Le Cid Extremists
'The characters in Le Cid are extremists prepared, at whatever cost, to live up to their convictions.' Do you agree with this comment on the play?
“Pierre Corneille’s Le Cid focuses on a legendary hero of eleventh-century Spain and his feats of heroism, chivalry and honour. But a more pervading element of this play, one that is acted out by not only the protagonist but many other characters is that of sacrifice” . Having been set in the Seventeenth Century it was “adapted to the heroic ethic that Corneille recognised in the French nobility of his own generation...where the pundonor (a punctilious concern with personal and family honour) provided one of the predominant themes of Golden Age drama” . In this essay I will look at a selection of characters who appear to have strong convictions; if they live up to said convictions, they are, as the comment describes, “extremists prepared, at whatever cost, to live up to their convictions”.
Let us begin by defining an “extremist”. I consider an extremist to be a person who stands by their opinions or views beyond reasonable limits, be it political or, in the case of this book, love and honour. While this applies to many of the characters in Le Cid, I believe that it does not apply to all. …show more content…
The first sacrifice to happen in Le Cid is that of Don Diegue. While he, himself, does not live up to his convictions (being that he had lost a duel, and was dishonoured), he is willing to sacrifice the life of his own son, Don Rodrigue, in order to restore family honour. By sending his son to fight his duel for him, it could be argued that he may be an extremist; however he does not live up to his own convictions. Don Diegue was aware that he would not be successful in a duel with Don Gomes (having already been disarmed once) and so he forced his son to live up to his convictions for him. Due to this act of cowardice it is clear to me that Don Diegue is not an “extremist prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”.
Don Gomes, who defeated Don Diegue in a duel at the beginning of the play, but then is subsequently killed by Don Rodrigue, in my opinion, does not have any convictions in the play, this is because the beginning duel between Don Diegue and himself is due to Don Diegue's jealousy at not being chosen as tutor to the King’s son. Despite the fact that rejecting a duel with both Don Diegue and Don Rodrigue would, in this day and age, be seen as noble, in the Seventeenth Century, this would not have been the case. Therefore taking the social contract at the time into consideration, I maintain that Don Gomes was not an “extremist”, as he was unwilling to fight when his position in society was challenged.
One of the main characters in Corneille’s Le Cid is Chimène. Having lost her father (Don Gomes) in a duel with Don Rodrigue, she feels her father’s death must be avenged, and so this is her conviction, she must see the death of Don Rodrigue. However, this becomes extremely difficult for her as she is in love with Don Rodrigue, as clearly shown in this extract from the book:
« Et je veux que la voix de la plus noire envie
Elève au Ciel ma gloire et plaigne mes ennuis
Sachant que je t’adore et que je te poursuis »
Here, she admits that while she loves him she cannot disapprove his action.
R.C. Knight notes that Le Cid “contains a well-developed love story – of a couple united and divided by the cult of honour” , this quote from Chimène clearly illustrates his point of view. Throughout the book, Chimène is torn between doing what is needed to avenge her father and doing what her heart feels is right. This is a similar situation to that of Rodrigue and his father. Had Rodrigue decided not to duel, but to save his love for Chimène, he feared that Chimène would think of him as unworthy. Now, Chimène feels that in order to be worthy of Rodrigue’s love, she must be seen to do what is right. This dilemma is also shown through a speech by
Chimène:
« Tu n’as fait le devoir que d’un homme de bien; Mais aussi le faisant, tu m’as appris le mien »
I uphold that although Chimène is aware of her convictions, her motives are somewhat distorted. While she wants Rodrigue dead to avenge her father, she also wants him dead so that she can be worthy of his love. Taking all of this into consideration, I think that Chimène is not an “extremist”, as in the end she is unable to live up to her convictions and kill Rodrigue. As clearly shown the given statement of “the characters in Le Cid are extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions” does not, in my opinion, apply to all the characters in the book. However, there are obviously those to whom this statement does refer. I shall continue by bringing out some strong points and characters that are in favour of said statement.
The protagonist of this play, Don Rodrigue, is in my opinion the character who lives up to the given statement the most. Not only does he live up to the convictions of his father, but also of himself, his country and his love. By accepting his father’s request to challenge Don Gomes in a duel; he is living up to the convictions of his father, and not allowing his family name to be dishonoured, despite knowing that he would lose Chimène. The agreement to death, by Chimène, is living up to his convictions of having killed Don Gomes. And lastly, his going to fight the Moors is both Don Rodrigue living up to his convictions of Chimène, but also to that of the state as he would otherwise be punishable by death for having duelled. Taking all of this into consideration, I am lead to believe that Don Rodrigue is most definitely, as the title describes, an “extremist prepared, at whatever cost, to live up to their convictions”.
