Putting England in its Place, 9-10 March 2013
The Geography of Romance: England, English and the Romans d’Antiquité
What do we mean when we talk of ‘English’ literature in the later twelfth century, both in
linguistic and geographical terms, and what is the importance of ‘the French of England’ and
Latin in constructing such literature? This paper will seek to investigate this question with
reference to the 1160s and 1170s romans d’antiquité, works that occupy a liminal position
between England and France, and also between Latin and the vernaculars.
My paper will address this issue in two ways. Firstly, I shall consider the romans
d’antiquité alongside other ‘English’ literature to see if they share specific characteristics. An
important aspect of this will be the supposedly Angevin political leanings of the texts
(Patterson, 1987; Ashe, 2007). Secondly, I shall look at other re-tellings of similar classicallyderived material, locatable close to the ‘Angevin empire’ but in Continental France, to see
whether there are significant differences. This comparison will shed light on ‘English’ cultural
identities beyond the issue of linguistic affiliation, and enable us to think about the literary
location and allegiances of ‘England’ and its literatures in a more nuanced way.
Dr Venetia Bridges
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Centre for Medieval Studies
University of York