courtly love

THE TRADITION OF COURTLY LOVE IS AN ELABORATE ATTITUDE OR CODE OF BEHAVIOR EUROPEAN THOUGHT FROM THE TWELFTH CENTURYON.. PREVIOSLY ,THE FRENCH TROUBADOURS IN LANGUEDOC HAD SUNG THE PROVE

THE TRADITION OF COURTLY LOVE IS AN ELABORATE

ATTITUDE OR CODE OF BEHAVIOR EUROPEAN THOUGHT FROM THE TWELFTH CENTURYON PREVIOSLY ,THE FRENCH TROUBADOURS IN LANGUEDOC HAD SUNG THE PROVENCAL LOVE SONG WHICH LATER BECAME INCORPORATED INTOTHE LOVE POETRY OF THE MIDDLE AGES ,AND EVEN INTO OUR CODE OF LOVE TODAY MANY OF THE FEATURES OF THIS SENTIMENT HAVE DISAPPEARED,BUT THEY FORMED A

MOMENTOUS BACKGROUND FOR EUROPEAN LITERATURE FOR MORE THAN EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS THE FRENCH POETS WERE THE FIRST TOEXPRESS OR INVENT THE ROMANTIC NOTION OF PASSION WHICH CHANGED THE ENTIRE

IMAGINATION OR DAILY LIFE OF THOSE AFFECTED FOR THIS REASON ,(PLACE YOUR NAME) FINDS IT ABSOLUTELY

UNAVOIDABLE TO VOTE THE ENTIRE FIRST CHAPTER OF HIS ALLEGORY OF LOVE TO THE SENTIMENT OF COURTLY

LOVE,EVEN BEFORE HE BEGINS HIS DISCUSSION ON THE ALLEGORICAL LOVE POETRY OF THE MIDDLE AGES IN THE ART OF COURTLY LOVE ,ANDREAS CAPELLANUS DEALS WITH THE SUBJECT QUITE ADEQUATELY AND PARADOXICALLY HIS BOOK IS DIVIDED INTO TWO PARTS :FIRST, HOW ONE

CONTROLS AND DIRECTS HIS EMOTIONS IN THE EYES OF HIS BELOVED ;AND SECOUNDLY ,HOW ONE SHOULD TRY TO REJECT SECULAR LOVE AND CONCENTRATE ON A NOBLER LOVE DIRECTED TOWARDS GOD DISREGARDING THE

SECOUND PART ,CAPPELLANUS' WORK IS A GUIDE ON HOW

TO PREPARE SOMEONE PSYCHOLOGICALLY FOR A POSSIBLE PHYSIOLOGICAL HAPPENING IT IS THE EMBODIMENT OF THE NOTION OF COURTLY LOVE AND THE GAME OF RHETORIC WHICH IS PLAYED BETWEEN THE TWO PERSON INVOLVED THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEM DETERMINES THE

ULTIMATE GOAL OF THEIR GAME IF THE LADY HAPPENS TO

BE A WOMEN OF HIGHER NOBILITY THAN THE MAN WHO IS WOOING HER ,THEN HE MUST SATISFY HIMSELF WITH

NOTHING MORE THAN HER PRESENCE HOWEVER ,IF THE LADY IS OF A LESSER STATION IN LIFE ,OR ESPECIALLY OF A PLEASANT CLASS ,THEN THE GAME IS DIRECTED TOWARDS

"GETTING HER INTO BED AS SKILLFULLY AS POSSIBLE , FOR SHE CAN UNDERSTAND NO OTHER LANGUAGE THE REWARD

OF COURTLY LOVE IS AN ENNOBLING CHARACTER WHICH IS BOTH INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY REVEALING ALTHOUGH THE LOVER SUFFERS GREATLY IN LOVING PASSIONATELY WHAT HE CANNOT HAVE ,HE ALSO TAKES GREAT CARE IN LOOKING ,ACTING ,AND SPEAKING AS APPEALING AS HIS LADY WOULD HAVE HIM THE MAN BECOMES A CHANGED PERSON WHEN HE BECOMES A LOVER ,FOR LOVE CONVERTS MAN'SMOST AGGRESIVE INSTINCTS TO PASSIVE ONES ANY OVERWHELMING EMOTIONS IS DEVASTATING ,BUT COURTLY LOVE TEACHES ONE HOW TO CONTROL AND DIRECT THESE EMOTIONS ,WHICH ULTIMATELY BECOME AN ARTIN MODES OF

