'But four lovers' : Malory's Narratives of Courtly Love

• In Malory's story of Tristram, Isode sends greetings to Guinevere that 'there be within this londe but four lovers, and that is sir Launcelot and dame Gwenyver, and sir Trystrames and queene Isode'. However, despite this explicit comparison between the two great love stories of the Arthurian cycle, the relationships are markedly different. Whereas Lancelot and Guinevere largely remain inside the trope of knightly service to sovereign lady, Tristram's and Isode's interaction is less easily defined, drifting at times into a discourse of marriage rather than courtly love. This paper looks at the relationships from a perspective of power and control in courtly society.

Ämnesord

HUMANIORA  -- Språk och litteratur -- Studier av enskilda språk (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- Languages and Literature -- Specific Languages (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Malory

courtly love

English language

Engelska språket

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

kon (ämneskategori)