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Reynard the Fox is a
literary cycle A literary cycle is a group of stories focused on common figures, often (though not necessarily) based on mythical figures or loosely on historical ones. Cycles which deal with an entire country are sometimes referred to as matters. A fictional c ...
of medieval allegorical Dutch,
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
,
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
fable Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular m ...
s. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the
Late Middle Ages The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Ren ...
, as well as in
chapbook A chapbook is a small publication of up to about 40 pages, sometimes bound with a saddle stitch. In early modern Europe a chapbook was a type of printed street literature. Produced cheaply, chapbooks were commonly small, paper-covered bookle ...
form throughout the Early Modern period. The stories are largely concerned with the main character Reynard, an
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe ...
,
trickster In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story ( god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwi ...
figure. His adventures usually involve his deceiving other anthropomorphic animals for his own advantage or trying to avoid their retaliatory efforts. His main enemy and victim across the cycle is his uncle, the wolf, Isengrim (or Ysengrim). While the character of Reynard appears in later works, the core stories were written during the Middle Ages by multiple authors and are often seen as parodies of medieval literature such as
courtly love Courtly love ( oc, fin'amor ; french: amour courtois ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing var ...
stories and
chansons de geste The ''chanson de geste'' (, from Latin 'deeds, actions accomplished') is a medieval narrative, a type of epic poem that appears at the dawn of French literature. The earliest known poems of this genre date from the late 11th and early 12th ...
, as well as a satire of political and religious institutions.Bianciotto, G. (2005). Introduction. In ''Le Roman de Renart''. Paris: Librairie Générale Française (Livre de poche) The trickster fox, Reynard, lives in a society of other talking animals (lion, bear, wolf, donkey, et cetera), making the stories a beast epic. The original copies were written in Old French, but have since been translated into many different languages. However, the tales of Reynard come from all across Europe and each retelling has details that are specific to that area. The tales, no matter where they take place, are designed to represent the society around them and include the structures of society around them such as a noble court. While the authors take many liberties with the story telling, not all of the satire is meant to be rude or malicious in intent.


Characters

] The main characters are anthropomorphic animals. The given names of the animals are of
Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old Hig ...
origin; most of them were in common use as personal names in medieval Lorraine. The characters of Reynard the Fox were based on the medieval hierarchy, and are treated as human throughout the tales. Though, since multiple authors wrote the text, characters' personalities often change. Throughout the stories, these characters often switch between human and animal form and often without notice. The characters who switch between human and animal form are often those of elite status, while the characters who don't change tend to be peasants. Often, the readers will find themselves able to empathize with Reynard. They find that the situations he is in are not often that different from their own lives, and this carries across the decades. The most common usage of animals as characters in tales has made it so the stories that touch on morally gray areas are easier to understand and accept. *''Reynard the Fox''. **The given name ''Reynard'' is from ''Reginhard, Raginohardus'' "strong in counsel". Because of the popularity of the Reynard stories, ''renard'' became the standard French word for "fox", replacing the
old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intel ...
word for "fox", which was ''
goupil Goupil may refer to: People *Eugène Goupil (1831–1896), French Mexican philanthropist and collector *Guillaume François Charles Goupil de Préfelne (1727–1801), member of the Council of Five Hundred *Jeanne Goupil (born 1950), French ...
'' from Latin '' vulpēcula''. Since Reynard has been written about in many different times and places across the world, it is not uncommon to see changes in his appearance to fit the natural surroundings of his story. His fur is often used as a camouflage, meaning if the story was written in a snowy landscape he will have white fur, or yellow fur for desert areas, in the wooded areas of forest he is depicted in red. *''Isengrim the Wolf'', see
Ysengrimus ''Ysengrimus'' is a Latin fabliau and mock epic, an anthropomorphic series of fables written in 1148 or 1149, possibly by the poet Nivardus. Its chief character is Isengrim, the Wolf; the plot describes how the trickster figure Reynard, the ...
*''Tibert the Cat''; see
Tybalt Tybalt () is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is the son of Lady Capulet's brother, Juliet's short-tempered first cousin, and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert / Tybalt ''"the ...
, Prince of cats *''King Noble the Lion''; see
king of beasts Cultural depictions of lions are known in countries of Afro-Eurasia. The lion has been an important symbol to humans for tens of thousands of years. The earliest graphic representations feature lions as organized hunters with great strength, str ...
*''Bruin the
Bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the No ...
'' *''Grimbard the Badger'' *''Baldwin the Ass'' *''Hirsent the She-wolf'' *''Kyward the
Hare Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The g ...
'' (also ''Coart'', ''Cuwaert''; a
coward Cowardice is a trait wherein excessive fear prevents an individual from taking a risk or facing danger. It is the opposite of courage. As a label, "cowardice" indicates a failure of character in the face of a challenge. One who succumbs to cowa ...
) *''Chanticleer the
Cock Cock or cocks most commonly refers to: * Cock (bird) or rooster, a male of any bird species * Cock (slang), a slang term for the penis Cock or cocks may also refer to: Names * Cock (surname) * Cocks (surname) Places * Cocks Glacier, Ross ...
'' *''Bellin the Ram'' *''Martin the Ape'', who had a son named Moneke that may be source of the word ''monkey''


