The tale of Phyllis and Aristotle is a medieval

cautionary tale A cautionary tale is a tale told in folklore to warn its listener of a danger. There are three essential parts to a cautionary tale, though they can be introduced in a large variety of ways. First, a taboo or prohibition is stated: some act, lo ...

about the triumph of a seductive woman, Phyllis, over the greatest male intellect, the ancient Greek philosopher

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...

. It is one of several

Power of Women The "Power of Women" (german: Weibermacht) is a medieval and Renaissance artistic and literary topos, showing "heroic or wise men dominated by women", presenting "an admonitory and often humorous inversion of the male-dominated sexual hierarc ...

stories from that time. Among early versions is the French ''Lai d'Aristote'' from 1220. The story of the

dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...

and the famous intellectual was taken up by artists from the 12th century onwards, in media from stone sculpture in churches to panels of wood or ivory, textiles such as carpets and tapestries, engravings, oil paintings, brass jugs (

aquamanile In modern usage, an aquamanile (plural aquamanilia or simply aquamaniles) is a ewer or jug-type vessel in the form of one or more animal or human figures. It usually contained water for the washing of hands (''aqua'' + ''manos'') over a basin, ...

), and stained glass. Artists attracted to the theme include

Hans Baldung Hans Baldung (1484 or 1485 – September 1545), called Hans Baldung Grien, (being an early nickname, because of his predilection for the colour green), was a painter, printer, engraver, draftsman, and stained glass artist, who was considered th ...

Albrecht Dürer Albrecht Dürer (; ; hu, Ajtósi Adalbert; 21 May 1471 – 6 April 1528),Müller, Peter O. (1993) ''Substantiv-Derivation in Den Schriften Albrecht Dürers'', Walter de Gruyter. . sometimes spelled in English as Durer (without an umlaut) or Due ...

Lucas Cranach the Elder Lucas Cranach the Elder (german: Lucas Cranach der Ältere ; – 16 October 1553) was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving. He was court painter to the Electors of Saxony for most of his career, and is know ...

, and Alessandro Turchi.

Story

The tale varies in the telling, but the core of it is as follows:

advises his pupil

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

to avoid Phyllis, the seductive mistress of his father, the

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

, but is himself captivated by her. She agrees to ride him, on condition that she play the role of

. Phyllis has secretly told Alexander what to expect, and he witnesses Phyllis proving that a woman's charms can overcome even the greatest

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

's male intellect. Phyllis is also described as Alexander's mistress or possibly wife, rather than his father's.

Origins

The story is said by the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

to derive from the German work by

Jacques de Vitry Jacques de Vitry (''Jacobus de Vitriaco'', c. 1160/70 – 1 May 1240) was a French canon regular who was a noted theologian and chronicler of his era. He was elected bishop of Acre in 1214 and made cardinal in 1229. His ''Historia Oriental ...

in the 13th century. The French work ''Le '' (The Lay of Aristotle) is known from manuscripts dating from as early as 1220, attributed by scholars to either

Henri d'Andeli Henry d'Andeli was a 13th-century Norman poet notable for his work ''La Bataille des Vins'' (English Battle of the Wines), and for the satirical poem ''Battle of the Seven Arts''. He also wrote ''Dit du Chancelier Philippe'' on the subject of his ...

or . In 1386, the English poet

John Gower John Gower (; c. 1330 – October 1408) was an English poet, a contemporary of William Langland and the Pearl Poet, and a personal friend of Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civ ...

included a summary of the tale in his ''

Confessio Amantis ''Confessio Amantis'' ("The Lover's Confession") is a 33,000-line Middle English poem by John Gower, which uses the confession made by an ageing lover to the chaplain of Venus as a frame story for a collection of shorter narrative poems. Accord ...

'' (in English, unlike his other major works), a collection of stories of immoral love told in verse. It appears in the poem on

Apollonius of Tyre Apollonius of Tyre is the subject of an ancient short novella, popular in the Middle Ages. Existing in numerous forms in many languages, the text is thought to be translated from an ancient Greek manuscript, now lost. Plot summary In most versi ...

(Book 8, 271–2018), where Gower quips that the philosopher's

logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premises ...

and

syllogism A syllogism ( grc-gre, συλλογισμός, ''syllogismos'', 'conclusion, inference') is a kind of logical argument that applies deductive reasoning to arrive at a conclusion based on two propositions that are asserted or assumed to be true. ...

s do not save him: :''I syh there Aristotle also'', :''Whom that the queene of Grece so'' :''Hath

bridle A bridle is a piece of equipment used to direct a horse. As defined in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', the "bridle" includes both the that holds a bit that goes in the mouth of a horse, and the reins that are attached to the bit. Headgear w ...

d, that in thilke time'' :''Sche made him such a Silogime,'' :''That he foryat al his logique;'' :''Ther was non art of his Practique,'' :''Thurgh which it mihte ben excluded'' :''That he ne was fully concluded'' :''To love, and dede his obeissance'' Also in the 14th century, the Dominican John Herold wrote a Latin version of the story. In the 15th century, it was featured in the German comedy ''Ain Spil van Maister Aristotiles'' (A play of Master Aristotle).

