The Conte-En-Vers: Expanding Stith Thompson's X-File of Obscene Motifs
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Some cross-referencing to the general category of X "Humor concerning sex" already, of course, occurs in Stith Thompson's Motif-Index. For example, T160-190 "Consummation of marriage" as well as the entries for the foolish bridegroom under Thompson J1744 "Ignorance of marriage relations" and S176.1 "Mutilation: Sex organs cut off" are all followed by a cross-reference to the empty category X700 "Humor concerning sex." The X category does need to be developed so as to group together the most obscene motifs under precise headings with cross-references in most cases to already established categories. As a precise example, "La houppe" would have its primary listing as X744 "Sexual aids" but would also be catalogued under J1744 "Ignorance of marriage relations," T160 "Consummation of marriage," and T271.1 "Woman gets rid of impotent husband and remarries."The Conte-En-Vers: Expanding Stith Thompson's X-File of Obscene Motifs" (1997) by Catherine Grise |
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"The Conte-En-Vers: Expanding Stith Thompson's X-File of Obscene Motifs" (1997) is an essay by Catherine Grise, first published in Folklore, Vol. 108, 1997.
Abstract:
- "The conte-en-vers is a narrative dealing with bawdy subjects presented in verse form and with a certain elegance of expression that contrasts markedly with its licentious content. La Fontaine's Contes, provide material through which to explore bawdy stories that were circulating during the seventeenth century. Furthermore, La Fontaine's followers in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries afford a rich source from which to glean information about erotic folktales current in France during that period. The conte-en-vers genre is of special significance to folklorists because the authors incorporated current folklore motifs into their tales, making of them an important, though neglected, repository of folklore during three centuries. The conte-en-vers provides a corpus which facilitates the task of filling in Stith Thompson's blank category of obscene motifs, X700-749 "Humor Concerning Sex.""
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