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The lais of Marie de France are a series of twelve short narrative Breton lais by the poet Marie de France. They are written in Anglo-Norman and were probably composed in the late 12th century, most likely between 1155-1170.[1][2] The short, narrative poems generally focus on glorifying the concept of courtly love by the adventures of their main characters.[3] Marie's lais are thought to form the basis for what would eventually become the genre known as the Breton lais.[4] Despite her stature in Anglo-Norman literature and medieval French literature generally, little is known of Marie herself, but it is thought that she was born in France and wrote in England.
