Perceval Lancelot Character Analysis

Service in love often has a positive connotation which suggests a profound love, whereas possession generally receives a negative connotation suggesting a superficial love. However, Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare explore in depth the roles of both possession and service in love and reveal to their readers which one is ultimately the superior way to gain love. The stories of “The Knight’s Tale” and The Tempest are different thematically, yet the thread which unites them both expresses similar ideas regarding love, possession and service. Both William Shakespeare and Geoffrey Chaucer show the reader love cannot be claimed; it is earned through service of the heart. By examining the similarities in “The Knight’s Tale” and The Tempest

Literature of the Middle Ages can not be discussed without acknowledging the undeniable importance of chivalry. Chivalry in relation to the middle ages is defined as “the code of conduct adhered to by Medieval knights with gallant knightly values including honor, bravery, courteousness and honesty.” This key characteristic is essential in defining an ideal knight as well as his expectations. A knight must live by a chivalric code in which he becomes indebted to the people, his fellow knights, and most importantly, his lord. No other knight displayed more of a devotion to upholding the code then Lanval of Marie de France’s lai “Lanval.” Lanval demonstrates his chivalric nature in essential every action from maintaining comitatus amongst the

Knight,” and “Le Morte d’Arthur.” Within these three Medieval stories, the ideals of courtly love

Marie De France’s Lanval is a remarkable short narrative that engages the reader into a world filled with unrealistic elements, but enhances on the true meaning of romance, chivalry and nature during the years that King Arthur reigned. “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight” unfortunately does not have an author that can be recognized but this epic poem demonstrates the ghastly adventure of a knight who decides to defend the honor of young King Arthur against a supernatural being in this malicious game of cat and mouse. Both of these pieces of literature have enchanting characteristics that define them as a masterpiece of their era and that’s why they both are easily compared and contrasted. In addition, both Lanval and “Sir Gawain and The

In the Medieval Period, knights dedicated their lives to following the code of chivalry. In Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur, a number of characters performed chivalrous acts to achieve the status of an ideal knight. Their characteristics of respect for women and courtesy for all, helpfulness to the weak, honor, and skill in battle made the characters King Arthur, King Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette examples of a what knights strove to be like in Medieval society. Because of the examples ofchivalry, Le Morte d’Arthur showed what a knight desired to be, so he could improve theworld in which he lived.

The movie First Knight fits the Medieval Romance Characteristics because it follows the marriage of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere and follows the adventures of knights, kings, and queens. Medieval Romance Characteristics also follows the conflict between King Arthur and Prince Malagant, who used to be one of King Arthur’s knights. First Knight takes place in an idealized world because it includes castles, kings, queens, and knights. When Lancelot gets into a sword fight with Prince Malagant, a supernatural event occurs. When Lancelot is just about to lose the fight from exhaustion, he notices King Arthur’s sword beside him and when he picks it up, there is a flash on the sword which fulfilled Lancelot with enough energy to win the fight.

In Marie De France’s poem “Lanval”, the knight Lanval faces immense cultural pressure to get married and have a male heir, as it is the norm in King Arthur’s kingdom. It may appear that “Lanval” is supporting the concept of the institution of marriage, as the story had a heavy focus on marriage, and the court nearly punished Lanval for rejecting Guinevere. On the surface, the poem could easily mislead the reader to believe this is the case, but without further analysis, the reader may miss the courting that the mystery-lady has provided Lanval, which prove why the text critiques the establishment of marriage, as her courting is very much of the inverse of a typical heterosexual relationship in the culture. This misunderstanding can be

Two conflicting disciplines are prevalent throughout Arthurian Legend; that of chivalry and that of courtly love. The ideal of each clash throughout the medieval tales, and it is impossible to interfuse the two models for society. Chivalry is a masculine code, an aggressive discipline, whereas courtly love is based upon women - their needs, wants, and desires. The consistent problem if Lancelot and Guinevere’s adulterous relationship in different tellings of the affair relates back to the differences presented in chivalric code and courtly love ideals.

