Robin Hood and the Code of Chivalry The legend of Robin Hood includes a group of so called outlaws, and how they go about fighting and cooperating with the others in their land. Along with the death of his father, Robin left his home after it was burned down to go and live in the woods. There, he assembled an army of loyal men to help him fight against unjust laws and actions in return for shelter, food, and camaraderie. Although considered outlaws, Robin Hood and his men clearly show actions of the Knightly Code, such as: defending the weak and helpless, fighting only in just causes, and dealing honorably with opponents in battle. Defending the weak and helpless has always been a large part of Robin’s morals, which is greatly shown throughout the story. For example, when speaking with Maid Marian at the feast in the woods, he shows her the part of his woods that is dedicated specifically to sheltering and feeding the homeless and poor. This is considered chivalrous because neither the Sheriff or Prince shows enough concern to provide a fair amount of care for everyone in the land, so …show more content…
For example, towards the end of the film, Marian was being held in the dungeon within the castle for being unloyal to her husband. In order to fight for her right to be with whomever she pleases, Robin fights mercilessly in order to help her escape. Also, when the knights try to invade Sherwood in search of Robin, all of his men go to secret hideouts among the trees and wait until the Sheriff and Prince pass along through in order to attack to protect their land and leader. This action shows chivalry because it is only fair that the men of Robin defend their homes land and leader just as well as the Nottingham army would do for their country, therefore making it a just cause. Clearly, Robin and his men demonstrate a clear understanding of which situations are worth fighting
This code of chivalry all came from King Arthur. It all began with Arthur’s father, Uther. Uther gets a sword from the Lady of the Lake and this sword is named Excalibur. Later on in the battle among England, Merlin (the magician) grants Uther his wish in return for whatever he asked for. As for this wish, Uther slept with Egrain’s wife as he asked and impregnated her with his soon to be son, Arthur. When Arthur was born Merlin came for what he was promised, and took Arthur away with him, raising him. What Merlin did know was that Uther’s son was soon to be the new King of England. This soon to be king, Arthur, must become a knight and granted the right to be king. However; there are three examples of chivalry from the two texts, "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and "Morte d’Arthur" are courage, honor and to protect the queen and all women.
T.H. White's novel The Once and Future King presents a code of chivalry that outlines the expected knightly behavior of the time. This particular code stresses loyalty to one's liege, love and respect toward women, and absolute devotion to justice. At the height of Arthur's kingdom, this code was widely accepted by all. However, as Arthur's kingdom begins to decline, the code of chivalry begins to hold less importance among the people. The fall of Arthur's kingdom is directly related to the absence of the code of chivalry in the behavior of the Knights of the Round Table. Sir Lancelot betrays Arthur when he has an adulteress affair with Guenever. Sir Lancelot also disrespects women when he leaves Elaine to be with Guenever in Camelot. King Arthur himself is disloyal to justice when he allows Guenever to be rescued by Lancelot.
In a the story, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Sir Gawain is faced with many challenges. Many of the challenges have to do with him trying to maintain his chivalry. Part of him maintaining his chivalry is to stay loyal; he should not give in to Lady Bertilak, who is constantly pursuing him, but should also listen to what she tells him to do. During Gawain 's stay at Bertilak’s castle, Lord Bertilak suggests they play a game in which they will have to exchange the winnings they gained that day. In the end, the story tells us that Lady Bertilak had been following the instructions her husband had given her to try to trick Gawain into not staying true to his word during the game they played. However, Lady Bertilak did many unnecessary and sexual
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight – A Test of Chivalry Essay with Outline: Loyalty, courage, honor, purity, and courtesy are all attributes of a knight that displays chivalry. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is truly a story of the test of these attributes. In order to have a true test of these attributes, there must first be a knight worthy of being tested, meaning that the knight must possess chivalric attributes to begin with. Sir Gawain is admittedly not the best knight around. He says "I am the weakest, well I know, and of wit feeblest; / and the loss of my life [will] be the least of any" (Sir Gawain, l. 354-355).
...tween medieval ethic and modern ethic. In both stories, the people fight to defend their land and to protect their citizens. The same was expected from the knights of medieval times.
In the Medieval Period, knights dedicated their lives to following the code of chivalry. In Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur, a number of characters performed chivalrous acts to achieve the status of an ideal knight. Their characteristics of respect for women and courtesy for all, helpfulness to the weak, honor, and skill in battle made the characters King Arthur, King Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette examples of a what knights strove to be like in Medieval society. Because of the examples ofchivalry, Le Morte d’Arthur showed what a knight desired to be, so he could improve theworld in which he lived.
