Love, Honor, and Gender in “Lanval”
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by Michael Hall
but I love, and am loved by,
one who should be valued more highly
than all the women I know.
And I’ll tell you one thing,
know it well and openly:
any one of her servants,
even the poorest maid,
is worth more than you, lady queen,
in body, face, and beauty,
in manners and goodness. (293-303)When the maiden came through the gate,
with one leap Lanval
jumped on the palfrey, behind her.
With her he went to Avalon,
so the Bretons tell us,
to a very beautiful island;
the young man was carried off there. (638-644)
The story appears to differ in terms of courtly love and honor than literary works produced later in the medieval period, such as Le Morte Darthur. Malory’s story provides an excellent comparison of these traditions, especially since “Lanval” frequently alludes to Arthurian England. For example, one reference to the legendary era can be found in the second passage when the narrator reveals the lovers’ destination—Avalon. Based on this information, and other references throughout the text, we can assume that the Queen, who Lanvel is replying to in the first passage, is Arthur’s Guenevere. The author perhaps uses these characters knowing that the audience will be somewhat familiar with their personalities and their faults, such as Guenevere’s infidelity. But unlike the Arthurian world Malory reveals, this world seems to abandon, or perhaps does not possess, certain attributes that were assumed to be commonplace in a chivalric era. Specifically in the first passage, Lanval does not respond to the Queen in a manner that would be expected from an honorable knight, even when considering the insulting remarks made by the Queen after his refusal to be her lover. Instead of showing his dutiful love to a member of the court, Lanval responds by insulting the Queen, saying, in the first passage, that “even the poorest maid,/ is worth more than you, lady queen.” Lanval chooses not to withdraw from the situation, but decides to push the argument forward by degrading the Queen, comparing her with a servant of lower rank. Now this simply would not have happened in Malory’s world, where honorable knights treat women of status with the utmost respect, regardless of the conditions. Furthermore, I find it interesting that Lanval dismisses the Queen’s advances to preserve his relationship with a lower-class “maiden,” who he leaves with in the second passage. In fact, he places the maiden on a higher pedestal than the Queen by saying that he is “loved by,/ one who should be valued more highly/ than all the women I know.” Here, Lanval reveals not the heart of a knight, but the heart of a man. It seems that the author is using the relationships in the story to show how the power of true love will always trump courtly love, and perhaps how a young virginal maiden is more appealing to a man then an unfaithful married Queen.
Another element of the story that I found interesting was the reversed male and female roles. In many traditional romances, the man comes to save the day and rescues his beloved. Not so in “Lanval.” The second passage takes place after the maiden comes to the trial to save Lanval from being burned at the stake. Once again, this alludes to the situation between Lancelot and Guenevere in Malory’s story where Lancelot has come to save Guenevere. After her intervention, Lanval “with one leap…/ jumped on the palfrey, behind her.” First of all, notice that the horse they are on is described as a palfrey. According to the OED, a palfrey is a small horse specifically associated with a woman. Such a description is not a coincidence, but is used to reinforce the fact that it was not a manly knight on a warhorse that came to the rescue, but something innately feminine. Secondly, notice the position Lanval takes when jumping on the horse. He is in the rear, the location traditionally held for the woman passenger, while the maiden is “in control” of the horse. The reversed diction carries on in the following line when the narrator says: “With her he went to Avalon.” Once again, notice that it is not “with him,” but “with her” which implies the woman is in control. Another example of this is in the final line when the narrator says: “the young man was carried off there.” As before, this line places the female in control of the situation. The young man is being carried off to paradise by the maiden, and not vice-versa. I find this role reversal extremely interesting, especially considering the age when the story was written. The traditional head role of the male is not employed, but instead a powerful and heroic woman takes center stage. Perhaps Marie de France could be considered a medieval feminist?
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