In medieval European folklore and literature

Foxes in general have the reputation of tricksters in traditional European folklore. The specific character of Reynard is thought to have originated in Lorraine
folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, rangin ...
, from where it spread to France, Germany, and the
Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
.Briggs, Asa (ed.) (1989) ''The Longman Encyclopedia'', Longman, From the twelfth and thirteenth centuries there are around twenty-six different tales of Reynard the Fox. While there might have been more that were written these are the ones that survive to present day. Many of these are written by different authors and anonymous authors, so there was not just one person writing the tales. An extensive treatment of the character is the
Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intel ...
''Le Roman de Renart'' written by Pierre de Saint-Cloud around 1170, which sets the typical setting. Reynard has been summoned to the court of king Noble (or Leo), the lion, to answer charges brought against him by Isengrim the wolf. Other
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
animals, including Bruin the bear, Baldwin the ass, and Tibert (Tybalt) the cat, all attempt one stratagem or another. The stories typically involve
satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming o ...
whose usual butts are the
aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...
and the
clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
, making Reynard a peasant-hero character. The Catholic Church used the story of the preaching fox (as found in the Reynard literature) in church art as propaganda against the Lollards. Reynard's principal castle,
Maupertuis Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis (; ; 1698 – 27 July 1759) was a French mathematician, philosopher and man of letters. He became the Director of the Académie des Sciences, and the first President of the Prussian Academy of Science, at the ...
, is available to him whenever he needs to hide away from his enemies. Some of the tales feature Reynard's funeral, where his enemies gather to deliver maudlin elegies full of insincere piety, and which feature Reynard's posthumous revenge. Reynard's wife Hermeline appears in the stories, but plays little active role, although in some versions she remarries when Reynard is thought dead, thereby becoming one of the people he plans revenge upon. Isengrim (alternate French spelling: ''Ysengrin'') is Reynard's most frequent antagonist and foil, and generally ends up outwitted, though he occasionally gets revenge. An individual tale might span several genres which makes classification difficult. Tales often include themes from contemporary society with references to relics, pilgrimage, confession, and the crusades. There is debate over whether or how closely they related to identifiable societal events, but there is a growing camp that see direct societal connections and even implicit political statements in the tales. The stories are told in a way that make such associations easy to make but difficult to substantiate. Reynard stories translate difficult laws and legal concepts into common language, allowing people to both understand them and enjoy the legal predicaments and antics of the characters. The court operates just as those in medieval society; the king heard cases only on one specified date and all disputes were heard at once. Many versions follow Raynard's fights with Yesengrin, the fox's regular antagonist throughout the stories. Violence between them and other characters is a common thematic element. It is a matter of debate whether the violence shows animals simply acting as such or is meant to reflect the violence in society, especially the various wars that common folk endured at the time.


