In the skin of a beast: sovereignty and animality in medieval France

244 Pages·2018·5.876 MB·English

by  McCracken, Peggy

in the skin of a beast

in the skin of a beast
Sovereignty and Animality
in Medieval France
peggy mccracken
the university of chicago press
chicago and london
The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637
The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London
© 2017 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner
whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in
critical articles and reviews. For more information, contact the University of
Chicago Press, 1427 East 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637.
Published 2017
Printed in the United States of America
26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 1 2 3 4 5
isbn- 13: 978- 0- 226- 45892- 2 (cloth)
isbn- 13: 978- 0- 226- 45908- 0 (e- book)
doi: 10.7208/chicago/9780226459080.001.0001
The University of Chicago Press gratefully acknowledges the generous support of
the University of Michigan toward the publication of this book.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: McCracken, Peggy, author.
Title: In the skin of a beast : sovereignty and animality in medieval
France / Peggy McCracken.
Description: Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2017. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016044826| isbn 9780226458922 (cloth : alk. paper) |
isbn 9780226459080 (e-book)
Subjects: LCSH: French literature—To 1500—History and criticism. | Hides and
skins in literature. | Human-animal relationships in literature. | Sovereignty in
literature. | Hides and skins—Symbolic aspects—France—History. | Animals—
Symbolic aspects—France—History. | Hides and skins—Political aspects—
France—History. | Human-animal relationships—Political aspects—France—
History.
Classification: lcc pq155.h43 m33 2017 | ddc 840.9/001—dc23 lc record
available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016044826
♾ This paper meets the requirements of ansi/niso z39.48– 1992
(Permanence of Paper).
contents
List of Color Plates vii
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
1. Wearing Animals: Skin, Survival, and Sovereignty 12
2. The Social Wolf: Domestication, Affect, and Social Contract 37
3. Becoming- Animal, Becoming- Sovereign: Skin, Heraldry,
and the Beast 68
4. Snakes and Women: Recognition, Knowledge,
and Sovereignty 97
5. Becoming- Human, Becoming- Sovereign: Gender, Genealogy,
and the Wild Man 126
Epilogue 157
Notes 163
Bibliography 191
Index 213
v

color plates
Following page 94
1. Master of Thomas of Maubeuge, King Noble’s Court, illumination from
Le roman de Renart (fourteenth century)
2. How Adam and Eve decided to do penance, illumination from Lutwin,
Eva und Adam (fifteenth century)
3. God gives Adam and Eve garments of skin, illumination from La bible
historiale (1372)
4. Dido founding Carthage, illumination from Giovanni Boccaccio, De
mulieribus claris (ca. 1460)
5. Boucicaut Master, Pierre Salmon presenting his book to Charles VI, il-
lumination from Pierre Salmon, Réponses à Charles VI (ca. 1409)
6. Yvain’s battle with Harpin de la Montagne, illumination from Chrétien
de Troyes, Le chevalier au lion (thirteenth century)
7. Yvain saves the lion from a dragon, illumination from Chrétien de
Troyes, Le chevalier au lion (thirteenth century)
8. Yvain saves the lion from a dragon, illumination from Chrétien de
Troyes, Le chevalier au lion (1300– 1350)
9. Boucicaut Master, The story of the Fall, illumination from Giovanni
Boccaccio, Des cas des nobles hommes et femmes (1413– 15)
10. Boucicaut Master, The temptation of Eve, illumination from Giovanni
Boccaccio, Des cas des nobles hommes et femmes (1413– 15) (detail)
11. Boucicaut Master, God creates Adam, illumination from Des cas des
nobles hommes et femmes (1413– 15) (detail)
12. The temptation of Eve, illumination from Rudolf von Ems, Barlaam
und Josaphat (1469)
13. How Adam and Eve were betrayed by the serpent, illumination from
Lutwin, Eva und Adam (fifteenth century)
vii
viii color plates
14. Eve and Seth encounter the snake, illumination from Lutwin, Eva und
Adam (fifteenth century)
15. A contented wild man, illumination from “La ballade d’uns home sau-
vage estant en le creux d’un arbre” (fifteenth century)
16. Attributed to the Getty Froissart Master, Le bal des Ardents, from Jean
Froissart, Chroniques (ca. 1480)
acknowledgments
This book has been fun to write because a lot of people were willing to talk
with me about it, and it is a pleasure to thank some of my many gener-
ous readers and interlocutors here. First and foremost, heartfelt thanks to
Kathryn Babayan, Artemis Leontis, Yopie Prins, and Elizabeth Wingrove, fel-
low members of the world’s greatest writing group. Kathryn, Artemis, Yopie,
and Liz read every word between these covers at least twice; they challenged
me to think harder and better, and their advice improved my book immeasur-
ably. Valerie Traub read the entire manuscript with her characteristic rigor
and generosity, and she helped me to make my argument sharper and more
precise. Don Herzog also read the whole thing as I was writing and pushed me
to think more carefully about sovereignty. Jennifer Nelson’s scrutiny of my
final manuscript saved me from several errors and helped me think further
about my claims. Virginie Greene and Rebecca Zorach read a rough mapping
of my project for the Press and gave me advice that helped to shape it. William
Burgwinkle and Simon Gaunt were Press readers for the final manuscript and
I am grateful to both for valued feedback and some important corrections.
Lauren Benjamin, Clara Bosak- Schroeder, Zeynep Gürsel, Adrienne Jacaruso,
Sarah Linwick, and Eliza Mathie all read chapter drafts and offered patient
and welcome advice. Geneviève Creedon has long been a crucial interlocutor
in animal studies.
Catherine Brown, Gillian Feeley- Harnick, Simon Gaunt, Miranda Griffin,
Sarah Kay, Elizabeth Morrison, Eleonora Stoppino, and Valerie Traub sug-
gested ideas that became important for my analysis. E. Jane Burns inspired
my thinking about snake women. Sarah Kay and I have been working in tan-
dem on medieval animals over the past few years and it has been valuable and
fun to share questions and insights. Sharon Kinoshita, Catherine Sanok, and
Zrinka Stahuljak have been my interlocutors throughout, and conversations
ix