

Beach, Cecilia. French women playwrights before the twentieth century : a Checklist. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994.
SML Reference Z2174 Dd7 B43x 1994 (LC)

Arranged by century then by author's surname. Supplies author's names and pseudonyms, life dates, profession and activities, title of play(s) including genre, number of acts, and prose or verse (if known), collaborators, place and date of publication, and place and date of first performance, and locations in Parisian libraries or archives.

Continued by 72a below.

Lewicka, Halina. Bibliographie du Théâtre Profane des XV^e et XVI^e Siècles. Neuilly: Institut de Recherches et d'Histoire des Textes, 1972.
SML Reference Z2174 D7 +L43 (LC)

A thorough and convenient compilation of material on the early French secular drama, listing editions of the plays themselves and a wealth of scholarship about them. Chapter 1 covers bibliographies, play-lists and catalogs; Chapter 2 general works on the history of the theater; Chapter 3 collections of texts; Chapter 4 moralités; Chapter 5 sotties; Chapter 6 farces; Chapter 7 monologues et sermons joyeux. Some items are briefly annotated. There are indexes of authors, titles, editors, and critics.

Petit du Julleville, Louis. Histoire du Théâtre en France; Répertoire du Théâtre Comique en France au Moyen Âge. Paris: Cerf, 1886.
SML Reference Z2174 D7 P47 (LC)

A catalog of French comic plays composed before 1600. Part 1 lists extant plays, giving wherever possible the exact title, references to manuscripts and printed editions, number of characters, number of verses, date, number of known performances, a synopsis of the plot, and citations to relevant secondary sources. Part 2 lists plays whose texts have been lost. Part 3 is a chronological record of performances of comic plays based ultimately on reports in contemporary documents. A brief appendix includes "pièces non dramatiques (débats, disputes, dialogues, monologues) omitted from the main work".

Stratman, Carl Joseph. Bibliography of Medieval Drama. 2nd ed. 2 vols. New York: Ungar, 1972.
SML Reference Z5782 A2 S76 1972 (LC)

Although the bibliography is designed primarily for students of English medieval literature, Volume 2 contains full and useful chapters of the dramas of various continental countries, including France (pp. 675-778). The French section has subdivisions for bibliographies, collections, historical and general studies, Latin drama, and vernacular drama, both religious and secular. Editions and studies of particular importance are asterisked.

Continued by:

Murphy, Maria Spaeth. Bibliography of medieval drama, 1969-1972. Emporia, KS.: School of Graduate and Professional Studies of the Emporia State University, [1986].
SML Reference Z5782 A2 M874 1986 (LC)

Murphy, Maria Spaeth. Bibliography of medieval drama, 1973-1976. Emporia, KS.: School of Graduate and Professional Studies of the Emporia State University, [1986].

SML Reference Z5782 A2 M875X 1986 (LC)

Bibliography of medieval drama, Emporia, KS : School of Graduate and Professional Studies of Emporia State University, [1988].

SML Reference Z5782 A2 B53X 1988 (LC)

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Prose

SML Reference Z2174 F4 W65 (LC)
An alphabetical listing of early prose narratives in French, offering many cheerful facts about each, including date, source and author, the location of extant manuscripts, the dates and imprints of Renaissance and modern editions, and the best secondary studies to consult. The supplement expands and corrects the original entries in the light of subsequent scholarship.
Woledge, Brian. Répertoire des Plus Anciens Textes en Prose Française Depuis 842 Jusqu'aux Premi&graveres Années du XIII^e Siècle. Geneva: Droz, 1964.: SML: Hb4 125 79
Catalogs all recorded French prose texts to 1210, both literary and non-literary. Entries provide incipits, notes on manuscripts, printed editions, sources, dates, and authors, and references to scholarly commentaries. A substantial introduction traces the development of French prose during the period covered by the bibliography. Includes indexes of manuscripts, proper names and titles, and incipits.

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Epic and Romance

Gautier, Léon. Bibliographie des Chansons de Geste. Paris: Welter, 1897.: SML: Hf52 36b and X565 S897
Constitutes the final volume of the author's comprehensive history of medieval French epic (Les Épopées Françaises). Part 1 lists bibliographies and general criticisms of the genre. Part 2 is an alphabetical catalog of individual chansons de geste, noting editions and secondary studies of each. Thoroughly indexed.: SML: Xf389 A7 In8
An annual bibliography of books and articles on the matière de Bretagne. Each national branch of the Arthurian Society prepares a chapter documenting its country's contributions. Chapters include sections for texts, translations and adaptations; critical and historical studies; reviews; and theses for higher degrees. Entries are annotated in French or English.: SML: PQ201 S665
An annotated, serially published bibliography of current scholarship on early Romance epics. Covers new editions and translations, critical books and articles, reviews, work in progress, and reports of meetings. Appears irregularly.

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French Language and Literature

General

Lyric Poetry

Drama

Prose

Epic and Romance

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