''Ysengrimus''

Reynard appears first in the medieval
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
poem ''
Ysengrimus ''Ysengrimus'' is a Latin fabliau and mock epic, an anthropomorphic series of fables written in 1148 or 1149, possibly by the poet Nivardus. Its chief character is Isengrim, the Wolf; the plot describes how the trickster figure Reynard, the ...
'', a long Latin mock-epic written c. 1148–53 by the medieval poet Nivardus, that collects a great store of Reynard's adventures. He also puts in an early appearance in a number of Latin sequences by the early-13th-century preacher Odo of Cheriton. Both of these early sources seem to draw on a pre-existing store of
popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
featuring the character.


''Roman de Renart''

The first "branch" (or chapter) of the ''Roman de Renart'' appears in 1174, written by Pierre de St. Cloud, although in all French editions it is designated as "Branch II". The same author wrote a sequel in 1179—called "Branch I"—but from that date onwards, many other French authors composed their own adventures for Renart ''li goupil'' ("the fox"). There is also the Middle High German text ''Reinhard Fuchs'' by Heinrich der Glïchezäre, dated to 1180. Roman de Renart which fits into the genre of romance. Roman de Renart gets it start using the history of fables that have been written since the time of Aesop. The romance genre of the middle ages is not what we think of the romance genre of today. The romance genre in the middle ages is a fiction telling of a character's life. The protagonist of the romance genre often have an adventure or a call to action this need is almost always there because of an outside force. During the 13th century, French was seen as a standard language, and many works during the Middle Ages were written in French, including Reynard the Fox. Romance was a very popular genre at the time, and many popular works from the Middle Ages fall into the romance genre. Pierre de St. Cloud opens his work on the fox by situating it within the larger tradition of epic poetry, the
fabliau A ''fabliau'' (; plural ''fabliaux'') is a comic, often anonymous tale written by jongleurs in northeast France between c. 1150 and 1400. They are generally characterized by sexual and scatological obscenity, and by a set of contrary attitudes ...
x and Arthurian romance:


''Van den vos Reynaerde''

A mid-13th-century Middle Dutch version of the story by Willem die Madoc maecte ('' Van den vos Reynaerde'', Of Reynaert the Fox), is also made up of
rhyme A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds (usually, the exact same phonemes) in the final stressed syllables and any following syllables of two or more words. Most often, this kind of perfect rhyming is consciously used for a musical or aesthetic ...
d verses (the same AA BB scheme). Van den vos Reinaerde and Reinaert Historie (referred to as R I and R II, respectively) are two poems written by two different authors with R II being a continuation of R I. With different writers comes different variations. This can best be seen with Reynard himself. While describing the same character the Reynard from R I has many different character traits of that in R II. While a finished and completed poem by itself, Van den vos Reinaerde does not have a set ending. Like Pierre, very little is known of the author, other than the description by the copyist in the first sentences: ''Madocke'' or ''Madoc'' is thought to be another one of Willem's works that at one point existed but had been lost. The ''Arnout'' mentioned was an earlier Reynard poet whose work Willem (the writer) alleges to have finished. However, there are serious objections to this notion of joint authorship, and the only thing deemed likely is that Arnout was French-speaking ("Walschen" in Middle Dutch referred to northern French-speaking people, specifically the
Walloons Walloons (; french: Wallons ; wa, Walons) are a Gallo-Romance ethnic group living native to Wallonia and the immediate adjacent regions of France. Walloons primarily speak '' langues d'oïl'' such as Belgian French, Picard and Walloon. Wallo ...
). Willem's work became one of the standard versions of the legend, and was the foundation for most later adaptations in Dutch, German, and English, including those of
William Caxton William Caxton ( – ) was an English merchant, diplomat and writer. He is thought to be the first person to introduce a printing press into England, in 1476, and as a printer to be the first English retailer of printed books. His parentage a ...
,
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
, and F. S. Ellis.


