The Great Testament (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: François de Montcorbier
- First Published: 1489
- Type of Work: Poetry
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric poetry
- Subjects: France or French people, Crime or criminals, Poetry or poets, Paris, Death or dying, Fifteenth century, Middle Ages
Critical Evaluation:
François Villon was a poet of the first order. In his themes and poetic forms, his poetry is characteristically medieval, although many critics consider that the personal element in his poetry gives it a timeless quality. In The Great Testament, Villon’s art reaches its full maturity. His mastery of conventional medieval versification is evident in the use of complex rhyme schemes and verse forms that include the ballade, the rondeau, and the octave (an eight-line stanza). Octaves form the central body of the poem. The ballade, which demands...
[The entire page is 2123 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
