Instructions
This worksheet explores the connections between Marie de France's lai Bisclavret and the historical account of Martin Guerre. Read the questions carefully and provide thoughtful, detailed answers based on your knowledge of both texts. Consider the societal context, character motivations, and the interplay between law, folklore, and justice.
Part 1: Character Analysis - The Two Wives
Complete the following table to compare and contrast the wife from Bisclavret and Bertrande de Rols, the wife of Martin Guerre. After the table, answer the follow-up question.
| Attribute | The Wife of Bisclavret | Bertrande de Rols (Wife of Martin Guerre) |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Reaction to Husband's Secret/Absence | ||
| Motivation for Action (Betrayal/Accusation) | ||
| Method of Action | ||
| Relationship with the Community/Court | ||
| Ultimate Fate |
Follow-up Question: In your opinion, which wife acted more justifiably, considering the constraints and beliefs of her respective era? Defend your position with specific evidence from the texts.
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Part 2: Justice - Folk Law vs. French Justice
Answer the following questions to analyze the different systems of justice at play in the two stories.
- Contrast the system of justice that condemns Bisclavret's wife with the formal legal system that tries Arnaud du Tilh (the false Martin Guerre). Consider the following points in your answer:
- Who holds the authority to judge?
- What is considered valid evidence?
- What is the ultimate goal of the verdict?
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- "Folk law" often aims to reveal a person's inner moral nature, while a formal legal system aims to determine guilt or innocence based on specific actions. How do the physical punishments in both stories (the wife's disfigurement, Arnaud's execution) reflect these different judicial goals?
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Part 3: The Influence of Fairy Tales and Folklore
Explore the folkloric elements that shape these narratives.
- Marie de France's Bisclavret is a lai, a genre deeply connected to fairy tales. Identify and explain the function of three distinct fairy tale tropes within the story (e.g., magical transformation, the clever animal, symbolic punishment, etc.).
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- While a historical event, the story of Martin Guerre shares features with folkloric tales of impostors and doppelgängers. How does this theme of the "uncanny double" affect Bertrande de Rols? How does it challenge the community's and the court's understanding of identity and truth?
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Answer Key
Part 1: Character Analysis - The Two Wives (Sample Answers)
| Attribute | The Wife of Bisclavret | Bertrande de Rols (Wife of Martin Guerre) |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Reaction to Husband's Secret/Absence | She expresses love but is overcome by fear and disgust upon learning he is a werewolf. She feigns loyalty to extract the secret of where he hides his clothes. | After years of abandonment, she is pressured by her family to remarry. When the impostor arrives, she seems to accept him, either through deception, choice, or a mix of both. |
| Motivation for Action (Betrayal/Accusation) | Fear of her husband's animal nature and a desire to be with another man (a knight who had long courted her). Her motivation is primarily self-preservation and personal desire. | Her motivations are complex and debated. She may have initially been deceived, later realized the truth and acted out of conscience, or was pressured by others (like her uncle) over property disputes. |
| Method of Action | She conspires with her new lover to steal Bisclavret's clothes, trapping him in werewolf form. It is an act of premeditated betrayal. | She first lives with the impostor for three years, having a child with him. She later brings a formal legal accusation against him, risking her own honor and reputation. |
| Relationship with the Community/Court | She successfully integrates with her new husband. However, her inner corruption is revealed by the werewolf's instinctual attack, and the king's court turns against her. | Her relationship is fraught. The community is divided, with many testifying that the man is Martin Guerre. The court is initially sympathetic to the impostor, nearly ruling in his favor. |
| Ultimate Fate | She is tortured until she confesses, has her nose bitten off, and is exiled. Her female descendants are said to be born without noses, a permanent, inherited mark of her sin. | She is publicly rebuked and forgiven by the real Martin Guerre. Though legally cleared, she is left to live with a husband who resents her actions and the public shame of the affair. |
Follow-up Question: A strong answer could argue either way. One might argue for Bertrande, who operated within a rigid patriarchal system, facing abandonment and immense pressure. Her decision to use the legal system, even if it exposed her to shame, was a brave attempt to rectify a wrong. Conversely, one could argue Bisclavret's wife acted out of a genuine, if extreme, fear for her safety ("I'm so afraid of him I'm losing my mind"). In a world where werewolves are real, her terror is understandable, even if her betrayal is cruel. The key is to support the argument with textual details about their societal pressures and personal motivations.
Part 2: Justice - Folk Law vs. French Justice (Sample Answers)
- In Bisclavret, justice is administered by the king and his court, but it functions like "folk law." Authority rests with the noble lord (the king), who interprets signs and moral character. The key evidence is not testimony but a symbolic, supernatural act: the normally gentle wolf attacking only his wife and her new husband. The goal of the verdict is to reveal the inner truth (the wife's treachery) and restore the "natural" order where nobility of spirit (the wolf) is rewarded and corruption (the wife) is punished and cast out. In contrast, the French justice system in Martin Guerre is a formal, bureaucratic process. Authority rests with professional judges. Evidence consists of witness testimony, documents, and physical comparison. The goal is to determine the factual truth of a man's identity to uphold laws regarding inheritance, property, and marriage.
- In Bisclavret, the wife's punishment is physical disfigurement (losing her nose). This is a classic folk justice punishment that serves as an outward sign of her inner corruption and treachery. It is a permanent mark of her sin that is even passed down to her children, showing how folk law sees sin as a stain on the soul and bloodline. In Martin Guerre, Arnaud's punishment is execution for adultery and fraud. This reflects the goal of a formal legal system: to punish a specific, proven crime and deter others. His death resolves the legal crisis of identity and property, reinforcing the power and finality of the state's law, rather than exposing a purely moral failing.
Part 3: The Influence of Fairy Tales and Folklore (Sample Answers)
- 1. Magical Transformation: Bisclavret's ability to turn into a werewolf is the central magical element. It functions to test the loyalty of his wife and to separate his inner, noble self from a fearsome outward appearance. 2. The Loyal Animal: While a werewolf, Bisclavret acts as a "loyal animal" to the king. He is gentle and civilized at court, showing his inherent nobility despite his form. This trope highlights the theme that appearances can be deceiving and that true character lies within. 3. Symbolic Punishment: The wolf biting off the wife's nose is a symbolic punishment that fits her crime. She betrayed her husband out of superficial fear and desire; she is punished with a superficial wound that makes her ugliness external. It's a physical manifestation of her moral deformity, a common feature in fairy tale justice.
- The "uncanny double" theme creates immense psychological and social turmoil. For Bertrande, it presents a crisis: this man knows intimate details and is, by all accounts, a better husband and father than the original Martin. It forces her to question her own senses and memory. For the community and court, the impostor challenges the very basis of identity. In a pre-modern world without photographs or fingerprints, identity was socially constructed through recognition and memory. Arnaud's success proves how fragile that construction is. The court's struggle to tell the two men apart demonstrates the limits of human law in the face of such a fundamental, almost supernatural, deception.