it is generally known that the plot of the Middle Dutch animal epic Van den vos Reynaerde derives from Le Jugement, the Branch that most manuscripts of the Roman de Renart open with. Both the French fox and his Dutch counterpart are accused by the wolf and the cock at King Lion’s court. And just like Renart, Reinaert is arraigned three times, first by the bear, then by the cat, and finally by the badger, who leads him to court. They are both sentenced to death but manage to reconcile themselves with the king. Both leave the court dressed up as a pilgrim, beat up the hare and mock the king. In spite of these similarities the Dutch poet, a certain Willem, reshaped Branch I quite freely. This appears mainly, but certainly not exclusively, from the new way in which the fox escapes his execution. In Branch I Renart begs the king to allow him to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The king grants his permission. In the Dutch poem Reinaert escapes not through royal mercy but through his own rhetorical talents, put to use in a speech of several hundred verses. - [Author]

Language: English

0925-4757; DOI: 10.1075/rein.5.04bou