Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena
Collections of Exempla helped medieval preachers to adorn their sermons, to emphasize moral conclusions or illustrate a point of doctrine. The subject matter could be taken from fables, folktales, legends, real history, or natural history. Jacques de Vitry's book of exempla, c. 1200, Nicholas Bozon's "Les contes moralisés" (after 1320), and Odo of Cheriton's "Parabolae" (after 1225) were famous medieval collections aimed particularly at preachers. Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Miller's Prologue and Tale" became a vivid satire on this genre. There were also notable lay writers of moral tales, such as the 13th century Der Stricker and the 14th century Juan Manuel, Prince of Villena (Tales of Count Lucanor).