Tweet
Just recently I completed re-reading Chretien de Troyes's Arthurian Romances. He is perhaps the first author to use love as a major theme in a novel. His romances were separated into five stories. While themes of courtly love and chivalry appear in each of Chretien's completed works, one in particular makes the service of a knight to his lady its primary and almost only service, and which I completed a paper on recently. That is the story of The Knight of the Cart, or better known as Lancelot. "Courtly love" perhaps the closest in medieval French translation means "fine love" or "fin amour" since it challenged and sought to redefine traditional Christian ideals of love, marriage, manhood, virtue, and femininity.
Courtly love was the culture of the court, and it emerged from different things, such as European contact with Muslims during the Crusades, and from Celtic tradition, as well as economic and social changes as there was great prosperity in the 12th century and stability. It was moreover based on body language, and flirting and the remaking of the role of women in Western society. It was a "goddess" dominate dreligion in which females were the goddesses. This was a replacement of the former belief of women being "sinners" ala Eve and taking a bite from the forbidden fruit. Women are historically believed to be tempted, below reason and polluted. This idea of courtly love, is against marriage. You love someone else, and your wife is your property, not your love. Love is considered outside of marriage. Everyting you are is because you are dedicated to the service of women of a social class. You have emergence of courtesy, hospitality, chivalry. All these modern notions of men and how they treat women are all derived from Medieval society. There is this belief that you must do certain things for women. This is when the language of love is invented in which women are placed as objects above. There emerge changes in ettiquete, manners, preoccupation on how you eat. The queen was Guenevere, the queen of King Arthur. The stress this society puts on love transcends marriage, and in fact adultery was all about love. You didn't love your wife, you loved someone else, and it was quiet, calm, and subtle.
The The Knight of the Cart can be perhaps described as that which embodies the essence and breath of the small segment of society at the time Chretien de Troyes was writing this in wihch "courtly love" was depicted. It is filled with love, fantasy, courage, and chivalry. It is these values that Chretien plays with throughout the story, and weaves them together, overlaps them, and separates them, to give a clear distinction of the society of the time, and what virtues were held in esteem, and what vices were frowned upon. It tells us who was a part of these courtly romances, of those who fought, for honor, and chivalry. It let’s us know the relationship between man and woman. On his journey Lancelot is forced to endure many perils and constantly prove his loyalty and love for the queen. He is even to endure climbing onto the cart which Chretien informs us is “for all criminals alike, for all traitors and murders, for all those who had lost trials by combat...the guilty person was taken and made to mount in the cart and was led through every street; he had lost all his feudal rights and was never again heard at court, nor invited or honoured there". Yet Chretien places Lancelot in this exact situation, not because he is a criminal, but rather an honorable knight who will do anything for the love of his queen, even if it is to endure public shame for being in the cart. This testifies the place of women in that society, and in the high regard they were held.
In the journey to rescue the queen, Lancelot is forced into many situations. Lancelot is tempted by an attractive woman whom he encounters, and pays due respect, as it is customary for the knight to show courtesy towards women. She offers him lodging which he accepts on the account that he sleep with her. He cannot turn his back, as his honor depends on it. He accepted her offer and made a promise to sleep with her. Even when the knight that sleeps with her, does not do so willingly. In fact, during the lodging he is called upon to rescue and show his courage towards the maiden that offered him lodging. Afterward, when he is set to sleep beside her Chretien informs us that, “Not once did he look towards her or anywhere but straight before him. He could show her no favour” as his love belonged to another. Chretien gives further insight into the prized position women had attained in this period, earning the courtesy and respect of men, “The customs and practices at this time were such that if a knight encountered a damsel or girl alone – be she lady or maidservant – he would as soon cut his own throat as treat her dishonourably, if he prized his good name”
The transformation of the male and female relationship is exhibited by Chretien throughout the text, from the time King Arthur entrusts his queen to be taken by Meleagant the evil knight, to Lancelot escorting a lady and protecting her from another knight, to King Bademagu ( the father of Meleagant ), keeping the queen Guenevere protected from other knights as well his own son. This indicates the status of women as objects of male desire that are to be cherished and guared and protected. Further indication of the esteem women held is seen in how men turned to them for advice and listened to them. Chretien plays with this in the beginning of the story when Meleagant first appears in Arthur’s court, and one of Arthur's knights wants to quit, and will not listen to Arthur, Arthur turns to his queen, “In desperation King Arthur went to his queen and asked: ’My lady, have you no idea what the seneschal wants from me? He has asked for leave and says that he will quit my court…But what he wouldn’t do for me, he’ll at once if you beg him’". This also corroborates Chretien earlier in which he describes a man’s honor is dependent on his doing the deed a female asks of him; to not turn them down. Moreover, Chretien tries to show in the many instances of Lancelot’s adventure, that his love for the queen, the female, is in contradistinction to reason. Further indication of the way women were praised by the men, and men’s overall gentility and gaiety and compassionate approach towards women, was Lancelot’s visit to the queen when no one noticed, and bows before her bed as if to a holy shrine, “Lancelot bowed low before the bedchamber, as if he were before an altar”.
