The Code Of Honor In The Knight Of The Cart

576 Words2 Pages

During the medieval period, knights were to follow the code of honor. The knights lived by this code, however, if they were to go against it, they would be considered dishonorable. In the Arthurian Romance epic poem, The Knight of the Cart (Lancelot), by Chretien de Troyes, there were many times when the knights went against the code of honor. The author puts little emphasis on chivalry throughout the epic poem, even though it’s a major concept to the knights. Disloyalty was displayed multiple times whether it was towards the king or a lord. Some of the knights had disregarded the nobility and acted on their own. Lancelot exhibited this trait through his love for Guinevere. Guinevere is King Arthur’s wife, yet Lancelot slept with her. He also had no doubts or guilty feeling when committing the dishonorable deed. Despite being the hero in this epic poem, he had not display the act of loyalty a knight should have to the king. Another example is when …show more content…

There were numerous times where the knight Meleagant had fought shamefully. Even if Meleagant is a villain, he is a knight who should follow the code of honor. For example, in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the Green Knight was the villain, but he fought honorably against Sir Gawain. The Green Knight did not use any tricks to try to win, instead he fought fairly. When Meleagant first fought Lancelot, he continued to attack him even though he wasn’t fighting back. King Bademagu saw that Meleagant was losing and asked the Guinevere to stop Lancelot from killing him. Guinevere decided to help the king and told Lancelot to stop fighting. Meleagant saw this and continued to attack Lancelot out of anger and shame. It is unchivalrous to attack an unarmed man and King Bademagu understood this and called his son cruel. Meleagant showed this dishonorable act once again when he imprisoned Lancelot. He used underhanded tactics in order to

Show More
Related

  • Code Of Chivalry In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight

    972 Words  | 2 Pages

    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 code of chivalry is a set of rules followed by the knights during the middle ages. The evolution of heroic and chivalry code has changed over time beginning from the Middle ages to now. The three stories Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Lanval and Beowulf illustrate what it takes to be considered a chivalrous knight.

    Read More

  • Comparing Wife Of Bath's Tale 'And Le Morte D' Arthur

    694 Words  | 2 Pages

    Life during the Middle Ages was full of social change, division, and classism. This feudal society of Britain was divided into three estates. (social classes) Within the second estate was the the knight who was a soldier for the king who fought in many battles. Even though the knight is expected to have the strength and the skills to fight in battle, all knights during the Medieval period additionally had a chivalrous aspect to them. Chivalry was the honor code of a knight which included bravery, courtesy, honor, and gallantry toward women. Within the stories of the “Wife of Bath’s Tale” and “Le Morte d’Arthur”, the code of chivalry was broken by knights which show the corruption of England’s feudal society.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Monty Python And The Holy Grail

    670 Words  | 2 Pages

    There was never an authentic code of chivalry as such, yet there were qualities idealized as chivalric such as bravery. Bravery was shown through satire during the film as King Arthur and his knights would run into many things that would exemplify their bravery and they retreat or fall back. One example would be when King Arthur and his knights go through the forest and run into the knights of “Ni.” The Knights of “Ni” would back King Arthur and his knights down by using the term “Ni” and force them to find shrubbery to move forward. King Arthur and his Knights would then go get the shrubby to come back for the Knights to say they are no longer the Knights of “Ni” and that King Arthur needs to find another shrubbery. King Arthur and his knights would not knowingly use the word “it” to back the Knights of “Ni” down so they could follow on with their quest to find the Holy

    Read More

  • The Code of Chivalry in The Once and Future King

    1147 Words  | 3 Pages

    The love triangle of Arthur, Lancelot, and Guenever is a constant theme throughout every account of the Arthurian legend. Geoffrey Ashe's The Arthurian Handbook states that "We may say that these knights are expected to serve their King..."(81). The revelation of the affair finally comes when Sir Agravaine shouts, "'Traitor Knight! Sir Lancelot, now art thou taken'"(White 569). Lancelot was summoned to Queen Guenever's bedroom, and Sir Agravaine is finally exposing the affair and gaining revenge on Lancelot for unhorsing him many times in the past. The two people that Arthur trusts most are Guenever and Lancelot. Arthur is well aware of the affair between the two, but chooses to pretend that nothing is going on. Due to this naivety, Arthur earns the disrespect (and even hatred) of Agravaine and Mordred, who eventual...

    Read More

  • I Saw Guinevere There as Well

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    Numerous sources, such as Layamon's "Arthur's Dream", Marie de France's "Lanval" and Sir Thomas Malory's Morte Darthur, portray Guinevere as a unfaithful wife and the primary cause of the fall of King Arthur and The Round Table. In all of the three works, Guinevere is seen approaching various men such as Lanval and Sir Lancelot, knights of her husband. And, yet, she remains virtuous and appealing in the eyes of King Arthur, who loves her dearly. Such blindness or possibly Arthur's unconditional love of Guinevere and Lancelot, Arthur's best knight, lead to the fall of Arthur's Britain and of the Round Table.

