This study argues that exemplary fables, allegories, and historical examples from the medieval period are located at the juncture between argument and narration. In contrast to previous works devoted to this subject, which tend to focus on questions of historical transmission, this book contextualizes their rhetorical aspects harnessing new impetus from the theory of topics and the epistemology of the exemplary.

Michael Schwarzbach-Dobson, University of Cologne, Germany.