Avis: Difference between revisions

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{{Inset Story
{{Inset Story
|Has Critical Literature=Nishimura (2001); Marzolph and van Leeuwen (2004)
|Has Critical Literature=Nishimura (2001); Marzolph and van Leeuwen (2004)
|Has Motif=Animal tale; Adultery; Talking bird; Gullible husband; Deceitful woman; Evidence; False evidence of virtue; Bird; Parrot; Magpie; Remorse; Jealousy; Jealous husband; Deception
|Has Motif=Animal tale; Adultery; Talking bird; Gullible husband; Deceitful woman; Evidence; False evidence of virtue; Bird; Parrot; Magpie; Remorse; Jealousy; Jealous husband; Deception; Misinterpretation
|Has Summary='''The Bird; or, The Story of the Confectioner, His Wife, and the Parrot'''
|Has Summary='''The Bird; or, The Story of the Confectioner, His Wife, and the Parrot'''


A bird - a parrot, or a magpie - reveals a woman's adultery to her husband. She tries to convince him that the bird is lying, mad, or confused, but his faith in the bird's reporting is unshaken. To discredit the bird, the wife tricks it into believing that there is a storm in the night (manufacturing the sound of the weather, dropping water on it from a hole in the ceiling, etc.) when in fact the weather was clear. The husband, hearing the bird's reports of rain and wind, discounts the earlier report of adultery. (In some texts, he kills the bird; in others, he eventually learns the truth and is filled with remorse.)
A bird - a parrot, or a magpie - reveals a woman's adultery to her husband. She tries to convince him that the bird is lying, mad, or confused, but his faith in the bird's reporting is unshaken. To discredit the bird, the wife tricks it into believing that there is a storm in the night (manufacturing the sound of the weather, dropping water on it from a hole in the ceiling, etc.) when in fact the weather was clear. The husband, hearing the bird's reports of rain and wind, discounts the earlier report of adultery. (In some texts, he kills the bird; in others, he eventually learns the truth and is filled with remorse.)


[Added by Jane Bonsall]
[Added by Jane Bonsall]

Revision as of 10:42, 24 November 2025

The Bird; or, The Story of the Confectioner, His Wife, and the Parrot

A bird - a parrot, or a magpie - reveals a woman's adultery to her husband. She tries to convince him that the bird is lying, mad, or confused, but his faith in the bird's reporting is unshaken. To discredit the bird, the wife tricks it into believing that there is a storm in the night (manufacturing the sound of the weather, dropping water on it from a hole in the ceiling, etc.) when in fact the weather was clear. The husband, hearing the bird's reports of rain and wind, discounts the earlier report of adultery. (In some texts, he kills the bird; in others, he eventually learns the truth and is filled with remorse.)


[Added by Jane Bonsall]

Note

Nishimura notes the extensive analogues, motifs, and reference stories for Avis:

Motifs and Types: TMI B131 Bird which reveals the truth; B211.3.4 Speaking Parrot; J551.1, ATU 243A Cocks who crows about mistress’s adultery killed; K1591.1 Peacock left as spy on adulterous wife; N340 Hasty killing or condemnation (Mistake); ATU 1422 Parrot reports Wife’s Adultery. TU3147 Magpie denounce unfaithful wife.

Analogues: Der persische Dekameron, 13 ‘Der Papagei‘. Galland, Les mille et une Nuits, ‘Histoire du Mari et du Perroquet‘ (Night 14); Chaucer, Canterbury Tales, in ‘The Wife of Bath’ (‘A wise wife, if she knows what is good for her, will convince her husband that the raven is mad, and will obtain a token of consent from her own servants’, which makes us infer the existence of this story in the background).

Reference stories, etc. Rosen, Das Papageienbuch, Night 4: 'Vom Kaufmann und dem Papagei'. The analogous story of Pheobus and Coronis is found in Ovidius, Metamorphoses, 2.531-632; Chaucer, Canterbury Tales, ‘The Manciple's Tale'; Gower, Confessio Amantis, 3.2. See also Jataka, 145 ‘Rādha-j’ and 198 ‘Rādha-j’; Gesta Romanorum, 68 ‘Die drei Hähne’; Pauli, Schimpf und Ernst, 9 ‘Drei Hanen kreigten von dem Eebruch’; Espinosa, Cuentos Populares Españoles, 75, ‘What I Hear, What I See, and What I Silence’ (original story 263). In Pentamerone, 3.1, 'Cannetella', the horse tells the husband that his wife has eaten a bunch of grapes. Arabian Nights, 'The Story of Masrur the Merchant and the Dreams He Saw' (Night 852), in which he learns of his wife’s unfaithfulness because the little bird he keeps is attached to a man.