The conventions of courtly love stem from the precise chivalric code of knights in the Middle Ages and passionate romances of European medieval folklore. Fantastic tales of dauntless knights and their fair damsels, often set in King Arthur’s kingdom

This is depicted by Lancelot “the knight of the carts,” underlying love of King Arthur’s Queen Guinevere. His love start as Queen Guinevere is

The stories of Lancelot (The Knight of the Cart) and Perceval (The Story of the Grail) within Chrétien de Troyes’ Arthurian Romances depict a world of Medieval Romance that is somewhat different from one that was depicted in earlier epics. These romances are more focused on the battle between love and honor rather than on war and valor, which were depicted in earlier epics of de Troyes’ time. The tale of Lancelot follows a star-struck knight who undergoes an inner conflict between both the lover and hero inside him. His intense commitment to rescuing the queen causes him to make rash decisions which inevitably restrain him from controlling his own fate. Perceval’s story exhibits a different purpose for love in a knight’s life. Unlike Lancelot, he accepts love only when he believes it can further advance him in becoming the perfect knight. The two heroes’ actions showcase an inner conflict between maintaining their honor as knights and the love for another. Through these two tales, Chrétien de Troyes shows that that idealistic love and conscious chivalry cannot necessarily successfully coexist, yet it is the unachievable idealistic view that these two ideals do coexist.

While the theme of love itself, may it be positive or negative, is reoccurring, Marie’s presentation of romantic relationships and their differing qualities can be considered a theme alone. In “Guigemar”, the relationship between the knight and his lady represents loyalty, and an ability to heal or cure. Yet, the relationship between the beast and his wife in “Bisclavret” demonstrates the selfish and traitorous behavior that can occur between partners, especially if one has proved to be adulterous.

As seen with the first two lais, “Guigemar” and “Equitan”, Marie uses the lais to express her opinions on righteous and unrighteous love. However, unlike “Guigemar” and “Equitan”, the next two lais in her collection, “Le Fresne” and “Bisclavret”, are not as straightforward in their approaches to righteous and unrighteous love. Whereas in “Equitan” there was the warning that those who resemble the king should take warning of his end, in “Le Fresne” and “Bisclavret” there is not such a didactic lesson on the morality or immorality of love. Instead, Marie utilizes the slightly convoluted natures of the next two lais to surprise the readers with the outcomes of the stories and to further emphasize the complicated nature of love. In order to more easily draw on the comparisons between “Le Fresne” and “Bisclavret”, the lais will be broken up into how the relationships begin, how the lovers face trials, and how the relationships reach their final outcomes.

After reading some traditional Medieval literature in class, one specific theme has come across many times. This theme would be the chivalric code throughout the stories. The chivalric code is mocked or satirized throughout the film we watch. Throughout this essay this theme will be analyzed in three different ways, through the text we read, the films watched, and the notes and discussions during class.

A romance is often thought of as a tale of physical affection and love. However, from the twelfth to the sixteenth century, European narratives were considered chivalric romances (“Literary Terminology”). Stories of chivalric romance have a distinct “tripartite structure of social integration, followed by disintegration… [and] reintegration in a happy ending” and consist of “aristocratic social milieux” (“Literary Terminology”). However, romance stories occurred long before the 12th century. For example, The Odyssey by Homer is an example of a romance from the 8th century involving “separation, testing and travel...and the premise of, a final homecoming and recognition” from centuries before the rise of chivalric romance (Simpson and David, “Anglo-Norman”). Stories such as The Romance of Tristan and Iseult by Joseph Bédier and The Odyssey by Homer both qualify as romances because they share a similar structure of integration,disintegration and reintegration despite having differing stylistic elements (class). Therefore, The Romance of Tristan and Iseult is a romance because it abides by the general structure of integration, disintegration, and reintegration as well as a more specific structure of loss, separation (or a disruption), errancy, recovery and return. Influenced by character’s codes of conduct, the love potion, chivalric romance qualities, this Arthurian legend raises fundamental questions about love.