The first example of “Chivalry” can be found in Morte D’Arthur when Sir Bedivere shows his courage to King Arthur. When he finds King Arthur lying in the field dying he weeps “Then Sir Bedivere wept for the death of his brother.” (page 191 middle of page) he weeps but soon he stops because it is cowardly to weep over someone who fought for his honor. Soon after King Arthur has him take his sword (Excalibur) and throw it in the water even though it’s a holy sword and he could take it for his own well being. He shows courage by showing that he will do what the King wants and will do it in a timely manner, but he doesn’t throw that sword in the water. He shows courage by betraying his King but still sticking around to see what the Arthur wants him to do next.
In the movie A Knight’s Tale the two main knights were William Thatcher and Count Adhemar. They both showed chivalry and courtly love, but not correctly. More of chivalry was followed more and the right way. The movie is very loosely based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s book Canterbury Tales. His father always wanted him the change his stars so he would not live in poor life forever. Even though both knights were good, William was better because he followed chivalry, courtly love, and prowess in battle.
Over the years, the legend of Robin Hood has endured great change. Through each generation, the story acquired new characters, tales, expanded themes, and some fresh historical contexts to adapt to the interests of the audience. The legend collected many fragments of other stories as time went on. Also as time passed, the character of Robin Hood underwent many changes. Originally, Robin Hood was portrayed as a yeoman, then transformed into a mistreated nobleman, later turned into an Englishman protesting the domination of the Normans, and finally, through modern adaptation he has came to be known as a social rebel who takes from the rich and gives to the poor. There is no way to ensure that a certain historical figure was in fact the basis for Robin Hood, however there exists many possible candidates. In order to find a possible identity that fits the persona of Robin Hood, one must look at the earliest works of literature that mention his name.
Code of Chivalry The code of Chivalry can be described as a brave, loyal, courteous, distinguished courage or ability that is admired for their brave and noble qualities. Chivalry is a system of ethical ideals that arose from feudalism and had its highest development in the 12th and 13th centenry.(Columbia ElectronicEncyclopedia).Respect is an essential part of chivalry.
The figure of Robin Hood is pure fiction. It has evolved over time, originating with a Common Highwayman, from there to acquire the title of Noble Patriot and finally became an early Advocate for Social Justice – ‘take it from the rich and give it to the poor’. Frequently reworked versions, which have been adapted over time, and additionally invented ballads, made him become a legend.
Response: Good question. Robin and the Merrymen's mission had started out as a personal vendetta against the Sheriff. It seems to me that in order for him to achieve that goal he must embrace a larger goal. This isn't all that unusual. We come across this all the time in business. A private inventor develops a new product that's really good. He starts a company and owns 100% of it. He does this to maintain control.
In everybody's life, there is something that makes him or her strive for success. That something can be money, a significant other, fame or many other incentives. To the medieval knights, victory renown and glory are the ambitions they strive for. Breaking a law in this code would be considered a disgrace, and would bring a dishonor worse than death itself. However, by applying the Code of Chivalry, the knights in medieval time displayed certain character traits that would secure success and honor in both battle and morality. In the book Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott, a knight named Wilfred of Ivanhoe illustrates this by devoting his attention to keeping the rules of the Code of Chivalry, which consisted of love of adventure, integrity and loyalty to the king, to name just a few. These character traits of Ivanhoe coupled with strong characters and a realistic setting allow the reader to understand the importance of a strong set of moral guidelines to all individuals of all times in spite of Sir Scott's excessive detail and confusing subplot.
Robin Hood and his Band of Merry Men had a successful first year. With new recruits pouring in from the furthest outreaches of England, Robin had met his objective of strengthening in number. Although he was satisfied with the size of the organization, he has realized necessary preparations had not been made to accommodate the now over abundance of members of his organization. Many challenges now face Robin such as a lack of provisions and lack of funds to support the band, but he cannot lose focus of their original foundation of "Robbing from the rich and giving to the poor". In addition they have to stay focused on their long term goal to remove Prince John from power by freeing King Richard from his imprisonment in Austria. Robin Hood has to form structure within his organization so that it can continue to grow and prosper.
"The Merry Men -- A Beginner's Guide to Robin Hood." The Merry Men -- A Beginner's Guide to Robin Hood. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. .