Chaucer

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
used Reynard material in the ''
Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' ( enm, Tales of Caunterbury) is a collection of twenty-four stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. It is widely regarded as Chaucer's '' magnum opu ...
''; in "
The Nun's Priest's Tale "The Nun's Priest's Tale" ( Middle English: ''The Nonnes Preestes Tale of the Cok and Hen, Chauntecleer and Pertelote'') is one of '' The Canterbury Tales'' by the Middle English poet Geoffrey Chaucer. Composed in the 1390s, it is a beast f ...
", Reynard appears as "Rossel" and an ass as "Brunel".


Early Modern tradition

In 1481, the English
William Caxton William Caxton ( – ) was an English merchant, diplomat and writer. He is thought to be the first person to introduce a printing press into England, in 1476, and as a printer to be the first English retailer of printed books. His parentage a ...
printed ''The Historie of Reynart the Foxe'', which was translated from ''Van den vos Reynaerde''. Also in the 1480s, the Scottish poet Robert Henryson devised a highly sophisticated development of Reynardian material as part of his '' Morall Fabillis'' in the sections known as ''The Talking of the Tod''. Hans van Ghetelen, a printer of
Incunabula In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pro ...
in
Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the state ...
printed a
Low German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle ...
version called ''Reinke de Vos'' in 1498. It was translated to Latin and other languages, which made the tale popular across Europe. Reynard is also referenced in the
Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old Englis ...
poem '' Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' during the third hunt.
Tybalt Tybalt () is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is the son of Lady Capulet's brother, Juliet's short-tempered first cousin, and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert / Tybalt ''"the ...
in
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's ''
Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...
'' is named after the cat in Reynard the Fox (and is called 'Prince of Cats' by Mercutio in reference to this).
Jonson Jonson is a surname, and may refer to: * Ben Jonson Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – c. 16 August 1637) was an English playwright and poet. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence upon English poetry and stage comedy. He popu ...
's play '' Volpone'' is heavily indebted to Reynard. With the invention of the printing press the tales of Reynard the fox became more popular and started to get translated and recreated in many different languages. The tales of Reynard don't follow the typical sense of reprinting as there is no clear chronological way in which the stories are told and they also have only slight changes. Many of the original pages to these stories have been lost to time so it is difficult to tell what the exact literary changes are. There aren't many literary changes to the works with the exception of the typical changes that are seen from the early days of the printing press. There are also slight changes to the wording that show modernization of the uses and differing orders of the words at times.While the changes might appear to be mistakes there they are not thought of as mistakes and are often kept in the modernization of the tales. There haven't been many attempts to better the works in during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries but they are not seen as often.The reason that the changes to the tales during the fifteenth century are not seen as a mistake is because at that time there were people specified to work in printing and the beliefs of the printers would not have made that many mistakes. In the early modern editions of Reynard the Fox the characteristics of the animals were based on things that the middle class reader wanted to see.


Modern treatment


19th century

''Reinecke Fuchs'' by
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
is a poem in hexameters, in twelve parts, written 1793 and first published 1794. Goethe adapted the Reynard material from the edition by
Johann Christoph Gottsched Johann Christoph Gottsched (2 February 1700 – 12 December 1766) was a German philosopher, author and critic of the Enlightenment. Biography Early life He was born at Juditten (Mendeleyevo) near Königsberg (Kaliningrad), Brandenburg-Pr ...
(1752), based on the 1498 ''Reynke de vos''. In
Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...
's 1889 '' The Twilight of the Idols'', Nietzsche uses Reynard the Fox as an example of a dialectician. German artist Johann Heinrich Ramberg made a series of thirty drawings, which he also etched and published in 1825. ''Renert'' ull original title: ''Renert oder de Fuuß am Frack an a Ma'nsgrëßt''''Renert'' at the ''European Literary Characters'' website.
Retrieved on 22 April 2015.
Retrieved on 22 April 2015. was published in 1872 by Michel Rodange, a
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
eois author. An epic satirical work—adapted from the 1858 Cotta Edition of
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
's fox epic ''Reineke Fuchs'' to a setting in Luxembourg. It is known to be a satirical mirror image of Luxembourg's social sphere after the turmoils of the ''
Luxembourg Crisis The Luxembourg Crisis (german: Luxemburgkrise, french: Crise luxembourgeoise) was a diplomatic dispute and confrontation in 1867 between France and Prussia over the political status of Luxembourg. The confrontation almost led to war between th ...
'', whereby the author transposed his criticism and social scepticism to the animal society in which his fox 'Renert' lives. Beyond that, it is insightful analysis of the different regional and sub-regional linguistic differences of the country, where distinct dialects are used to depict the fox and his companions.


