
Medieval LOLs: Solomon and Marcolf
<p>The foul-mouthed, mean-spirited peasant Marcolf was one of the most well-known literary characters in late medieval Europe. He appears in many poetic works from the 9th century onwards, but it’s in this dialogue with Solomon, printed in Antwerp in 1492, that we find him at his irreverent and scatological best as they engage in a battle of proverbial wisdom. Mary and Irina consider some of the more startling and perplexing of the riddles and discuss how the development of Marcolf’s earthy rejoinders tells a story about justice and political power.</p><p>Read the text here:</p><p><a href="https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/bradbury-solomon-and-marcolf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/bradbury-solomon-and-marcolf</a></p><p>Sign up to listen to this series ad free and all our subscriber series in full, including Mary and Irina's twelve-part series <em>Medieval Beginnings</em>:</p><p>Directly in Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://lrb.me/medlolapplesignup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://lrb.me/medlolapplesignup</a></p><p>In other podcast apps: <a href="https://lrb.me/medlolscsignup" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://lrb.me/medlolscsignup</a></p><p>Get in touch: [email protected]</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>
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Show Notes
The foul-mouthed, mean-spirited peasant Marcolf was one of the most well-known literary characters in late medieval Europe. He appears in many poetic works from the 9th century onwards, but it’s in this dialogue with Solomon, printed in Antwerp in 1492, that we find him at his irreverent and scatological best as they engage in a battle of proverbial wisdom. Mary and Irina consider some of the more startling and perplexing of the riddles and discuss how the development of Marcolf’s earthy rejoinders tells a story about justice and political power.
Read the text here:
https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/bradbury-solomon-and-marcolf
Sign up to listen to this series ad free and all our subscriber series in full, including Mary and Irina's twelve-part series Medieval Beginnings:
Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/medlolapplesignup
In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/medlolscsignup
Get in touch: [email protected]
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.