Additional Bibliography: Chauvin VIII 3, 96; Landau 7.

Critical Literature
Nishimura (2001)Marzolph and van Leeuwen (2004)
Avis appears in the following versions and secondary versions
 Has Language Of VersionHas Branch Of TraditionIs Adapted From
A (Seven Sages)Old FrenchSeven Sages of RomeV (Lost metrical Old French Sept Sages)
Anonymous Verse VersionGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeGerman Version H, Versfassung / Verse Version, Latin Version H
Arabic Version A (The Seven Viziers)ArabicBook of Sindbad 
Arabic Version A1001 (Thousand and One Nights)ArabicBook of Sindbad 
Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights)ArabicBook of Sindbad 
Aventewr von DioclecianoGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeH (Historia Septem Sapientum)
Bühnenfassung / Stage adaptation: Sebastian Wild, TragedjGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeRedaction G
C (Sept Sages de Rome)Old FrenchSeven Sages of Rome 
Continental Group w Seven Sages of Rome 
D (Sept Sages de Rome)Old FrenchSeven Sages of Rome 
Dutch Verse Version: Van den seven vroeden van binnen Rome Seven Sages of Rome 
Dutch Version ADutchSeven Sages of RomeFrench Version A: Roman des Sept Sages
French A/L OverlapOld FrenchSeven Sages of RomeL (Sept Sages de Rome), French Version A: Roman des Sept Sages
French Version A: Roman des Sept SagesOld FrenchSeven Sages of RomeA (Seven Sages)
German Version A: Allegatio/LibellusGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeLatin Version A
German Version HGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeLatin Version H
H (Historia Septem Sapientum)LatinSeven Sages of RomeA (Seven Sages)
Hans von Bühel, Dyocletianus LebenGerman (High and Low German)Seven Sages of RomeGerman Version H
Hebrew Group A Book of SindbadMishle Sendebar
Hebrew Group BHebrewBook of SindbadMishle Sendebar
Hebrew PrintsHebrewBook of Sindbad 
Avis is narrated in the following occurrences
Narrator Pages
Catoen Brussel Koninklijke Bibliotheek II 1171, Dutch Version A
Caton A (Seven Sages), Bern Burgerbibliothek Cod. 388, Florence Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Gaddiano 166, Florence Biblioteca nazionale centrale, Palatino 680, French A/L Overlap, French Version A: Roman des Sept Sages, Italian Prose (V), Italian Version A, Libro dei Sette Savj (A), London British Library Add. MS. 27429, Midland Version, Old Swedish Version A: Sju vise mästare, Padua Biblioteca Civica C.M. 304/6, Storia favolosa di Stefano (S), Uppsala Universitetsbiblioteket Cod. C 7
Cato Anonymous Verse Version, Aventewr von Diocleciano, Brno Moravská knihovna RKP-0048.042 (Rkp 84), Brussel Koninklijke Bibliotheek 9245, Bühnenfassung / Stage adaptation: Sebastian Wild, Tragedj, C (Sept Sages de Rome), Cambridge University Library MS Dd.1.17, Cambridge University Library MS Ff. 2, 38, Cambridge University Library MS Gg.6.28, Chartres Bibliothèque municipale 620, Colmar Bibliothèque Municipale Ms. 55, D (Sept Sages de Rome), Dutch Verse Version: Van den seven vroeden van binnen Rome, Edinburgh National Library of Scotland Advocates MS 19.2.1 (Auchinleck Manuscript), Erlangen Universitätsbibliothek Ms. B 11, German Version H, H (Historia Septem Sapientum), Hans von Bühel, Dyocletianus Leben, Hungarian Version H: Pontianus tsaszar historiaia, K (Sept Sages de Rome), L (Sept Sages de Rome), London British Library Arundel 140, London British Library Cotton Galba E IX, London British Library Egerton 1995, M ('Male Marastre'), Middle English Version A, Old Swedish Redaction C, Older Scots Version A: Buke of the Sevyne Sagis, Oxford Balliol College Library MS 354 (Richard Hill's Commonplace Book), Oxford Bodleian Library Rawlinson poet. 175, Paris Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal 3516, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, français 95, Prosafassung / Prose Version, Scots Version H: Rolland, Seuin Seages, Spanish Version H: Los Siete Sabios de Roma, Swedish Version H: Sju vise mästare, Versfassung / Verse Version
Chaton Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, français 573
Craton Thystorye of ye vii wyse Maysters of rome (English, 16th c.)