EXPRESSION.THE COURTLY LOVE TRADITION IS A LATIN

TRADITION THE GERMANIC PEOPLE ,SUCH AS THE NORSEMEN

OR DANES ,WHO ARE REMOVED FROM THIS SPIRIT SPEAK MOSTLY OF HEROIC DEEDS THE DEEPEST EMOTIONS

EXPRESSED AMOUNG THEM ARE THOSE OF MAN FOR

MAN,MAN FOR HIS FEUDAL LORD ,OR MAN FOR HIS COUNTRY SUCH ARE THE TIES WHICH BIND ROLAND TO HIS LORD ,CHARLEMAGNE ,RATHER THAN TO HIS LADY MARRIAGES HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH COURTLY LOVE ,FOR THEY WERE OFTEN ARRANGED FOR INTEREST THE LOVER ALWAYS

LOOKED WITH REVERANCE UPON NOBLER WOMAN THAN HIMSELF ONE 'S WIFE AWS HIS OWN SUBJUGATED WOMAN WHOM HE COULD HAVE AT ANY TIME HOWEVER ,THIS SAME WIFE WAS POBABLY THE BELOVED OF ANOTHER ,FOR LOVE WAS USUALLY DIRECTED TOWARDS A MARRIED WOMAN

.THUS ,THE PHYSICAL CONQUEST OF A NOBLE LADY WAS NOT THE AIM OF THE LOVER THE ONLY VIRTUES HE COULD EVER DARE TO CLAIM WERE OBEDIENCE TO HER SLIGHTEST WISHES ANDSILENT ACQUIESCENCS TO HER REBUKES THE TYPICAL LOVE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN A MARRIED LADY OF NOBILITY AND LESSER KNIGHT WHO COURTED HER

FAITHFULLY IS FOUND IN CHRETIEN DE TROYES'LAUNELOT CHRETIEN BORROWS THE CONCEPTION OF THE ARTHURIAN COURT ,AND USES IT AS THE BACKGROUND OR HOME OF TRUE AND NOBLE LOVE LAUNCELOT AND GUINEVERE ,KING ARTHUR 'S QUEEN ,ARE SECRETLY IN LOVE LEWIS AND

ILLUSTRATES LAUNCELOTS UNFAILING DEVOTION TO HER BY MENTIONING SOME DANGERS LAUNCELOT MEETS WHEN RESCUING HIS BELOVED FROM THE LAND OF GORRE HE LOSSES HIS HORSE QUITE EARLY IN HIS MISSION ,AND MUST THEREFORE OVERCOME OTHER DIFFICULTIES ON FOOT.ON THE WAY ,HE MEETS A DWARF DRIVING "A CART OF SHAME," AND HESITATES FOR A SHORT TIME AS TO WHETHER TO MOUNT LAUNCELOT THINKS OF HIS LADY AND DOES THE

DISGRACE OF HIS RIDE ,AS PEOPLE SHOUT AND DEMAND HIS CRIME,AND THE CROSSING OF THE BRIGDE INTO GORRE

FURTHER PROVE HIS LOVE THE BRIGDE CONSISTED OF

SINGLE BLADEOF STEEL ,AND EVN AFTER THE WOUNDED LAUNCELOT ARRIVES IN THE RPESENCE OF THE QUEEN , HE

IS IGNORED ,FOR SHE HAS HEARD OF HIS MOMENTARY

HESITATION IN ENTERING THE CART LAUNCELOT 'S PREVIOUS MERITS AND LABORS IN THE SERVICE OF HER LOVE DID NOT COUNT AND WHEN HE IS FINALLY FORGIVEN ,GUINEVERS STILL TESTS HIM BY COMMANDING HIM TO DO HIS POOREST

IN A TOURNAMENT LAUNECELOT IS FINALLY CARNALLY

REWARDED ,BUT HE DOES BESTOW DIVINE HONORS ON

GUINEVERE.HE KNEELS NEAR HER BED AND GENUFLECTS AS

HE LEAVES HERROOM THIS LOVE RELIGION HE

DEMONSTRATES IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRESONIFIED FIGURE OF LOVE HIMSELF