Once you get George Takaei's voice out of your head I have a brief reflection on the ability of myth to propagate through cultural consciousness.
What, one might inquire, does this have to do with medieval studies?
Initially, there is a connection in that the event that is purported to be at the root of this discussion was supposed to have occurred within our period of study. Beyond that tenuous connection it is a good point to consider that even an authoritative source might be in error.
In this instance, we have the slightly scandalous history of the French phrase "Il se prend pour le moutardier du paper" which translates as "He behaves like the pope's mustard maker." In use, it is an expression to describe someone who thinks highly of themselves and is decidedly wrong.
The story behind the phrase is attributed to Alexandre Dumas, a writer born in 1802 who died about 1870.
Allegedly, Pope John XXII had an unfortunately dim-witted nephew who could not handle any of the normal positions that nepotism made available to him so he was appointed the "grand mustard maker." The young man, thinking very highly of his new position, would prance about town acting the part of an important official when, in fact, he was merely the recipient of a pity position due to his lack of ability. Thus the phrase was born.
Of side interest, some versions of the telling indicate that the pope was specifically homesick for his hometown version of mustard which, due to the use of grape juice, was purple or violet. While I have not found a period French recipe, there is a recipe for Red/violet mustard from an Italian text that dates from the 15th Century, "Libro de arte coquinaria." Could there have also been a French version of violent mustard?
What is of further interest here is that the formal history of Pope John XXII provided by the Catholic Encyclopedia which sources its information from a long list of historic documents makes no mention, at all, of this supposed nephew or his position. It raises the possibility, supported by the lack of period sources to confirm this story, that while the phrase is real, the history of the phrase is an urban legend.
We care about this oddity because it raises the question of whether or not the story is based on a true event or if it is merely a myth propagated through a well known author to be repeated by numerous individuals and given credence because it connects a story to a phrase which is actually in use. In our efforts to recreate the medieval world it is important to remember that the quality of our sources, and the extra effort to confirm the information we dig up is well worth the time and energy. It is easy for a myth to be accepted as "reality" if enough people choose to repeat it.
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