Fifth Master Chantilly Musée Condé MS 683, Dublin Trinity College Library Ms 667, German Version A: Allegatio/Libellus, Latin Version A, Latin Version A: Allegatio / Libellus, Madrid Biblioteca Nacional de España 6052 (ant. Q.224), S (Scala Coeli), Spanish Version S: Diego de Cañizares, Scala Çeli, St. Florian Stiftsbibliothek Cod. XI 92 B, Wien Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Cod. 2937
First Master Arabic Version A1001 (Thousand and One Nights), Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights), Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. lat. qu. 618, Berlin Staatsbibliothek Sprenger 1368, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3660, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3662, Hebrew Group A, Hebrew Group B, Hebrew Prints, Latin Mishle Sendebar, Leiden Universiteit Or. 14.303, Libro de los Engaños, Madrid Real Academia Española 'El Conde Lucanor', Ms. 15, Mishle Sendebar, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France Arabe 3639, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3660, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3661, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3662, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3670, St Petersburg National Library of Russia EVR I 272, Toronto Aga Khan Museum 00513, Tunis Bibliothèque nationale de Tunisie, MWT 04576
Fourth Master London British Library Additional MS 15685, Versio Italica historiae septem sapientum (L)
Malquidras Storia di Stefano (R), Venice Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana It. IX 621 (=10697)
Third Master Admont Stiftsbibliothek Cod. 163, Admont Stiftsbibliothek Cod. 652, Augsburg Universitätsbibliothek Cod. I. 2. 2° 22, Bamberg Staatsbibliothek Msc. Class. 87, Bamberg Staatsbibliothek Msc. Theol. 230, Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. lat. qu. 184, Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. fol. 239, Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. qu. 151, Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. qu. 272, Bern Burgerbibliothek Cod. 723, Brno Moravský zemský archiv Cerr II 361, Dresden Sächsische Landesbibliothek – Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Mscr. Dresd. C 398, Dresden Sächsische Landesbibliothek, Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Mscr. Dresd. F 61a, Dresden, Sächsische Landesbibliothek – Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Mscr. Dresd. F 61a, Eichstätt Universitätsbibliothek Cod. st 698, Gdańsk PAN Biblioteka Gdańska Ms. 1974, Latin Version H, Polish Version H
Avis appears in the following manuscripts
 Has LanguageHas Siglum Of The Version Of The Seven SagesHas Language Group Within Version
Admont Stiftsbibliothek Cod. 101aLatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Admont Stiftsbibliothek Cod. 163LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Admont Stiftsbibliothek Cod. 652LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Augsburg Universitätsbibliothek Cod. I. 2. 2° 22LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Bamberg Staatsbibliothek Msc. Class. 87LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Bamberg Staatsbibliothek Msc. Theol. 230LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. lat. qu. 184LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. lat. qu. 618LatinMishle SendebarLatin Mishle Sendebar
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. fol. 239LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. qu. 151LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Ms. theol. lat. qu. 272LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Berlin Staatsbibliothek Sprenger 1368ArabicArabic Version A (The Seven Viziers) 
Bern Burgerbibliothek Cod. 388Old FrenchA (Seven Sages)French Version A: Roman des Sept Sages
Bern Burgerbibliothek Cod. 723LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Brno Moravská knihovna RKP-0048.042 (Rkp 84)German (High and Low German)H (Historia Septem Sapientum)German Version H
Brno Moravský zemský archiv Cerr II 361LatinH (Historia Septem Sapientum)Latin Version H
Brussel Koninklijke Bibliotheek 9245Old FrenchOverlap of Versions A and LFrench A/L Overlap
Brussel Koninklijke Bibliotheek II 1171DutchA (Seven Sages)Dutch Version A
Cambridge University Library MS Dd.1.17EnglishA (Seven Sages)Middle English Version A
Cambridge University Library MS Ff. 2, 38EnglishA (Seven Sages)Middle English Version A
Cambridge University Library MS Gg.6.28Old FrenchOverlap of Versions A and LFrench A/L Overlap