The Representation of the Impression of Saint Francis’ Stigmata in the South English Legendary

The aim of this paper is to analyse the episode concerning the impression of the stigmata of Saint Francis which has been handed down in the South English Legendary, a collection of poetic saints lives written in southern dialects of Middle English from the late 13th to 15th centuries. In contrast to the martyrologies compilated in England in previous centuries, this collection of saints reflects a new demand related to the work of preachers who had to speak to a popular audience, not necessarily learned and not belonging to the Church. The version of the life of St. Francis in Anglo-Saxon was produced by an anonymous author who used St. Bonaventure’s Legenda Maior to create a poetic text that commemorated Francis’ virtues and deeds. Francis had recently been canonised, but his message was so powerful and incisive on the contemporary society that it gained widespread popularity among all English social classes. Unlike other lives in the South English Legendary, to date, no study has been carried out on the Life of St. Francis, so the purpose of this article is to highlight how the author used a series of linguistic and stylistic elements belonging to the English medieval entertainment poetry, in order to offer his audience an exemplum to imitate, encouraging them to lead an exemplary life.