A further character in Le Cid, be it a minor one, but a character nonetheless, is Infanta. She was born into royalty; this, to me, is her conviction from birth. Given the social hierarchy that existed, Infanta could not marry anyone of a lower social status, unfortunately for her, this included Don Rodrigue. Knowing too well that it would be socially incorrect for her to have married Don Rodrigue when he was a mere simpleton, she pushed him closer to Chimène. While the cost of her conviction is not as great as that of other characters, I believe that she still stood by it, losing the person that she loved. Her loss is especially shown when Don Rodrigue returns from the battle with the Moors a hero, as it would be now that his heroism could overcome his social status and she could marry him; however given that she encouraged the relationship between Chimène and Don Rodrigue at the beginning, all chances of her marriage to Don Rodrigue were lost.
Another minor character in the play is Don Sanche. He makes an appearance at the end, when he offers to avenge Don Gomes on behalf of Chimène, in hope of gaining her love by raising his stature. While this is not a conviction of his own, he is taking upon himself the conviction of another and offering his life by doing so. However, it could also be argued that this example is similar to that of Infanta, only rather than accept the fact that he is not of the same social standing as Chimène, he wants to prove himself to be worthy of her love; and so his motives for challenging Don Rodrigue to the duel were not to live up to Chimène’s conviction, but to gain her love. I agree with both sides, but believe that whatever his motives, he still made another’s conviction his own, and was willing to sacrifice his own life for it, making him, in my eyes, as the title suggests, an “extremist prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”
Taking all that has been said into account, I neither agree nor disagree with the given statement that “the characters in Le Cid are extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”. While there are those characters who are not “extremists” (Don Diegue, Don Gomes and Chimène) there are without a doubt characters in Le Cid who are extremists prepared to do whatever it costs (Don Rodrigue, Infanta and Don Sanche). Therefore, not all the characters in Le Cid are “extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”, however there are those who stand by their duties beyond reasonable limits; whether it be their duty to themselves, to their family, or to love.
“Pierre Corneille’s Le Cid focuses on a legendary hero of eleventh-century Spain and his feats of heroism, chivalry and honour. But a more pervading element of this play, one that is acted out by not only the protagonist but many other characters is that of sacrifice” . Having been set in the Seventeenth Century it was “adapted to the heroic ethic that Corneille recognised in the French nobility of his own generation...where the pundonor (a punctilious concern with personal and family honour) provided one of the predominant themes of Golden Age drama” . In this essay I will look at a selection of characters who appear to have strong convictions; if they live up to said convictions, they are, as the comment describes, “extremists prepared, at whatever cost, to live up to their convictions”.
Let us begin by defining an “extremist”. I consider an extremist to be a person who stands by their opinions or views beyond reasonable limits, be it political or, in the case of this book, love and honour. While this applies to many of the characters in Le Cid, I believe that it does not apply to all. …show more content…
The first sacrifice to happen in Le Cid is that of Don Diegue. While he, himself, does not live up to his convictions (being that he had lost a duel, and was dishonoured), he is willing to sacrifice the life of his own son, Don Rodrigue, in order to restore family honour. By sending his son to fight his duel for him, it could be argued that he may be an extremist; however he does not live up to his own convictions. Don Diegue was aware that he would not be successful in a duel with Don Gomes (having already been disarmed once) and so he forced his son to live up to his convictions for him. Due to this act of cowardice it is clear to me that Don Diegue is not an “extremist prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”.
Don Gomes, who defeated Don Diegue in a duel at the beginning of the play, but then is subsequently killed by Don Rodrigue, in my opinion, does not have any convictions in the play, this is because the beginning duel between Don Diegue and himself is due to Don Diegue's jealousy at not being chosen as tutor to the King’s son. Despite the fact that rejecting a duel with both Don Diegue and Don Rodrigue would, in this day and age, be seen as noble, in the Seventeenth Century, this would not have been the case. Therefore taking the social contract at the time into consideration, I maintain that Don Gomes was not an “extremist”, as he was unwilling to fight when his position in society was challenged.
