Prose novelettes of the thirteenth century: _Aucassin et Nicolette_ not quite typical--_L'Empereur Constant_ more so--_Le Roi Flore et la Belle Jehane_--_La Comtesse de Ponthieu_--Those of the fourteenth: _Asseneth_--_Troilus_--_Foulques Fitzwarin_--Something on these--And on the short story generally. CHAPTER V ALLEGORY, FABLIAU, AND PROSE STORY OF COMMON LIFE 89 The connection with prose fiction of allegory--And of the _fabliaux_--The rise of the _nouvelle_ itself--_Les Cent Nouvelles Nouvelles_--Analysis of "La Demoiselle Cavaliere"--The interest of _namea_ personages--_Petit Jehan de Saintre_--_Jehan de Paris._ CHAPTER VI RABELAIS 105 The anonymity, or at least impersonality, of authorship up to this point--Rabelais unquestionably the first very great known writer--But the first great novelist?--Some objections considered--And dismissed as affecting the general attraction of the book--Which lies, largely if not wholly, in its story-interest--Contrast of the _Moyen de Parvenir_--A general theme possible--A reference, to be taken up later, to the last Book--Running survey of the whole--_Gargantua_--The birth and education--The war--The Counsel to Picrochole--The peace and the Abbey of Thelema--_Pantagruel_ I. The contrasted youth--Panurge--Short view of the sequels in Book II.--_Pantagruel_ II. (Book III.) The marriage of Panurge and the consultations on it--_Pantagruel_ III. (Book IV.) The first part of the voyage--_Pantagruel_ IV. (Book V.) The second part of the voyage: the "Isle Sonnante"--"La Quinte"--The conclusion and The Bottle. CHAPTER VII THE SUCCESSORS OF RABELAIS AND THE INFLUENCE OF THE "AMADIS" ROMANCES 134 Subsidiary importance of Brantome and other character-mongers--The _Heptameron_--Note on Montaigne--Character and "problems"--Parlamente on human and divine love--Desperiers--_Contes et Joyeux Devis_--Other tale-collections--The "provincial" character of these--The _Amadis_ romances--Their characteristics--Extravagance in incident, nomenclature, etc.--The "cruel" heroine--Note on Helisenne de Crenne. CHAPTER VIII THE SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY NOVEL--I. 152 _The Pastoral and Heroic Romance, and the Fairy Story._