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lancelot character analysis
lancelot character analysis
lancelot character analysis
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In the medieval time, knight was a really essential part of the society, because they protected people and prosperities for them. They are respected, and have good behavior. In order to keep the good reputation, people came up with the code of chivalry which lists all the qualities that a knight should have. The movie, First Knight is about a man named Lancelot who is good with sword. He saves the life of King Arthur’s wife, Guinevere, and his behavior captures King Arthur’s attention. Then, he is invited to join the knights of the round table of King Arthur. He goes to a public trial because he has an affair with Guinevere, but then Camelot got invaded. Lancelot killed Malagant, and saves the day. In this movie, Lancelot is a great knight, and he has plenty of quality that is in the code of Chivalry.
Courage is one of the most valuable qualities that Lancelot has, and that is what makes King Arthur’s notices his ability. Lancelot’s brave action gives him a good reputation in front of both King Arthur and Guinevere. When Lancelot is in the forest, he hears something went wrong with the carriage which Guinevere is in there. He sneaks in the forest where he is not familiar at all instead of leaving there as quick as he can, he saves Guinevere’s life. He knows that he is going to fight with many people, and he might get killed. But these factors do not stop him; on the contrary, he shows a lot of courage at this situation. That is what knights should do which is protecting poor and woman. Lancelot helps people when he feels that he is needed. When Guinevere is kidnapped again by Malagant, Lancelot sees it from a tower. He jumps straight into the sea, and tries to chase back the boat. Then, he finds that the group of people takes Gu...
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...s really grateful to Lancelot. King Arthur is curious about how Lancelot can he be so brave. Lancelot says that death for him is not really important as long as things they do is valuable. As a knight, he has faith for his job. He does not only care for his life, but also he thinks about things more selfless. King Arthur praises the excellent swordsmanship of Lancelot. All the things shows Lancelot is prowess, faithful and humility.
In this movie, Lancelot is the character who shows the good quality of a knight according to the code of chivalry. Lancelot is loyalty, brave, and he has prowess, faith and humility. People can learn from that knight is a well-respected occupation in the society in medieval time, and the standard to be a knight is also really strict. Everything Lancelot does helps to shape the glorified figure of a knight, and he does a fantastic job.
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.
Thomas Malory’s Le Morte D’arthur, T.H. White’s Once and Future King, and George Romero’s Knightriders encompass the evolution of the Arthurian tale from Malory’s time to the 1980s. Through this time many things have changed and these changes can be seen within the differences between each work. While there are many prominent differences chivalry or the knightly code is one of the main forces that tie these tales together. Malory reworks many of his sources to bring attention to the grand fellowship of Arthur’s Round Table and the chivalry that holds the knights together. Malory idealizes the power of chivalry and gives a great importance to it throughout his text. Unlike Malory, White does not idealize chivalry, but he does see the good and honorable aspects of chivalry. From Sprague Kurth’s article, “Conclusion,” it is clear to see that White gives his text an anti-war stance and shows chivalry and the controlling moral compass of Arthur’s knights. Chivalry is once again idealized in George Romero’s Knightriders the situations within the film are modernized but the emotions and illusions remain the same. T.H. White is directly referenced within the film and Malory’s idealization of the glory of chivalry can once again be seen. In my essay, I will show how chivalry is used in all the texts above as a bonding agent between all Arthurian knights. As Arthur’s knights honor and respect chivalry they remain as one cohesive group, but once they begin to abandon chivalry the Round Table begins to crumble and chaos ensues.
The evolution of human society consists mainly of ineffective ruling regimes and oppressed peasants. Medieval Europe falls into this same pervasive cycle. Social and political hierarchies intertwine which creates a grossly inefficient system. Hereditary lineage determines nobility. Commoners possess no hope of social mobility. Every aspect of life is virtually preordained. These circumstances revolve around the figure Lanval by Mari de France. Mari de France introduces Lanval as a courteous and distinguished knight of King Arthur’s court. Lanval possesses the most moral nature of all of King Arthur’s knights, yet even so, the other knights of King Arthur’s round table despise him. The many knights neglect acknowledgment of his nature as does
The force that compels Lancelot to undertake the cart is simply the great love he feels for his queen pushing him closer towards his goal, but the reasoned reluctance that stalls Lancelot is a competing goal to obey to the expectations of knighthood. Throughout the rest of the text, Lancelot repents for his great sin by “serv[ing] women unhesitatingly, for having shown the slightest preference for knightly honor over amorous duty” (Kibler 113). Chretien’s concise language and fictional portrayal of romantic ideologies of fin’ amors—or courtly love— illuminates unto the reader that the miniscule yet vastly significant mo...
