26 pages • 52 minutes read
Marie De FranceLe Lai de Lanval
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2009A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Courtly/Chivalric Love
A central theme of Le Lai de Lanval is courtly love. In Marie de France’s poem, courtly has two meanings. It is a synonym for well-mannered and, as such, is used to describe several characters. For instance, King Arthur and the maidens who serve Lanval’s beloved are referred to as “courtly” (Lines 6 and 533) or behaving in a “courtly fashion” (Line 490). When Arthur’s knights speak with Guinevere’s friends in the garden, they are referred to as “not uncourtly” (Line 252). Lanval is also described as “courtly” by Gawain (Line 231), and his damsel requires he behave in a “courtly” manner (Line 113). In these instances, courtly means refined.
The second meaning of courtly is to be chivalric. When applied to romantic relationships—and other interactions between men and women—courtly means adhering to a specific code of conduct. One medieval text that describes the code of chivalry is The Art of Courtly Love by Andreas Capellanus. In Marie de France’s poem, elements of courtly love are seen in the relationship between Lanval and his unnamed damsel (or fairy mistress). Fire metaphors are often used in descriptions of courtly love. When the damsel confesses her love for Lanval, “[l]ove’s spark pricked him so that his heart was set alight” (Lines 117-19). Love is given agency and is an arsonist in this metaphor.
Another aspect of courtly love is that a love affair must be kept secret; this is also common in fairy stories. Lanval’s beloved is from Avalon—a magical, “beautiful island” (Line 643)—and is able to appear whenever he “command[s]” (Line 216), so long as no one else is around. Alongside her desire for secrecy, these details indicate that she is a fairy or magic user. Guinevere also wants to have a courtly—secret—love affair with Lanval. However, Lanval’s heart is taken by his fairy damsel, so Guinevere’s affair does not appeal to him, and is therefore no longer courtly, meaning both outside Lanval’s code of behavior and impolite.
Further, courtly love is classified by intense, excessive desire. This aspect is seen when Lanval is “impatient to hold his beloved” (Line 254) rather than interested in any other women. The overwhelming nature of his love is seen in his lamentations when his fairy mistress will no longer appear to him after he revealed their secret. He is “distraught and anguished” (Line 338), “lament[s] and sigh[s]” (Line 341), curses “his heart and his mouth” (Line 345), and “it was a wonder he did not kill himself” (Line 346). This overwhelming love is at odds with the companionship between knights. King Arthur’s knights call Lanval’s courtly love “foolish love” (Line 400). Many Arthurian romances present this tension between heterosexual courtly love and the male-male bonds established via tournaments and war.
The final example of courtly love in the poem is when the damsel relents and comes to Lanval’s defense in Carlisle. She shows him mercy, despite his revealing their secret love. Lanval is not concerned with the outcome of his trial: “If she shows me no mercy, I hardly care if anyone should kill me, for my cure is in seeing her” (Lines 599-600). Lanval is consumed with his love for the fairy mistress and leaves Arthur’s court (and the male-male bonds therein) to be with her in Avalon at the end of the poem.
Green Space and Urban Space
The movement and differences between green (or undeveloped) space and urban space is another theme in Le Lai de Lanval. When King Arthur forgets to include Lanval in his gift-giving, Lanval seeks out a green space. After leaving Carlisle, he comes to a “meadow” (Line 44) near a “stream” (Line 45). It is in this green space—a space untouched by urban development, also called a pastoral space—where he meets his beloved. She is considered a fairy due to her beauty surpassing the beauty of most humans, being from the magical island Avalon, and her ability to instantly appear to Lanval at his command. She is also unnamed in the poem. Fairies and other magical beings typically reside in green spaces—outside the bounds of human society and urban development. Furthermore, the action of many Arthurian adventures begin by meeting a damsel near a stream or spring.
When Lanval leaves his beloved’s tent in the meadow, he “went towards the city, often looking behind him” (Lines 194-95). This develops the separate regions: He looks back towards the green space, which has elements of the past and an Edenic quality to it. Meanwhile, he moves forward toward the urban space, where life is bound by codes of conduct and ideas of progress. The urban space is also the courtly—or civilized—space. This space contains a tamed version of green space—a “garden beneath the tower” (Lines 223-24). This is a manufactured green space rather than a natural one. Like the “window cut out of the stone” (Line 237) out of which Guinevere looks, the green garden is bound by the urban palace. This permanent structure can be contrasted with the wild green space where Lanval’s beloved pitched her temporary tent.
King Arthur also experiences a contrast between green and urban space. Out in the woods, he has a “happy day” (Line 311) before he comes home to the palace, where Guinevere lies to him about Lanval. From then on, in Carlisle, Arthur has to address civilized and courtly matters: the trial of Lanval. He is “angry” (Lines 501 and 546) in his urban space, as opposed to being content in the forest. At the end of the poem, Arthur remains bound by the urban space, but Lanval chooses a different green space. He goes with his beloved to her home, the magical isle of “Avalon” (Line 641). As the titular character of the poem, Lanval’s actions show a clear preference, elevating the green space over the urban space.
The Importance of a Democratic Legal Process to King Arthur
King Arthur demonstrates a preference for democratic process in Le Lai de Lanval. Rather than taking advantage of being a monarch—utilizing the divine right of kings—Arthur chooses to give power to his judges (also referred to as barons in the poem). When Queen Guinevere falsely accuses Lanval, “the king was very angry and sent for all his men to tell him exactly what he should do, so that his action would not be unfavorably interpreted” (Lines 381-86). This shows how Arthur works to win the favor of his people by seeking opinions beyond his own.
The trial of Lanval incorporates democratic legal language rather than simple sentencing by a singular king. Lanval must “defend himself in court” (Line 327) and is freed only when the judges decree that he “successfully defended himself” (Line 628). While Arthur is frequently impatient, he only “demand[s] the verdict according to the charge and rebuttal” (Lines 424-25) from the judges. Arthur never attempts to take the matter of judging Lanval into his own hands, though a monarchy would allow this.
Even when the fairy damsel appears and asks if Lanval “can be acquitted by me” (Line 624), Arthur does not immediately pardon Lanval. Instead, Arthur “granted that it should be as the judges recommended, in accordance with justice” (Lines 625-27). The judges free Lanval based on the testimony of his beloved. This is unsurprising, given the reputation of Arthur from other chivalric romances. The fundamental structure of his court—the Knights of the Round Table—revolves around the idea of Arthur considering the opinions of his fellow knights rather than seating himself at the head of a square table. Roundness is democratic as no one person can be seated at the “head” of the table, and this circular distribution of power includes judges in the trial of Lanval.
