The Adaption and Manipulation of Hagiographic Structure in Ulenspiegel

Abstract

Since the 16th century Ein kurtzweilig Lesen von Dil Ulenspiegel appeared in Strasbourg, where a large interest in late medieval hagiographies was present, scholars have drawn connections between that genre and the text. The similarities, however, run deeper than borrowed motifs or coincidences: the rhythm of Eulenspiegel’s biography follows the same narrative structure as Saints’ Lives: the author introduces himself with religious vocabulary, Till’s childhood serves as a premonition of his later career, and the stories are connected either by similar themes or an implied “before – after” schema. All of these characteristics are also present in hagiographies. Even more interesting is the author’s self-consciousness: he takes pains to reveal an insincerity in his work and in doing so forces his readers to acknowledge an intentional use of traditional subject matter. In each case this awareness breaks the suspension of disbelief: the reader realizes that the author is using structures taken from elsewhere and sees the man behind the curtain.