Strategies of Interpretation in French and Italian exempla

ABSTRACT Exempla were short narratives included in late medieval sermons to convey religious teachings and entertain the audience. These stories, which often recounted miracles and incredible events, first circulated in Latin collections and were later incorporated into other works and miscellanies. When translated from Latin into vernacular, these stories were often reshaped in original ways. This paper considers two popular exempla from the Vitae Patrum and analyses the interpretations thereof in miniatures, particularly manuscript Hamilton 390, sermons, anonymous miscellanies, Cavalca’s translation of the Vitae, and the French collection Vie des Pères. It argues that the adaptability of exempla enabled interpreters to read and translate these stories and thus offer different interpretations and authorial sensibilities, to appeal to their target audiences.