ABSTRACT
Some evidence has already been noticed that suggests that Chaucer had read Chretien. The evidence is Chaucer’s use of the word vavasour to describe the Franklin—the only occurrence of that word in his writings. It is possible however to argue that two other references by Chaucer also reveal a knowledge of Chretien’s works. In each case li vavasors is a man notable for hospitality, and in Erec et Enide he has white hair and a good cook, which further associate him with Chaucer’s description of the Franklin. Frankis suggests that Chaucer is saying that the Franklin was the sort of person whom Chretien refers to as a vavasor, and one may emphasize that the unusual word occurs fairly frequently in Chretien’s two poems, and so might well stick in the mind.
