Gower's Vox Clamantis and the Speculum Stultorum

Review

Raymo provides a lengthy list of citations where Gower's VC borrows directly from Nigel de Longchamps' Speculum Stultorum (the story of an ass called Burnell who desires a longer tail). In the VC, Gower twice alludes expressly to the Speculum Stultorum. He also uses it as the source for the story of Adrian and Bardus in the CA. Gower seems to have been particularly interested in the exempla of the revengeful cock and of the unfortunate cows who were attacked by flies. However, most of Gower's borrowings have lost all relation to their original context. [CvD]