Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Kings in adversity: A note on Alfred and the cakes

  • Article
  • Published:
Neophilologus Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The familiar tale of King Alfred and the Cakes is not the invention of the anonymous hagiographer of St. Neot in whose work it appears for the first time, but goes back to a complex and well-documented narrative tradition. The story combines Boethian exempla about the fickleness of Fortune with anecdotes about kings who hide their royal status, and the ability or inability of others to recognize them as kings. The motif of the ash-baked bread allows us to tie the story to earlier tales about Germanic rulers, and suggests the influence of folktale characters and situations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of English, State University of New York at Stony Brook, 11794-5350, Stony Brook, New York, USA

    Joaquín Martínez Pizarro

Authors
  1. Joaquín Martínez Pizarro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Pizarro, J.M. Kings in adversity: A note on Alfred and the cakes. Neophilologus 80, 319–326 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00212109

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00212109

Keywords

Search

Navigation