French Literature Reviews - 2026

Valérie Fasseur, Cécile Rochelois (eds.), Ponctuer l'œuvre médiévale : des signes au sens
Medieval and Renaissance Studies

Bibliographic reference: Valérie Fasseur, Cécile Rochelois (eds.), Ponctuer l'œuvre médiévale : des signes au sens, Droz, collection "Publications romanes et françaises", 2016. EAN13 : 9782600019101, 720 pages, 39 euros.

The hermeneutic challenges of punctuation in medieval works: this is the central question explored in this volume. Linguists, philologists, literary scholars, historians, and musicologists engage in a dialogue to examine texts of various genres in both verse and prose, written in Old Occitan, Old French, Latin, Italian, and Middle English. As an art in its own right—an art of rhythm, breath, and silence, an art of graphic composition—punctuation, in both its sonic and visual dimensions, serves as a privileged manifestation of the art of reading. The construction of meaning depends heavily on the punctuation chosen by a copyist or an editor. Ever since the philological revival of the late 19th century, what level of discretion do modern editors have regarding the punctuation found in manuscripts, given its divergences from modern usage? In certain texts, to punctuate is to remove ambiguity, narrow down the reading, and betray the inherent polysemy of the work. Because it directly shapes meaning, punctuation choices reflect the intellectual stamp of the person transcribing the medieval work, much like a modern writer's style.

Table of Contents

Introduction, Valérie Fasseur and Cécile Rochelois

Part I. Giving Sight and Sound to Meaning

The Punctuation of the Bible in the 12th and 13th Centuries, Gilbert Dahan

The Art of Reading and Punctuation in John of Garland’s Ars lectoria Ecclesie (1234), Elsa Marguin-Hamon

Punctuation and So-Called "Musical" Notation: Reflections on Boundaries, Violaine Anger

Textual Punctuation versus Choral Punctuation in Noted Medieval Manuscripts: The Uncertainties of an Evolving Dialogue, Florence Mouchet

Punctuation and Reading Aloud: Aid or Obstacle?, Olivier Bettens

Rhythmic Punctuation? The Case of "Hélinandian" Octosyllables, Federico Saviotti

Textual Layout and the Punctuation of Latin Lyrical Rhythms, Pascale Bourgain

Pausa vel tractus: Punctuation, Breathing, and Silence in 13th-Century Parisian Latin Lyric Sources, Anne-Zoé Rillon-Marne

Noted Poetry of the 14th Century: Punctuation through Counterpoint?, Gilles Dulong

Three Little Dots: "Interpunctuation" in Medieval Inscriptions, Estelle Ingrand-Varenne

Part II. Copyists and Editors at Work

Vanishing Point: Punctuation in Fabliau Manuscripts and the Diversity of Practices in a 13th-Century Miscellany (Paris, BnF fr. 12581), Francis Gingras

Punctuation in the Manuscript of the Roman de Silence (Nottingham, WLC/LM/6), Danièle James-Raoul

Initials and Punctuation: The Case of the Ovide moralisé, Yan Greub

Di più minute divisioni: (Macro)textual Divisions in Laurent de Premierfait’s Des cas des nobles hommes et femmes, Simone Ventura

Variations in Punctuation within an Original Dual-Dispatch Charter Written in French in Liège during the 13th Century, Nicolas Mazziotta

A Few Remarks on the Punctuation of Old French Translations of Roman Law: The Example of Azo’s Summa Codicis, Hélene Biu

Punctuation and Its Variations in the Paris, BnF fr. 1553 Manuscript Miscellany, Olivier Collet

Punctuation Practices in Editions of the Roman des sept sages en vers. Version K of the Roman des sept sages and Formulaic Style, Yasmina Foehr-Janssens

Manuscript Punctuation or Critical Punctuation? A Plea for a Two-Tiered Edition, Cinzia Pignatelli

Punctuation Choices and Linguistic Interpretation: A Few Remarks, Thomas Verjans

Medieval Punctuation and Modern Editing: The Case of Provençal Chansonnier L, Maria Careri

Observations on the Punctuation of Critical Editions of Troubadour Poetry, Sergio Vatteroni

Punctuation and Textual Criticism: A Few Italian Examples, Paolo Trovato

Part III. Order and Disorder, Rupture and Continuity

When the Remedy Depends on Punctuation: Punctuable Units and Punctemes in Medical Prescriptions from the "Lists of Things" in the Secret of Secrets (ms. BnF fr. 1822, ch. XLVI-LIIII), Christine Silvi

Punctuating William of Moerbeke’s Geomancy, Arnaud Sibille

The Presence and Absence of Medieval and Modern Punctuation in Certain Late Medieval English Texts: The Obfuscation of Meaning, Stephen Morrison

Compilation, Quotation, Distortions: Perplexities Surrounding Punctuation in the Work of Aymeric de Peyrac, c. 1400, Paul Mironneau

Question Marks and Play in the Manuscript of the Play of Adam (BM Tours, 927): A Few Readings, Véronique Dominguez

Who Is Speaking? The Punctuation of Dialogue in Selected Texts by Eustache Deschamps, Laetitia Tabard

Punctuation and Dramatic Tension: The Example of Editions of the Song of Aspremont, Blandine Longhi

The Punctuation of the Roman de la Rose and Guillaume de Dole: Remarks on Jean Renart’s Style, Vanessa Obry

Punctuating Nonsense Poetry: The Case of Fatrasies, Jean-Marie Fritz

Long temps ne puis en ce point remanoir: The Punctuation of Charles d’Orléans' Poems, Christopher Lucken

Against the Mechanical Editing of Medieval Texts: When Punctuation Becomes an Argument for Intellectual Property, Max Engammare

A Modernist Perspective, Isabelle Chol and Isabelle Serça

Bibliographical Orientation

Index of Ancient, Medieval, and Modern Works and Authors

Index of Manuscripts

This volume gathers contributions examining the hermeneutic challenges of punctuation in medieval works across multiple languages and genres, in both verse and prose. Linguists, philologists, literary scholars, historians, and musicologists engage in a dialogue to examine texts of various genres. The construction of meaning depends heavily on the punctuation chosen by a copyist or an editor, and modern editors navigate questions of discretion regarding manuscript punctuation given its divergences from modern usage.

The volume brings together researchers from diverse fields to examine sources written in Old Occitan, Old French, Latin, Italian, and Middle English. Readers interested in manuscript studies, textual criticism, and medieval editorial practices may find this collective examination relevant to their inquiries into the history of writing systems and textual transmission.