# The Lay of the Werewolf explained — Lais

> Chapter companion for Lais by Marie de France.

## What happens

A baron named Bisclavaret transforms into a werewolf for three days each week, hiding his clothes in a hollow stone. His wife, after extracting his secret, betrays him by stealing his clothes and marrying a knight who had long pursued her. Bisclavaret is trapped in wolf form until the King hunts him, recognizes his human intelligence, and brings him to court. Eventually, through a wise counselor's advice, Bisclavaret is restored to human form, reclaims his lands, and his wife is exiled.

## Themes in this chapter

### Loyalty and Betrayal

The wife betrays Bisclavaret by revealing his secret and stealing his clothes, leading to his prolonged wolf state.

### Magic and Transformation

Bisclavaret's weekly transformation into a werewolf and his eventual restoration to human form through the return of his clothing.

## Character check-ins

### Bisclavaret

The baron who becomes a werewolf; betrayed by his wife, later restored by the King.

### The Wolf

Bisclavaret in his werewolf form; shows human-like intelligence and loyalty to the King.

### His Master

The King who hunts and adopts the werewolf, later helps restore him to human form.

## Key lines

> I become Bisclavaret. I enter in the forest, and live on prey and roots, within the thickest of the wood.

I transform into a werewolf and dwell in the forest, surviving on hunted game and wild plants.

_Bisclavaret reveals his secret to his wife._

> If I should lose my raiment, or even be marked as I quit my vesture, then a Werewolf I must go for all the days of my life.

If I lose my clothes or am seen when I shed them, I will remain a werewolf forever.

_Bisclavaret explains the condition for his transformation._

> Thus, by the kiss of his wife, was Bisclavaret betrayed.

So Bisclavaret was betrayed by his own wife's affectionate deceit.

_The narrator emphasizes the wife's betrayal._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lais_se/chapters/the-lay-of-the-werewolf
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lais_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lais_se/chapters