Abstract

Reflections on the Style of the Lavinia Episodes in the Medieval Eneas Romances

The Eneasroman by Heinrich von Veldeke has repeatedly been analysed against the background of its sources, and, accordingly, particular attention has been paid to correspondences in terms of content. Using the example of the Lavinia episodes, the article focuses on stylistic implications that arise from taking into account different sources. To this end, the contemporary rhetorical discourse on style, and in particular on the three stylistic registers, is discussed, and the Lavinia plot in Heinrich's Eneasoman and in the anonymous Roman d'Eneas is interpreted from this perspective. In this respect, the connections between forma and materia as well as forma and effect are brought into focus. As these correlations change within the novel, it fulfils the requirement of a mixture of styles.