What he presents is not just a form of love, but also a world of honor, of chivalry, of tournaments, of fighting and jousting, of promises made and kept by Lancelot, and deceptions and lies instigated by Meleagant; a world of courtesy and respect toward women, and how that love affected the relationship between men and women and their roles, how men fought to keep their honor and to win and protect the female object of their desire.
Courtly love was the culture of the court, and it emerged from different things, such as European contact with Muslims during the Crusades, and from Celtic tradition, as well as economic and social changes as there was great prosperity in the 12th century and stability. It was moreover based on body language, and flirting and the remaking of the role of women in Western society. It was a "goddess" dominate dreligion in which females were the goddesses. This was a replacement of the former belief of women being "sinners" ala Eve and taking a bite from the forbidden fruit. Women are historically believed to be tempted, below reason and polluted. This idea of courtly love, is against marriage. You love someone else, and your wife is your property, not your love. Love is considered outside of marriage. Everyting you are is because you are dedicated to the service of women of a social class. You have emergence of courtesy, hospitality, chivalry. All these modern notions of men and how they treat women are all derived from Medieval society. There is this belief that you must do certain things for women. This is when the language of love is invented in which women are placed as objects above. There emerge changes in ettiquete, manners, preoccupation on how you eat. The queen was Guenevere, the queen of King Arthur. The stress this society puts on love transcends marriage, and in fact adultery was all about love. You didn't love your wife, you loved someone else, and it was quiet, calm, and subtle.
The The Knight of the Cart can be perhaps described as that which embodies the essence and breath of the small segment of society at the time Chretien de Troyes was writing this in wihch "courtly love" was depicted. It is filled with love, fantasy, courage, and chivalry. It is these values that Chretien plays with throughout the story, and weaves them together, overlaps them, and separates them, to give a clear distinction of the society of the time, and what virtues were held in esteem, and what vices were frowned upon. It tells us who was a part of these courtly romances, of those who fought, for honor, and chivalry. It let’s us know the relationship between man and woman. On his journey Lancelot is forced to endure many perils and constantly prove his loyalty and love for the queen. He is even to endure climbing onto the cart which Chretien informs us is “for all criminals alike, for all traitors and murders, for all those who had lost trials by combat...the guilty person was taken and made to mount in the cart and was led through every street; he had lost all his feudal rights and was never again heard at court, nor invited or honoured there". Yet Chretien places Lancelot in this exact situation, not because he is a criminal, but rather an honorable knight who will do anything for the love of his queen, even if it is to endure public shame for being in the cart. This testifies the place of women in that society, and in the high regard they were held.
In the journey to rescue the queen, Lancelot is forced into many situations. Lancelot is tempted by an attractive woman whom he encounters, and pays due respect, as it is customary for the knight to show courtesy towards women. She offers him lodging which he accepts on the account that he sleep with her. He cannot turn his back, as his honor depends on it. He accepted her offer and made a promise to sleep with her. Even when the knight that sleeps with her, does not do so willingly. In fact, during the lodging he is called upon to rescue and show his courage towards the maiden that offered him lodging. Afterward, when he is set to sleep beside her Chretien informs us that, “Not once did he look towards her or anywhere but straight before him. He could show her no favour” as his love belonged to another. Chretien gives further insight into the prized position women had attained in this period, earning the courtesy and respect of men, “The customs and practices at this time were such that if a knight encountered a damsel or girl alone – be she lady or maidservant – he would as soon cut his own throat as treat her dishonourably, if he prized his good name”
The transformation of the male and female relationship is exhibited by Chretien throughout the text, from the time King Arthur entrusts his queen to be taken by Meleagant the evil knight, to Lancelot escorting a lady and protecting her from another knight, to King Bademagu ( the father of Meleagant ), keeping the queen Guenevere protected from other knights as well his own son. This indicates the status of women as objects of male desire that are to be cherished and guared and protected. Further indication of the esteem women held is seen in how men turned to them for advice and listened to them. Chretien plays with this in the beginning of the story when Meleagant first appears in Arthur’s court, and one of Arthur's knights wants to quit, and will not listen to Arthur, Arthur turns to his queen, “In desperation King Arthur went to his queen and asked: ’My lady, have you no idea what the seneschal wants from me? He has asked for leave and says that he will quit my court…But what he wouldn’t do for me, he’ll at once if you beg him’". This also corroborates Chretien earlier in which he describes a man’s honor is dependent on his doing the deed a female asks of him; to not turn them down. Moreover, Chretien tries to show in the many instances of Lancelot’s adventure, that his love for the queen, the female, is in contradistinction to reason. Further indication of the way women were praised by the men, and men’s overall gentility and gaiety and compassionate approach towards women, was Lancelot’s visit to the queen when no one noticed, and bows before her bed as if to a holy shrine, “Lancelot bowed low before the bedchamber, as if he were before an altar”.
What he presents is not just a form of love, but also a world of honor, of chivalry, of tournaments, of fighting and jousting, of promises made and kept by Lancelot, and deceptions and lies instigated by Meleagant; a world of courtesy and respect toward women, and how that love affected the relationship between men and women and their roles, how men fought to keep their honor and to win and protect the female object of their desire.