    Read More

  • Life's Lessons in The Once and Future King

    1094 Words  | 3 Pages

    Arthur's wife Guenever has an affair with one of Arthur's best knights, Lancelot. Since he is a just king, Arthur feels obligated to persecute them for adultery and treason. This went along with Mordred's plan to upset the court and, since he was the only son of Arthur (not with Guenever however), to become King of England. Lancelot kills Gareth, Gaheris, and Agravaine, all knights of the Roundtable. Mordred convinces a surviving knight, Gawaine that Lancelot killed them out of his own hatred of England.

    Read More

  • Lancelot In The Knight Of The Cart

    1122 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the story The Knight of the Cart by Chretien de Troyes, the knight of the cart, or better known as Lancelot, shows off his prowess as a knight time and time again. There can be no doubt as a reader that Lancelot is a knight of incredible skill and ambition, and that he would do whatever it took to appease those around him, especially Queen Guinevere herself. While his skill may be unmatched, there is one flaw of Lancelot that seems to be overlooked by Chretien de Troyes, and possibly other readers, and that is his commitment to adultery with Queen Guinevere. Writing as a romance author, of course, the text includes Lancelot finally achieving what he seemed to desire most, the Queen. For Chretien de Troyes, his way of portraying Lancelot achieving his goal, was to have him sleep with Queen Guinevere.

    Read More

  • Morte d Arthur

    944 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Knight of the Cart (Lancelot)

    387 Words  | 1 Pages

    Lancelot is portrayed mostly as a love-struck man and not a very logical knight. From the first moment he is introduced, he is seen as someone sick from love. He will do anything to save his love, Gweneviere; even if that meant dishonor. When Lancelot rode on the cart, he was immediately labeled as someone bad. He pushed aside reason for love. “Because love ordered it, and wished it, he jumped in; since Love ruled his action, the disgrace did not matter.” (212) There seemed to have been nothing that could stand in the path of Lancelot.

    Read More

  • Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; A Romance?

    1094 Words  | 3 Pages

    Closely associated to the romance tradition are two idealized standards of behavior, especially for knights: courage and chivalry. The protagonist within many medieval romances proved their worth by going on quests, as many a knights went in those times, thus returning with great tales of their travels and deeds. Many modern people think of chivalry as referring to a man's gallant treatment of women, and although that sense is derived from the medieval chivalric ideal, chivalry could be seen as more than that. Knights were expected to be brave, loyal, and honorable-sent to protect the weak, be noble to...

    Read More

  • Lancelot Knight Of The Cart: An Analysis

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    Written by order of Lady of Champagne, Chrétien de Troyes Lancelot Knight of the Cart is a story of a knight named Lancelot’s undying love for King Arthur’s wife, Queen Guinevere. In his introduction to the romantic medieval text, Chretien is sure to explain that the ideas within the text are mostly those of his Lady Champagne. Although there had been some speculation of a forbidden love between Lady Champagne and her scribe, there were never any charges against the two that lead to their dishonor. Other noble figures and members of Medieval English society however weren’t as fortunate and had to endure accusations and public humiliation. There was no separation between church and state in medieval England. Adultery was not only a sin against the church it was also an illegal crime that could not only grant a spouse an issue of divorce but the offender and their sexual partner would be subjected to criminal prosecution and public humiliation. The story of Guinevere and Lancelot reveal much about the society in which Chretien was writing within. Queen Guinevere’s status as a sovereign and wife of the king, would

    Read More

  • The Importance of Social Class Exposed in The Canterbury Tales

    1142 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chivalry dealt with loyalty honor, and service to women on and off the battle field’ (“The Medieval Period: 1066-1485” 76). The Knight in The Canterbury Tales is the perfect example of someone who follows the code of chivalry. Chaucer describes him with much admiration as “a most distinguishable man, who from the day on which he first began to ride abroad had followed chivalry, truth, honor generousness and courtesy” (Chaucer, "The Prologue." 117). While Chaucer praises the knight for ... ... middle of paper ... ...

    Read More

  • Chivalry Lesson in Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott

    1589 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Sir Lancelot Character Analysis

    616 Words  | 2 Pages

    How would you describe Sir Lancelot? Most people would say he is the strongest, bravest, and kindest knight of the round table. Some might say he is the biggest Benedict Arnold of all time because of the adultery he committed with Queen Guinevere. However, his chivalry and code of honor make him the epitome of a true gentleman. These contrasting qualities set Sir Lancelot apart from all the other knights and characters in the “Morte D’Arthur.” Lancelot’s gallant, courageous, and conflicting personality make him a complex character in this dramatic tale of love and betrayal.

    Read More

  • The Once and Future King Guenever

    888 Words  | 2 Pages

    husband, she found herself taken a fancy to the young knight, Lancelot. She admired his broken face and found herself falling in love. She loved both Lance and Arthur. She felt respect with gratitude, kindness, love and a sense of protection, but there was no romance felt in her relationship with the King.

    Read More

More about The Code Of Honor In The Knight Of The Cart

Open Document