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Wîse Maget, Jolyon Timothy Hughes

Quidditas

In Medieval German Literature, the figure of the wise man occurs repeatedly. This can be evidenced in several primary works of literature from the period. In Wolframs von Eschenbach's Parzival Trevrizent is shown to be a very wizened and understanding member of Parzival’s own family. In Gottfried von Straßburg’s Tristan, the title figure is known to be wise before he is physically mature. However, in the critical literature on the period, there is no mention of older female characters exhibiting similar attributes as those qualities exemplified by the male figure of young Tristan, let alone younger women or girls.