20th- and 21st-century literature

Fedor Flinzer Fyodor, Fedor Alexis Flinzer (4 April 1832 in Reichenbach im Vogtland – 14 June 1911 in Leipzig) was an author, educator and one of the greatest Germany, German illustrators of the Gründerzeit, who was called Raphael of Cats (disambiguation ...
illustrated ''Reineke Fuchs'' (''Reynard the Fox'') for children. French artist Rémy Lejeune (Ladoré) illustrated ''Les Aventures de Maître Renart et d'Ysengrin son compère'', "Bibliolâtres de France" editions (1960). * British poet laureate
John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate from 1930 until 1967. Among his best known works are the children's novels ''The Midnight Folk'' and ''The Box of Delights'', and the poem ...
's poem "Reynard the Fox" (1920) concerns a fox hunt that pursues the title character, who "could outlast horse and outrace hound." * Louis Paul Boon's novel ''Wapenbroeders'' (Brothers in Arms, 1955) is an extensive reworking of the whole tale. * Reynard the Fox makes a short but significant appearance at the end of ''
The Magician King ''The Magician King'' is a fantasy novel by Lev Grossman, published in 2011 by Viking Press, the sequel to '' The Magicians''. It continues the story of Quentin Coldwater, interweaving it with the story of his high school crush, Julia, who learned ...
'', when he is accidentally summoned. * Reynard, a genetically modified part-fox, is a major character in John Crowley's novel '' Beasts''. * Reynard, in a variety of lives and names often containing "Guy," "Fox," "Fawkes," and "Reynard," is one of the leading characters in the Book of All Hours Duology by Hal Duncan, and is stated to be every incarnation of the trickster throughout the multiverse. * A human version of the character appears in David R. Witanowski's ''Reynard Cycle'' novels. * The fantasy detective Peter Grant crosses paths with Reynard in the novel '' The Hanging Tree'' by Ben Aaronovitch. *A version of the character appears in Laurence Yep's ''A Dragon's Guide'' series as a shapeshifting, computer-hacking ally of the dragon Ms. Drake. *In 2020, the Bodleian Library published a major retelling of the Flemish ''Reynard the Fox'' by Anne Louise Avery. See the ''Times Literary Supplement'' review here
Reynard the Fox by Anne Louise Avery; Aesop's Fables review
and ''Dutch Crossing: Journal of Low Countries Studies'' her
The Once and Future Fox: Reynard the Fox
* Swedish childrens comic Bamse added a reoccurring trickster antagonist named Reinard Räv (Reinard Fox) with a rivalry with Vargen (The Wolf) in 2006


Dutch antisemitic version (1937)