Analysis

Illustrations

Medieval

The

of the dominatrix who made a fool of the famous philosopher became popular across medieval Europe. Medieval sculptors in Maasland created

, jugs in the forms of scenes with human or other figures, depicting Phyllis and Aristotle. The story was depicted in a variety of media including stone, ivory, brass, carpet,

tapestry Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

, and engravings. File:Cadouin Aristoteles.jpg, Stone sculpture,

Cadouin Abbey Cadouin Abbey (french: Abbaye de Cadouin or ''Abbaye Notre-Dame de la Nativité de Cadouin'') was a Cistercian monastery founded as a hermitage in 1115 by Gerald of Salles, in the name of Robert of Arbrissel, in what is now the commune of Le ...

, France, 12th century File:Phyllis and Aristotle panel of Walters Casket.jpg, Panel of casket with scenes of romances, France, ivory, 1330-1350 File:Maltererteppich 4,5.jpg, Carpet, Freiburg, Germany, 14th century File:MRAH Aquamanile Aristote et Phyllis 261211 fond noir.jpg,

Aquamanile In modern usage, an aquamanile (plural aquamanilia or simply aquamaniles) is a ewer or jug-type vessel in the form of one or more animal or human figures. It usually contained water for the washing of hands (''aqua'' + ''manos'') over a basin, ...

in the form of Phyllis and Aristotle, prob. Maasland, 1400–1450, brass File:Area mosana, acquamanile con aristotele e phyllis, xv sec..JPG, Phyllis riding and slapping Aristotle, Aquamanile, Maasland, c. 1400, brass File:Aristoteles and Phyllis.jpg, Detail of

, Basel, 1470s

Early Modern to Enlightenment

Artists such as

Bartholomeus Spranger Bartholomeus Spranger or Bartholomaeus SprangerBartholomeus Spranger
at the

and Jan Sadeler continued to exploit the theme, eventually with Phyllis entirely naked. Alessandro Turchi called the woman

Campaspe Campaspe (; Greek: Καμπάσπη, ''Kampaspē''), or Pancaste (; Greek: Πανκάστη, ''Pankastē''; also ''Pakate''), was a supposed mistress of Alexander the Great and a prominent citizen of Larissa in Thessaly. No Campaspe appears in ...

, the mistress of Alexander. The media used include engraving, stained glass, wood, and oil painting. File:Master Of The Housebook - Aristotle and Phyllis - WGA14556.jpg,

Drypoint Drypoint is a printmaking technique of the intaglio family, in which an image is incised into a plate (or "matrix") with a hard-pointed "needle" of sharp metal or diamond point. In principle, the method is practically identical to engraving. The ...

of Aristotle ridden by Phyllis by the

Housebook Master Master of the Housebook and Master of the Amsterdam Cabinet are two names used for an engraver and painter working in South Germany in the last quarter of the 15th century. He is apparently the first artist to use drypoint, a form of engraving, ...

. c. 1490 File:Maestro MZ, fillide a cavalcioni di aristotele, 1500 ca, incisione.jpg,

Engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a Burin (engraving), burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or Glass engraving, glass ...

, Master MZ, c. 1500 File:Lucas van Leyden Arisztotelész és Phyllis.jpg, Engraving, Lucas van Leyden, c. 1520 File:Augusta, aristotele cavalcato da filide, 1520 ca.JPG,

Stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

, Germany, c. 1520 File:Albrecht Dürer - Phyllis and Aristotle, detail of Nuremberg Town Hall design.jpg, Detail of a

decoration meant for Nuremberg Town Hall,

, 1521 File:Meister von Ottobeuren Aristoteles und Phyllis BNM.jpg, ''Aristotle and Phyllis'', the Master of Ottobeuren, wood, 1523 File:Lucas Cranach d.Ä. - Phyllis und Aristotle (1530).jpg, ''Phyllis and Aristotle'',

, oil on panel, 1530 File:Phyllis and Aristotle MET DP836560.jpg, ''Phyllis and Aristotle'', Jan Sadeler after

Bartholomeus Spranger Bartholomeus Spranger or Bartholomaeus SprangerBartholomeus Spranger
at the

, engraving, 16th century File:Turchi-AristoteIMG 1713.JPG, ''Aristotle and

'', Alessandro Turchi (attrib.) Oil on canvas, 1713

Nineteenth and twentieth centuries

Artists such as Julio Ruelas continued to adapt the Phyllis and Aristotle theme.

Oscar Kokoschka Oskar Kokoschka (1 March 1886 – 22 February 1980) was an Austrian artist, poet, playwright, and teacher best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes, as well as his theories on vision that influenced the Viennese Exp ...

produced a version in 1913. File:Emile Pessard, Le Char, 002.jpg, ''Le Char'' (The Chariot), poster by for opera by

Émile Pessard Émile Louis Fortuné Pessard (29 May 1843 – 10 February 1917) was a French composer. Pessard was born and died in Paris. He studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, where he won 1st prize in Harmony. In 1866 he won the Grand Prix de Rome with h ...

, 1878 File:Sokrates, (1902).jpg, ''Sokrates'', Julio Ruelas (1870–1907), 1902. The woman wears modern stockings and shoes

Notes

References

{{reflist, 30em Aristotle Folklore Fictional dominatrices Iconography Medieval legends