Niklas Von Wyle: Guiscardus und Sigismunda

Abstract

The second of Niklas von Vlyle's Translatzen printed in 1478 is a German version of the First Tale of the Fourth Day from Boccaccio's Decameron, made from a Latin translation by Leonardo Bruni. This thesis reproduces the tale of Guiscardus and Sigismunda in these two versions in Chapter 8, and in the preceding chapters provides an introduction to it. Two manuscripts and three prints of Brunt's version were available to me, and in Chapter 1 I demonstrate their relationship, concluding that the Mainz print of 1469 is the most suitable for my edition. Chapter 2 is a critical analysis of the tale, which recounts the vengeance exacted by Tancredus upon his daughter Sigismunda because of her love-affair with Guiscardus. Niklas' aim was to imitate his Latin sources closely, and Chapter 3 shows by comparison of the German and Latin the extent to which he achieved this aim and the extent to which he subordinated it to other considerations. Versions of the tale by Eyb and Schlüsselfelder are compared in Chapter 4. These translations, and the Italian original, also appear in my edition, Eyb writes in clearer, more natural prose but has, by his overriding moral purpose, diminished the literary quality of the tale. There is some evidence that Eyb was influenced by Schlüsselfelder and Schllüsselfelder by a Latin version. Chapter 5 considers Niklas' life and the themes which run through his work, and Chapter 6 sets his endeavours in the context of Early German Humanism. The relationship of this tale with the Legend of the Eaten Heart in its numerous versions throughout Europe and beyond is the subject of Chapter 7. The text is followed by Glossaries of Latin and German words.