''Van den vos Reynaerde'' (Of Reynaert the Fox) was an
antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Ant ...
children's story, written by the Belgian-born Dutch politician Robert van Genechten, and named after the Middle Dutch poem. It was first published in 1937 in ''Nieuw-Nederland'', a monthly publication of the Dutch
Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...
's front, the NSB. In 1941, it was published as a book. The story features a
rhinoceros A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct specie ...
called Jodocus, somewhat akin to the Dutch word ''jood'' (which means " Jew"); and a donkey, Boudewijn, who occupies the throne. ''Boudewijn'' was the Dutch name for the contemporary real-world Belgian crown prince. In the story, Jodocus is an outsider who comes to the Empire and subsequently introduces new ideas that drastically alter the natural order. The land is then declared a "Republic", where "liberty, equality and fraternity" are to be exercised, presenting a
dystopia A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- "bad, hard" and τόπος "place"; alternatively cacotopiaCacotopia (from κακός ''kakos'' "bad") was the term used by Jeremy Bentham in his 1818 Plan of Parliamentary Reform (Works, vol. 3, p. 493). ...
n view of a socialist republic: "There was no one who kept to the rules of the race. Rabbits crept into foxholes, the chickens wanted to build an eyrie." Eventually, Reynard and the others trick and kill Jodocus and his colleagues. ''Van den vos Reynaerde'' was also produced as a cartoon film by Nederlandfilm in 1943, mostly financed with German money. While lavishly budgeted, it was never presented publicly, possibly because most Dutch Jews had already been transported to the
concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
s and the film came too late to be useful as a propaganda piece, possibly also because the Dutch collaborationist Department of People's Information, Service and Arts objected to the fact that the fox, an animal traditionally seen as "villainous", should be used as a hero. In 1991, parts of the film were discovered in the German ''Bundesarchiv''. In 2005, more pieces were found, and the film has been restored. The reconstructed film was shown during the 2006 Holland Animation Film Festival in
Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...
and during the KLIK! Amsterdam Animation Festival in 2008, in the Netherlands.


In films and television

Ladislas Starevich's 1930 puppet-animated feature film '' Le Roman de Renard'' (The Tale of the Fox) featured the Reynard character as the protagonist. The documentary film '' Black Fox'' (1962) parallels
Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
's rise to power with the Reynard fable. Initially,
Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fr ...
considered a movie about Reynard. However, due to
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
's concern that Reynard was an unsuitable choice for a hero, the studio decided to make Reynard the antagonist of a feature film based on
Edmond Rostand Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand (, , ; 1 April 1868 – 2 December 1918) was a French poet and dramatist. He is associated with neo-romanticism and is known best for his 1897 play '' Cyrano de Bergerac''. Rostand's romantic plays contrasted with ...
's '' Chanticleer'') but the production was scrapped in the mid-1960s, in favor of '' The Sword in the Stone'' (1963). Ken Anderson used the character designs for ''
Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is dep ...
'' (1973), such as the animal counterparts (e.g. Robin Hood, like Reynard, is a fox while the Sheriff of Nottingham, like Isengrim, is a wolf). In 1985, a French animated series, ' (''I Reynard''), was created that was loosely based on Reynard's tales. In it, the original animals are
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
humanoid A humanoid (; from English ''human'' and '' -oid'' "resembling") is a non-human entity with human form or characteristics. The earliest recorded use of the term, in 1870, referred to indigenous peoples in areas colonized by Europeans. By the 20 ...
animals (to the point that, primary, only their heads are that of animals) and the action occurs in modern
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
with other anthropomorphic animals in human roles. Reynard is a young mischievous fox with a little monkey pet called Marmouset (an original creation). He sets off into Paris in order to discover the city, get a job and visit his grumpy and stingy uncle, Isengrim, who is a deluxe car salesman, and his reasonable yet dreamy she-wolf aunt, Hersent. Reynard meets Hermeline, a young and charming motorbike-riding vixen journalist. He immediately falls in love with her and tries to win her heart during several of the episodes. As Reynard establishes himself in Paris, he creates a small company that shares his name which offers to do any job for anyone, from impersonating female maids to opera singers. To help with this, he is a master of disguise and is a bit of a
kleptomaniac Kleptomania is the inability to resist the urge to steal items, usually for reasons other than personal use or financial gain. First described in 1816, kleptomania is classified in psychiatry as an impulse control disorder. Some of the main ch ...
, which gets him into trouble from police chief Chantecler (a rooster) who often sends cat police inspector Tybalt after him to thwart his plans. The
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
fox epic was adapted into a 1989 German
television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
produced by
Manfred Durniok Manfred Durniok (2 May 1934 – 7 March 2003) was a German film producer, director and screenwriter. He produced 27 films between 1961 and 2003. He was a member of the jury at the 20th Berlin International Film Festival in 1970. Selected fi ...
and ZDF called ''Isegrim ind Reineke''; animation was outsourced to Shanghai Animation Film Studio in
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. Unlike other versions, this portrays Renart (Reineke) as quite villainous while Isegrim (who is not related in this version) just tries to keep his job safe from the fox's tricks. While Reineke always tricks and beats the wolf, usually some twist of fate or accident still prevents him from winning and keeps Isegrim's job safe in the court. The movie, which is actually 6 episodes of unrelated stories strung together, is available on DVD. ''
Le roman de Renart Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, a ...
'' is a 2005 CGI feature animated film made in Luxembourg in French with an English dub called ''Renart The Fox'' or ''The Adventures of Renny the Fox''. The TV show '' The Magicians'' includes a character who takes the name of Reynard, but bears no resemblance to the historical literary figure. In this version, he is a pagan trickster god who is a son of
Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld aft ...
.


