Yvain the knight of the Lion, like most medieval tales is a coming of age story. The young, careless thrill seeking Yvain is transformed into a adult and a king that assumes responsibility while taking care of others. This transition can be credited on part to the Lion he encounters on his journey.
When first introduced to Yvain it is easy to tell that he is a young up and coming knight ready to make a name for himself. While hearing the story of his good friend, Calgrenant, being defeated by another knight he vows to avenge his fallen comrade. He seems more determined and eager than anyone else to go off to battle, however, his moment of pride is quickly met with ridicule by Sir Kay. "My lord Yvain! By God, Are you leaving tonight or tomorrow? Do let us know, fair sir, Just when you begin this ordeal, So we all can escort you....And if your dreams are bad tonight, Perhaps you'd better stay home." (600-610) it becomes apparent that Yvain is seen as a little brother in the eyes of his fellow knights. His feeling of inferiority leads him to do whatever he can to prove his worth, which is why he sneaks off in the knight to face the challenge alone. This is the first indication that young Yvain isn't emotionally and mentally mature. Yvain's pride and self esteem is heavily predicated on how he is viewed by others.
After killing the knight who defeated Calgrenant, Yvain marries his wife takes over the land; which are responsibilities he is not ready for. Soon after his victory the knights of King Arthur's court come to challenge The Lord of the land, unbeknown to them it is now Yvain. Yvain quickly defeats Sir Kay and then reveals himself. He has now gained the approval and recognition by his peers that he so despe...
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...eir bond growing in battles against the giant and Demon Brothers. Yvain matures greatly during this time, gradually deviating from his need of approval from others by humbling himself. He is known only as "The Knight of the Lion" and his identity is kept a secret, no longer motivated by admiration but now justice.
The Lion, a symbol of royalty, served as a mentor to Yvain, helping him grow into not only a man but a king. Only through his experiences with the Lion could he learn how to properly conduct himself like a man. Had he not encountered the Lion, Yvain wouldn't know what respect is. Yvain always had strength and courage like a lion but fought selfishly. After seeing the Lion defenseless against the snake he fights to defend those who cannot defend themselves. By assuming that responsibility of returning to his wife and land transforms from a boy to a man.
...ealing with the use of varying perspectives in value or moral judgements, to enhance certain traits. To complete the exploration of contrast, Yossarian asks, "..How many honest men were liars, brave men cowards, loyal men traitors, how many sainted men were corrupt, how many people in positions of trust had sold their souls to blackguards for petty cash, how many had never had souls?" (423). Heller does not offer clearly defined answers, but he raises many good questions through Yossarian's war experiences. The main evolution revolves around Yossarian's status and state of mind. It is in the self-exploration and the absurd, often immoral values that surround him that Yossarian achieves his main role of hero.However, by resorting to trying to escape after much change in values in perspective, Yossarian, in the process of doing so, sheds his claim to the heroic role.
King Arthur, a courageous man, who was able to pull out a sword from a rock as simple as possible. As for everyone else who tired, it was almost impossible. This was just the beginning stage of Arthur becoming a king. The thing that Merlin didn’...
The theatrical film The Lion In Winter stars Peter O’Toole as King Henry II, and Katharine Hepburn as his wife, Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine. Adapted from his stage play of the same title, author James Goldman provides a fictional, but plausible, account of intra-family deceit and political conniving within the large and powerful Angevin Empire, which spanned much of the land that is now Britain, and much of what is now Northeastern France, within the medieval world. Directed and edited by Anthony Harvey, the story, set in the winter of 1183, details the succession crisis faced by the aging King Henry II, as his three surviving sons vie for the crown, and Queen Eleanor plots, both with and against them, to regain her freedom, and become the power behind the throne occupied by her choice of successor. King Philip of France patiently waits, seeking political advantage within the internal fracturing, for the opportunity to destroy the Kingdom that Henry II has worked a lifetime to build.
Although the movie The Lion King is often times viewed as nothing more than a child-based movie, in actuality, it contains a much deeper meaning. It is a movie that not only displays the hardships of maturation, and the perplexities associated with growing, but it is also a movie that deals with the search for one's identity and responsibility. As said by director Julie Taymor, "In addition to being a tale about a boy's personal growth, the `Lion King' dramatizes the ritual of the `Circle of Life'." Throughout The Lion King, Simba must endeavor through the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth to take his place in the circle of life, as king of the pridelands.
The tales of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Lanval offer their readers insight into a common knightly quandary. Gawain and Lanval are both faced with challenges that threaten their ability to protect, uphold, and affirm their very knightliness. The two knights repeatedly see several knightly traits--- each invaluable to the essence of a knight--- brought into conflict. While the knights are glorified in their respective texts, they are faced with impossible dilemmas; in each story, both reader and knight are confronted with the reality that knightly perfection is unattainable: concessions must be made--- bits and pieces of their honor must be sacrificed.
