Parrots and Nightingales: Troubadour Quotations and the Development of European Poetry by Sarah Kay (review)

Sarah Kay’s new book takes its cue and its central approach from an age-old emblem that identifies the task of the lyricist with that of the nightingale (or the sparrow), as opposed to that of the parrot (or the crow). While the sparrow and the nightingale (from Catullus to Keats) are identified with the articulation of a rhetoric of spontaneity and natural correspondence, the parrot would imply the verbatim repetition of words and a higher reliance on adequate contextual response by the audience, but also a higher mediation by literary institutions and cultural gatekeepers. The way of the nightingale presents itself as one of free-flowing, unproblematic poetic thought, articulated by the objective existence of its objective content (be that feeling or experience). In stark opposition to it, the way of the parrot would be one of strict quotation: of negative response, modification, twisted irony, or parasitic appropriation. And yet, the core question of mimesis that lies at the centre of early modern poetics emerges precisely from the intersection of both ways: the way of the nightingale and the way of the parrot. Renaissance imitation stems from this crossroads as a textual development in both its philosophical and rhetorical aspects; not primarily a matter of ontology, but also, quite crucially, one of rhetorical practice.

The book starts by examining textual practice, and maintains a close attention to detail throughout the entire volume. This approach makes the volume useful even for the non-specialist, who will see here new paths for medieval lyrical poetry to prolong its literary influence well into Modernity. Kay’s outstanding contribution goes a long way in detailing the ways in which the long road to Renaissance literary imitation is grounded on myriad textual imitative practices, such as citation, quotation, contrafacta, recreation, and insertion. I particularly enjoyed the way in which the author shows the working influence of quotation in the emergence of a vernacular grammar and theory of poetic composition. A detailed examination of Raimon Vidal de Besalú’s work, for example, helps the author establish fruitful links with the emergence of a sense of literary tradition and vernacular canonicity. Likewise, a chapter devoted to troubadour anthologies of quotations (and to Ferrarino de Ferrara’s in particular) also shows in great detail and depth the importance of verbatim quotation, and its functional role for both individual poets wishing to develop an authorial voice and for the emergence of national literary cultures across Europe.

Kay’s new book is a wonderful, richly textured demonstration that the song of the nightingale feeds on the squawk of the parrot, and that both are intimately linked in our literary traditions. Thus, the emergence of the individual poetic self is necessitated by the positioning of the authorial voice in a literary tradition that constitutes itself by way of quotation. Dante’s appropriation of the troubadour tradition is also examined as part of that cultural process. Going beyond previous accounts of appropriation in Dante’s poetical practice, Kay is here able to link this phenomenon as part of a broader historical process. The last chapter (devoted to Petrarch) seems an only too fitting conclusion to this line of argument.

Finally, the author’s careful framing of quotation practice within a modern and contemporary theoretical framework adds significant value to this thoroughly researched, highly engaging volume, helping to bridge gaps in the literature. The book builds on essential recent work within rhetorical studies (Grafton, Orr, Dragonetti, among others), but also draws inspiring links with the work of Lacan, and with Derrida’s notions of monolangue, duplicité, and signature. I found that these theoretical connections added great richness, weight, and scope to a fascinating book of outstanding scholarly worth, bringing an even sharper focus to debates that remain to this day an invigorating challenge for the scholar interested in rhetorics and...