Medieval Poetic and Narrative Forms:

Some Guides to Interpretation and Paper Ideas

Lyric Poems: "Gentilesse," "Merciless Beaute," "Against Women Unconstant," "To Rosemounde," "Trouthe," "Lak of Stedfastnesse," "Chaucer's Words unto Adam hys own Scriyven," "Envoy a Bukton," "Can vei la lauzeta mover"

The Dream Vision: e.g., Chaucer's "Parliament of Foules" and "Boke of the Duchess," and the Pearl-Poet's "Pearl."

The Breton Lai and its Cousins: e.g., Lay le Fresne, Bisclavret, Guigemar, Lanval, Yonec, Milun, Les Dous Amanz, Equitan, Chaitivel, Eliduc, Laustic, Chevrefoil, Franklin's Tale, and many of the works of Guy de Maupassant.

Alliterative Poems: Beowulf (also "epic"), "The Battle of Maldon" (also "epic"), Caedmon's hymn, "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" (also "romance"), "Pearl" (also "dream vision"), "St. Erkenwald" (also "saint's legend"), "Cleanness," "Patience," "The Vision of Piers Plowman" (also "dream vision).

The Saint's Legend and its Cousins: e.g., Saints Katherine, Margaret, and Mary Magdalen, Margery Kemp, Second Nun's Tale, Prioress's Tale, Clerk's Tale, Man of Law's Tale, Lay le Fresne,

Romance: Marie de France's Breton lais (a sub-genre), the "Wife of Bath's Tale" (an Arthurian romance of the Gawain-group), "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" (also "alliterative verse"), Malory's Morte Darthur, the French Arthurian romances of the "Vulgate Cycle" (Suite du Merlin, Prose Lancelot and Prose Tristan, Queste del Saint Graal, and La Mort le roi Artu).