The character of Sir Gawain is altered and strengthened. He broke the mold of what it was to be a knight for King Arthur and set an example of what it genuinely meant: to be honest and brave, to be confident in who he served and why he served, but not prideful, and to be willing to fight faithfully and strive for excellence on behalf of the King and the pride he took in his court. Sir Gawain embraces opportunities that not only enforces an examination of character and realization of differences wanted and unwanted, but also awareness of humiliation and the desire to be ultimately faithful.
With all his great achievements, he becomes king of his homeland (Geatland). Even in his old age, he still has an obligation to fight against the evils of nature. Beowulf hears about a dragon who has become extremely upset because a thief stole a cup from a treasure which he had been guarding for several years. When Beowulf asks for volunteers to fight against the dragon, all but one of Beowulf's followers run into the forest in fear. The one who stays with Beowulf, is a young warrior named Wiglaf.
The short story “Pride of Seven” by Robert W. Krepps portrays the theme that a male becomes a man by demonstrating bravery. This short story starts with the narrator moving into the Masai Tribe in Africa, and he meets En-Gerr who is scorned by warriors and girls. The narrator becomes friends with En-Gerr, and soon falls into this deep passion for the lions that lived nearby. En-Gerr decides to follow through to become a man and kill a lion, and heads out in search of a lion in his traditional warrior weapons and clothes. When En-Gerr and El Asfar, the head lion of the pride, come face to face En-Gerr tries to make peace with the lion. In the end, En Gerr succeeded in making peace with the lions and he still receives his manhood. The theme that
...d Beowulf can be as simple as the fact that the moral values in the late twentieth century are vastly different from the ones of Beowulf's time. While today we seek heroes who are as imperfect as the rest of us, heroes with whom we can identify ourselves with, audiences of old might have preferred a hero to whom they could aspire to. However, one thing remains the same. Both Yossarian and Beowulf shared an interest in their fellowman, and perhaps that is what ultimately defines our notions of a hero.
He would not have been the warrior he was without the three villains that attacked him and threatened other people’s lives. The Geatland King learned how to think morally, realistically and how to control his thoughtless and selfish urges. The id, ego and superego turned him from an egotistical young boy into a noble and respected man. While he is the id himself, Beowulf realizes his surroundings and fulfills his own potential to self-actualize himself. The man becomes perspicacious and selfless towards life and his people. The legend will live on as Beowulf, the boy who grew into a man by facing his
Beowulf is an epic poem that describes the heroics of a man with superhuman strength and bravery to go with it. The poem starts with a journey across the sea to defeat an enemy that has plagued the land of Herot for twelve years. The poem ends with Beowulf’s final deed of defeating a dragon that was plaguing his own land, but with the defeat of the dragon also comes the death of Beowulf. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a poem of bravery by one of King Arthur’s knights. Sir Gawain takes up the deed of playing a Christmas game with the challenging Green Knight. The Green Knight takes a blow from an ax at the hand of Sir Gawain, and in one year and one day, the Green Knight is to reciprocate the action to Sir Gawain. While Sir Gawain was heroic in his deed, Beowulf shows a certain selflessness in his bouts makes him a better hero than Sir Gawain.
At the beginning of the romance, Yvain is concerned primarily with prowess, for the sake of honor. Hearing the tale of his cousin Calogrenant's dishonor, his first thought is of vengeance: he "would avenge, if he could, his cousin's disgrace before returning" (266). He rides off to find the fountain, not to defend justice but to defend the family honor, seeking not reward but fame, as when he pursues the wounded Esclados because "no one would believe in his deed unless he returned with proof" (268). The kn...
Her cubs are playing on the yellow savannah grass. Her mate, out trying to settle things with the intruder that they met just one day ago. Her beautiful fur, swaying in the wind. She is an African lion. Then you see the long pipe of a shotgun sticking out of the bushes. It flashes before your eyes. The bullet rips through the plains, breaking the nearly impenetrable silence. The impact, knocks the lion over. A large red spot is visible on her shiny, golden coat. Why? Why do people kill lions, so they can take a small portion of the lion, and leave everything else? There are so many unique features about lions! Lions are very beautiful. They show us images of grace, courage, and compassion. The lions are very strong and protective. Lions protect their cubs and mates. They help humans by
The Lion King is a movie created by Disney and was released in the summer of 1994. It is about a pride of lions that uphold the cycle of nature, or as they call it “the circle of life” (The Lion King, 1994). The lion pride is considered royalty within the “Pride Lands” and are just and fair when it comes to hunting only what they need. A young prince named Simba is introduced and he is next in line to be the future king. However, Simba’s uncle Scar had other plans. He believed that it was his right all along to be named future king and wanted all of the glory to himself. Eventually, Scar comes up with an elaborate plan to rid the Pride Lands of Simba and the current King, Mufasa and take the throne for himself.
Towards the end of the novel, the change that has come over him becomes really apparent. After a conversation with the king, he says, "For his sake I accepted the discipline of being like a lion.