One of the main characters in Corneille’s Le Cid is Chimène. Having lost her father (Don Gomes) in a duel with Don Rodrigue, she feels her father’s death must be avenged, and so this is her conviction, she must see the death of Don Rodrigue. However, this becomes extremely difficult for her as she is in love with Don Rodrigue, as clearly shown in this extract from the book:
« Et je veux que la voix de la plus noire envie
Elève au Ciel ma gloire et plaigne mes ennuis
Sachant que je t’adore et que je te poursuis »
Here, she admits that while she loves him she cannot disapprove his action.
R.C. Knight notes that Le Cid “contains a well-developed love story – of a couple united and divided by the cult of honour” , this quote from Chimène clearly illustrates his point of view. Throughout the book, Chimène is torn between doing what is needed to avenge her father and doing what her heart feels is right. This is a similar situation to that of Rodrigue and his father. Had Rodrigue decided not to duel, but to save his love for Chimène, he feared that Chimène would think of him as unworthy. Now, Chimène feels that in order to be worthy of Rodrigue’s love, she must be seen to do what is right. This dilemma is also shown through a speech by
Chimène:
« Tu n’as fait le devoir que d’un homme de bien; Mais aussi le faisant, tu m’as appris le mien »
I uphold that although Chimène is aware of her convictions, her motives are somewhat distorted. While she wants Rodrigue dead to avenge her father, she also wants him dead so that she can be worthy of his love. Taking all of this into consideration, I think that Chimène is not an “extremist”, as in the end she is unable to live up to her convictions and kill Rodrigue. As clearly shown the given statement of “the characters in Le Cid are extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions” does not, in my opinion, apply to all the characters in the book. However, there are obviously those to whom this statement does refer. I shall continue by bringing out some strong points and characters that are in favour of said statement.
The protagonist of this play, Don Rodrigue, is in my opinion the character who lives up to the given statement the most. Not only does he live up to the convictions of his father, but also of himself, his country and his love. By accepting his father’s request to challenge Don Gomes in a duel; he is living up to the convictions of his father, and not allowing his family name to be dishonoured, despite knowing that he would lose Chimène. The agreement to death, by Chimène, is living up to his convictions of having killed Don Gomes. And lastly, his going to fight the Moors is both Don Rodrigue living up to his convictions of Chimène, but also to that of the state as he would otherwise be punishable by death for having duelled. Taking all of this into consideration, I am lead to believe that Don Rodrigue is most definitely, as the title describes, an “extremist prepared, at whatever cost, to live up to their convictions”.
A further character in Le Cid, be it a minor one, but a character nonetheless, is Infanta. She was born into royalty; this, to me, is her conviction from birth. Given the social hierarchy that existed, Infanta could not marry anyone of a lower social status, unfortunately for her, this included Don Rodrigue. Knowing too well that it would be socially incorrect for her to have married Don Rodrigue when he was a mere simpleton, she pushed him closer to Chimène. While the cost of her conviction is not as great as that of other characters, I believe that she still stood by it, losing the person that she loved. Her loss is especially shown when Don Rodrigue returns from the battle with the Moors a hero, as it would be now that his heroism could overcome his social status and she could marry him; however given that she encouraged the relationship between Chimène and Don Rodrigue at the beginning, all chances of her marriage to Don Rodrigue were lost.
Another minor character in the play is Don Sanche. He makes an appearance at the end, when he offers to avenge Don Gomes on behalf of Chimène, in hope of gaining her love by raising his stature. While this is not a conviction of his own, he is taking upon himself the conviction of another and offering his life by doing so. However, it could also be argued that this example is similar to that of Infanta, only rather than accept the fact that he is not of the same social standing as Chimène, he wants to prove himself to be worthy of her love; and so his motives for challenging Don Rodrigue to the duel were not to live up to Chimène’s conviction, but to gain her love. I agree with both sides, but believe that whatever his motives, he still made another’s conviction his own, and was willing to sacrifice his own life for it, making him, in my eyes, as the title suggests, an “extremist prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”
Taking all that has been said into account, I neither agree nor disagree with the given statement that “the characters in Le Cid are extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”. While there are those characters who are not “extremists” (Don Diegue, Don Gomes and Chimène) there are without a doubt characters in Le Cid who are extremists prepared to do whatever it costs (Don Rodrigue, Infanta and Don Sanche). Therefore, not all the characters in Le Cid are “extremists prepared at whatever cost to live up to their convictions”, however there are those who stand by their duties beyond reasonable limits; whether it be their duty to themselves, to their family, or to love.