In music

Reynard the Fox is the name of a number of traditional folk songs ( Roud 190, 358 and 1868). * '' Renard'' is a one-act chamber opera-ballet by
Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...
, written in 1916, with text by the composer based on Russian folk tales from the collection by Alexander Afanasyev. * Andy Irvine recorded the traditional Irish song "Reynard The Fox" with Sweeney's Men on their 1968 debut album '' Sweeney's Men''. *
Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Martin Lamble after their first gig.) They started o ...
recorded the traditional English song called "Reynard The Fox" (Roud 190) (collected by
Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...
in
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...
)"Reynard the Fox" at ''Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music'' website.
Retrieved on 22 April 2015.
on their 1978 album '' Tipplers Tales''. *
Martin Carthy Martin Carthy MBE (born 21 May 1941) is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, and later artists such ...
recorded the song "Reynard the Fox" (Roud 1868) on his 1982 album '' Out of the Cut''. *
Julian Cope Julian David Cope (born 21 October 1957) is an English musician and author. He was the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band the Teardrop Explodes and has followed a solo career since 1983 in addition to working on musical side pro ...
wrote a song called "Reynard the Fox" which he recorded on his 1984 album '' Fried''. * Brass Monkey recorded a version of the song collected by Ralph Vaughan Williams as "The Foxhunt" (Roud 190) sung by Martin Carthy on their 1986 album ''See How It Runs''. * Country Teasers wrote a song called "Reynard the Fox", which appears on the 1999 album '' Destroy All Human Life''.


Other references

*Dutch modern artist Leonard van Munster made an installation titled "The Surrender of Reynard the Fox". *Reynard and Reynardine are the basis for a major character in the webcomic ''
Gunnerkrigg Court ''Gunnerkrigg Court'' is a science-fantasy webcomic created by Tom Siddell and launched in April 2005. It is updated online three days a week, and eight volumes of the still continuing comic have been published in print format by Archaia Studios ...
'', a fox demon who can possess "anything with eyes", including living beings and, in his current form, a plush wolf toy. The comic also features Ysengrin, as well as the North American mythological Coyote. *Reynard is portrayed as a character in '' Fables'', as a smart and cunning fox who is loyal to Snow White and Fabletown, despite being one of the Fables segregated to the upstate New York "Farm" due to his non-human appearance. He initially appears as a physically normal fox, anthropomorphized only in his ability to think and speak as humans do; later, he is granted the ability to assume a handsome human appearance. *The French comic ''
De cape et de crocs ''De cape et de crocs'' is a French comic book swashbuckling series, created by writer Alain Ayroles and artist Jean-Luc Masbou. It is notable for its many references to classical culture and occasional nods to modern references. Synopsis ...
'' takes place in an alternative 17th century where anthropomorphic animals live among humans. One of the two main characters, Armand Raynal de
Maupertuis Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis (; ; 1698 – 27 July 1759) was a French mathematician, philosopher and man of letters. He became the Director of the Académie des Sciences, and the first President of the Prussian Academy of Science, at the ...
, is a French fox based on Reynard. His companion, Don Lope de Villalobos y Sangrin, is a Spanish wolf based on Isengrim (which is spelled Ysengrin in French). *Reynard the Fox appears as a enemy in the Japanese mobile game ''
The Battle Cats is a free-to-play tower defense game, tower defense video game developed and published by PONOS, PONOS Corporation for iOS and Android (mobile device platform), Android, which was originally released in Japan under the name ''にゃんこ大戦� ...
'' as "Raynard".


