SOURCE: Mermier, Guy. “Antoine de La Sale's Le Petit Jehan de Saintré: A Study in Motivations.” Michigan Academician IX, no. 4 (spring 1977): 469-82.

In the essay which follows, Mermier assesses the motivations of Belle Cousine and Saintré in an effort to better understand the nature of Little John of Saintré, claiming that the work's failure is due to Belle Cousine's failure in her education of Saintré.

After a reading of Antoine de La Sale's Jehan de Saintré (1456), a multitude of questions arises. Why does Belle Cousine reject the young knight, and why does she allow herself to become enamored by Damp Abbé, this vulgar, pleasure-seeking monk? Why, furthermore, after sixteen years of courtly service, brave deeds for her and kisses bestowed and returned, does Saintré unmask his “mother,” his benefactress, in public? Even if we cannot claim to answer these questions here in a definitive manner, they will help...