Love In 'After Queen Guinevere's Lanval'

Lanval begins with Lanval leaving the city after the king did not give him any gifts. On his journey he encounters two girls sent by a fairy maiden to bring him to her; they fall in love and Lanval returns to the city promising not to speak of their relationship. However, after Queen Guinevere antagonizes him, he speaks of his love who claims has a more beautiful appearance than she does. This obviously upsets her, and she asks the king to put Lanval on trial. To escape punishment, Lanval must show his love, but she does not come to his rescue until the very last minute because he broke her one rule. The two ride off together to an island never to be heard from again. Lanval contains many chivalrous characters, but the best embodiment of many
The next two rules Marie develops upon specify that “a true lover does not desire to embrace in love anyone except [her] beloved” and “love can deny nothing to love” (Capellanus). The fairy maiden plays the role traditionally held by a man, the lover, during this time and portrays these rules through her words and actions: “’no man but you will see me or hear my words’” (Marie de France 169-170) and “afterward, she gave him a gift… [he] found his men well dressed. That night, his accommodations were rich…” (Marie de France 135, 202-203). She declares their monogamous relationship and provides for her beloved, and his men, achieving these rules furthering her chivalrous character. The final two rules Marie addresses in the beginning section of Lanval explain the public’s place in love: “good character alone makes any [woman] worthy of love” and “when made public love rarely endures” (Capellanus). When the girls the fairy maiden sent out for Lanval find him, they say, “’Sir Lanval, my lady, who is worthy and wise and beautiful, sent us for you’” (Marie de France 71-73). Their words both explicitly and implicitly indicate the fairy maiden’s chivalrous character; the girls acknowledge the fairy maiden’s worthiness, wisdom, and beauty, but their words also show they respect Lanval (Sir
The quotes from Capellanus’s summarized rules that define something about lovers themselves have changed pronouns or nouns depending on the subject of the rule. For example, when Marie incorporates the idea that “no one can love unless he is propelled by the persuasion of love” (Capellanus), she changes the subject of the rule to “she” when the fairy maiden hears words of love from Lanval. This implies that a woman should also wait to show affection until a man first declares his love which would have been contrary to traditional standards based on the summarized rule. Another example of changing the subject of the rule occurs when Marie addresses the rule stating, “good character alone makes any man worthy of love” (Capellanus). The noun “man” must change to “woman” in order to fit Marie’s use when the girls speak about the fairy maiden. This completely changes the traditional idea that men deserve love if they only show good character and women provide said love; by changing this, Marie implies that both men and women should show good character and then provide love because they are deserving. Based on her use of Capellanus’s rules, Marie explores the idea of equality for men and women both inside, when to show affection, and outside, exemplifying good character, of relationships, which is contrary to beliefs held during the