See also

*
Animal tale An animal tale or beast fable generally consists of a short story or poem in which animals talk. They may exhibit other anthropomorphic qualities as well, such as living in a human-like society. It is a traditional form of allegorical writing. An ...
* Coyote (mythology) *
Fabliau A ''fabliau'' (; plural ''fabliaux'') is a comic, often anonymous tale written by jongleurs in northeast France between c. 1150 and 1400. They are generally characterized by sexual and scatological obscenity, and by a set of contrary attitudes ...
* Fox spirit *
Foxes in popular culture, films and literature The fox appears in the folklore of many cultures, but especially European and East Asian, as a figure of cunning, trickery, or as a familiar animal possessed of magic powers, and sometimes associated with transformation. Literature, film, tele ...
* Kitsune * Króka-Refs saga *
Maleperduis Maleperduis (; ; ; ; ), also spelled Malperdy, is Reynard the Fox's principal hideaway in the medieval tales of this figure of legend. The first extant versions of Reynard's literary cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The nam ...
* Medieval literature *
Trickster In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story ( god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwi ...
*
Ysengrimus ''Ysengrimus'' is a Latin fabliau and mock epic, an anthropomorphic series of fables written in 1148 or 1149, possibly by the poet Nivardus. Its chief character is Isengrim, the Wolf; the plot describes how the trickster figure Reynard, the ...


Notes


Bibliography

* Bonafin, Massimo, ''Le malizie della volpe: Parola letteraria e motivi etnici nel Roman de Renart'' (Rome: Carocci editore, 2006) (Biblioteca Medievale Saggi). cf
here an abstract of this book
& cf
here a review of this book
unfortunately not yet translated in English. * Zebracki, Martin
Het grenzeloze land van Reynaerde
he_boundless_country_of_[the_FoxReynaert.html" ;"title="he_Fox.html" ;"title="he boundless country of [the Fox">he boundless country of [the FoxReynaert">he_Fox.html" ;"title="he boundless country of [the Fox">he boundless country of [the FoxReynaert Geografie 20 (2011: 2), pp. 30–33. * Johann Heinrich Ramberg (artist), Dietrich Wilhelm Soltau (author), Waltraud Maierhofer (editor): "Reineke Fuchs – Reynard the Fox. 31 Originalzeichnungen u. neu kolorierte Radierungen m. Auszügen aus d. deutschen Übersetzung des Epos im populären Stil v. Soltau , 31 original drawings and newly colored etchings with excerpts from the English translation of the burlesque poem by Soltau." VDG Weimar, Weimar 2016. .


External links


Le roman de Renart
In French.

by Henry Morley, 1889.


Full text of the Middle Dutch poem with notes


the journal for the International Reynard Society. * Anne Lair, "The History of Reynard the Fox: How Medieval Literature Reflects Culture," in: ''Falling into Medievalism'', ed. Anne Lair and Richard Utz. Special Issue of ''UNIversitas: The University of Northern Iowa Journal of Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity''



* [http://www.1day1photo.com/index.php?page=showbig&usr=szilvi&datum=2010-03-03&lang=eng Reynard The Fox in the Vondelpark 03 03 2010]
Reynard the Fox Collection at Mitchell Library, Glasgow
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reynard the Fox 1872 books Belgian folklore Dutch folklore French folklore French mythology French legendary creatures German folklore Medieval legends Medieval literature Medieval French literature Fables Mock-heroic poems Literature featuring anthropomorphic foxes Fictional tricksters Fictional con artists Fictional apes Fictional badgers Bears in literature Cats in literature Fictional chickens Fictional donkeys Lions in literature Rabbits and hares in literature Fictional sheep Wolves in literature Anthropomorphic animals Male characters in literature Male literary villains Comedy literature characters Humor and wit characters Works about royalty Works set in castles Forests in fiction