''Tyolet'' is an anonymous

Breton lai A Breton lai, also known as a narrative lay or simply a lay, is a form of medieval French and English romance literature. Lais are short (typically 600–1000 lines), rhymed tales of love and chivalry, often involving supernatural and fairy-wor ...

that takes place in the realm of

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

. It tells the tale of a naïve young

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

who wins the hand of a maiden after a magical adventure.

Composition and manuscripts

The actual date of composition is estimated around the beginning of the 13th century. The lai of ''Tyolet'' is contained in one existing manuscript: Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, nouv. acq. fr. 1104, f. 15v, col. 1. This manuscript dates from the end of the 13th or beginning of the 14th century. The text is written in

Francien Francien may refer to: * Francien language * Francien, feminine given name, Dutch version of the name Francine, borne by: ** Francien de Zeeuw Sub-lieutenant, Luitenant ter zee der 2de klasse Francien de Zeeuw (Terneuzen, 19 May 1922 – Midde ...

with some

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

and

Picard Picard may refer to: Places * Picard, Quebec, Canada * Picard, California, United States * Picard (crater), a lunar impact crater in Mare Crisium People and fictional characters * Picard (name), a list of people and fictional characters with th ...

influences.

Synopsis

''Tyolet'' tells the story of a young man who lives in the forest with his widowed mother. Thanks to powers granted to him by a

fairy A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...

when he was a child, he can summon animals only by whistling. This ability is very useful, as it enables him to put food on the table. One day out in the forest, Tyolet sees a

stag A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) a ...

and whistles so that it will approach. However, it does not come, so he follows it. They come to a river where Tyolet sees another deer. The stag crosses the water, so instead Tyolet summons the second deer and kills it. Meanwhile, the stag across the river has transformed into a knight on horseback. Astounded, Tyolet begins to ask the knight rather naïve questions regarding his weapons and armor. Having been sheltered his entire life, Tyolet has never seen a knight and thinks it is a wild animal. He addresses the knight as "knight beast" (

Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th [2-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...

''chevalier beste'')), a name which he later applies to himself. The knight answers all of Tyolet's questions and tells him to return to his mother who will present him with his father's armor. This happens exactly as the knight says, and Tyolet sets out for

's castle. Once there, Arthur invites Tyolet to dinner, but a maiden dressed in white enters into the hall. She announces that she is the daughter of the king of Logres, and she has come to court to find a husband. She is followed by a white hound. She tells the court that whoever chooses to follow the white hound will find a white stag guarded by seven lions. If the knight is able to bring back the stag's foot, she will marry him. Many knights attempt this feat, but they are all stopped at a perilous river that they fear to cross in spite of the hound. Unlike the others, however, Tyolet follows the hound all the way to the stag. He whistles, and when the stag approaches, he cuts off its foot. The lions then attack Tyolet, but he fends them off. At this point, a knight arrives on the scene. Tyolet tells his story to the stranger who then duels Tyolet. Exhausted from fighting the lions, Tyolet is unable to defeat the knight; and the knight leaves him for dead, taking the foot of the stag with him back to court. Back at court, the knights and the maiden are suspicious of the newcomer and wait a week for the hound to return. He eventually does, and it leads Sir Gauvain back to the body of Tyolet. Gauvain calls for a doctor and returns to court. Healed, Tyolet arrives shortly afterwards. When asked, the knight continues to declare that he is the rightful claimant, but he is eventually forced to reveal the truth when he admits that he did not kill the lions or cut off the stag's foot. He begs forgiveness of Tyolet, who grants it. Tyolet and the maiden marry and live happily ever after.

Analysis and significance

Structure

The poem can be broken down into the following sections: # Prologue (vv. 1-36) # Tyolet in the forest (vv. 37-274) # Tyolet at the court of King Arthur (vv. 275-364) # The knights undertake the task (vv. 365-410) # Tyolet's adventure (vv. 411-488) # The imposter goes to court (vv. 489-574) # Gauvain finds Tyolet who returns (vv.575-692) # Tyolet marries the princess (vv. 693-703) # Epilogue (v. 704)

Allusions

The beginning of this lai shares many elements with

Chrétien de Troyes Chrétien de Troyes (; ; 1160–1191) was a French poet and trouvère known for his writing on King Arthur, Arthurian subjects such as Gawain, Lancelot, Perceval and the Holy Grail. Chrétien's chivalric romances, including ''Erec and Enide'' ...

' '' Le Conte du Graal''. Tyolet's childhood with his widowed mother in the forest mimics that of

Perceval Perceval (, also written Percival, Parzival, Parsifal), alternatively called Peredur (), is a figure in the legend of King Arthur, often appearing as one of the Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Tro ...

. Like Tyolet, Perceval has been sheltered from civilization and stumbles upon a knight. While Tyolet mistakes the knight for a beast, Perceval mistakes it for an

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

. Both heroes ask for a detailed explanation of all the knight's armor, and both heroes desire nothing more than to become a knight themselves. They both then go to King Arthur's court. A connection also exists between ''Tyolet'' and the second continuation to ''Perceval'' by

Wauchier de Denain Wauchier de Denain (also spelled "Gauchier de Donaing") was a French writer and translator in the langue d'oïl, active at the start of the 13th century. He is most notable for writing the first and second continuations of Chrétien de Troyes' '' ...

. In this episode, Perceval tries to win the love of a lady by following a white hound and cutting off the head of a white stag. Several lais feature knights that transform into animals. In

Marie de France Marie de France (floruit, fl. 1160–1215) was a poet, likely born in France, who lived in England during the late 12th century. She lived and wrote at an unknown court, but she and her work were almost certainly known at the royal court of Kin ...

Bisclavret "Bisclavret" ("The Werewolf") is one of the twelve Lais of Marie de France written in the 12th century. Originally written in French, it tells the story of a Lord who is trapped in lupine form by the treachery of his wife. The tale shares a comm ...

and the anonymous Melion, a knight turns into a werewolf; in Marie's

Yonec "Yonec" is one of the ''Lais of Marie de France'', written in the twelfth century by the French poet known only as Marie de France. ''Yonec'' is a Breton lai, a type of narrative poem. The poem is written in the Anglo-Norman dialect of Old French i ...

, a knight turns into a hawk. Tests to prove prowess and win a maiden's hand are also common in lais, such as Doon and Les Deux Amants. The ability to summon an animal by whistling is a trait associated with the character Auberon in the medieval ''

Huon de Bordeaux Huon of Bordeaux is the title character of a 13th-century French epic poem with romance elements. ''Huon of Bordeaux'' The poem tells of Huon, a knight who unwittingly kills Charlot, the son of Emperor Charlemagne. He is given a reprieve from ...

''.

Symbolism

The forest can represent the uncivilized world or the world far from the court. It also symbolizes femininity.Burgess 69 The color white appears many times in the text and can symbolize the purity of the maiden and her future union with Tyolet: the white horse, the white hound, the white stag, the paleness of the lady.

References

{{reflist

External links

Tyolet
in English translation alongside Old French verse Anonymous lais Arthurian literature in French French poems Old French texts