Distractions de Troyes

     Things escalate at a snail’s pace in this story. Just when the storyline seems to be picking up speed, the narrator slows down by giving us (unnecessary) in-depth descriptions of characters and settings. 

     One example of this distraction (as I will now refer to it), comes on page 6. Instead of simply stating the maiden’s beauty, we are flooded with details of Nature’s efforts to create such an attractive human being. Plenty of people would kill to be told that “never before had such a lovely creature been seen on the face of the earth” (6). I am impressed by the way that the narrator is able to speak so much and so intensely about the beauty of this maiden, yet, I still do not have a clear idea of what she looks like (except, of course, her hair is even brighter than the women in Pantene commercials). 

http://imgkid.com/pantene-hair-commercial.shtml

       What confused me about this maiden’s description, was the end. The narrator focuses solely on the maiden and Nature’s painstaking efforts, but the last sentence of this description focuses on males instead. It seemed odd to me that the narrator praised this maiden’s beauty and wisdom, then decides to compare her to a “mirror” for men to see their beauty in.

      Another distraction appears on page 21, when we are told about Enide’s new cloak. It isn’t simply a nice cloak, it is made of “deep-green silk,” and, “embroidered with little crosses that had been made especially for her.” I think we can all share the jealousy of her wardrobe here.

      Enide, to me, is a very important part of this story. It frustrates me that she is praised mainly for her beauty, and less so for her intelligence, but I am impressed that her knowledge is even mentioned within this text. In fact, there were a lot of differences in this text from the texts we have previously read.

One example comes on page fourteen. Erec states his disgust for violence toward women when he says, “It is disgraceful to strike a woman.” 

      This would be a foreign concept to the writer of “Courtly Love.” We’ve moved quickly from a reading which supports beating wives if they don’t agree with their husbands, to a text that claims the act of hitting women should never be acceptable. It’s crazy how drastically opinions can change over time. In a few years, I’m sure we will be looking back on the standards and beliefs of our society, wondering what the heck we were thinking. 

      Toward the end of the reading, I found that things picked up the pace—rather quickly. One small morning conversation between the couple, and all hell breaks loose. I didn’t expect Erec to act the way he does, and even less so the way he begins to treat Enide. I can’t help but to believe that he is testing her…but for what? She is obviously faithful and fully invested in their relationship. On the other hand, he could be trying to prove his worth as a knight to her. But I wish he would just give up the dramatic act and go home, because I can’t see this ending well.