Ebook: Reynard the Fox

Medieval animal epics dealing with Reynard the Fox comprise an international body of literature which dates from approximately 1150 to 1500. These works are therefore of historical importance, but many of them also have great literary value. I have written the present book as an introduction to the major Reynard poems, which form a definite progression. The Latin "Ysengrimus" influenced many parts of the French "Roman de Renart" [Romance of Reynard], out of which the Dutch "Van den Vos Reynaerde" [Of Reynard the Fox] developed. With further help from the "Roman de Renart", "Van den Vos Reynaerde" was expanded into the Dutch "Reinaerts Historie" [Reynard’s History], which was reworked in Low German as "Reynke de Vos" [Reynard the Fox].

My book presumes no prior knowledge of medieval beast epics, being descriptive as well as analytical, but it also offers new interpretations. Rather than a summary of previous research, it is a statement of my own opinions, as grounded in previous research.