Chivalry stresses fighting ability, faithfulness, honesty, generosity, service to one’s lord, service to one’s lady and loyalty to other warriors. The first part of chivalry, which stressed fighting ability and service to one’s lord, is taken directly from comitatus. Chivalry was not always followed in Le Morte D’Arthur much alike comitatus in Beowulf. The biggest withdrawal from chivalry is done by Lancelot. Lancelot broke this social system by taking part in an affair with Guinevere, by doing this he shatters the law of service to one’s lord. It is this decision that results in other characters in the story to stride away from the rules of chivalry, and in the end bring down the society. His decision caused warriors to conspire to catch Lancelot with Guinevere, which in the end leads to Lancelot killing several knights to escape. A pattern forms where a character breaks one part of the code of chivalry in the goal of keeping another code of chivalry intact. Eventually, this results in the demise of the Arthurian society. Because of Lancelot’s failure to follow the code of chivalry, he and Arthur create a long war. A lot of confusion in the warriors results from this, much like when Arthur’s men are ordered to have Guinevere burned, yet it was a violation of chivalry to not be loyal to your lady, and also a violation not to follow an order of the king.
...t is impossible to consistently relate to the characters in the Arthurian stories without a minimal understanding of the complex code of honor upheld by their many chevaliers and nobles. Malory, thankfully, injects ample evidence of this system into the dialogue and storyline. The prevalence of this abstract idea of honor leads one to safely make the conclusion that it is the paramount theme in Arthurian legend, as recounted by Sir Thomas Malory. And for those who strive towards Arthurian excellence, King Pelles offers advice that is simpler and more attractive than slaying fire-breathing beasts and winning jousts with tied limbs: “…Here shall no knight win [distinction] but if he be of [honor] himself and of [righteous] living…” (Malory 78).
The legendary figure of King Arthur, the Once and Future King, started his rise to literary prominence through Geoffrey of Monmouth and his work, The History of the Kings of Britain. Monmouth introduced readers to a heroic and noble king who defeated the Saxons and reclaimed Britain, creating a period which set the stage for the Arthurian era and the glories of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Over time additional authors added their voice to the telling of the Arthurian legend; adding events and characters, ultimately changing the story forever. Perhaps the most notable of these additions came in the form of Sir Lancelot. The creation of Lancelot, a knight introduced by Chrétien de Troyes in The Knight of the Cart, produced an underlying futile battle for top billing between Arthur and his top knight. The inclusion of Sir Lancelot in works such as, The Vulgate Cycle and Le Morte d’Arthur show further proof that once the character of Lancelot was created, King Arthur was no longer needed to save Camelot and bring it back to peace. Between Lancelot’s courtly love for King Arthur’s wife Guinevere and his renown for being “Sought after by all men and loved by all women more than any other knight” (Vulgate 102), one can see how King Arthur stood no chance against such a chivalric man, leaving him all but helpless to watch as Camelot and his round table crumbled as Lancelot’s prominence rose.
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 of 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. As a reader, this is the point where it seems that Lancelot has reached his goal for his journey, as he immediately departs from the castle to seek Lord Gawain the next day (Chretien de Troyes, 269). Lancelot is of course a
In order win Queen Guinevere's heart, Lancelot endures great humiliation and heroic feasts, which portray his virtuous and chivalric character. Chretien's portrayal of Lancelot "is in complete harmony with [Marie's] vision of [courtly] love" (Patronage 3).
Lancelot, also known as Sir Lancelot of the Lake, is considered one of King Arthur’s greatest knights. Lancelot is referred as “Sir Lancelot of the Lake” because he had grown up beside Nimue, the Lady of the Lake. Nimue nurtured him in her faerie dwelling after King Ryan destroyed his home land of Gwynedd. He is later knighted as one of King Arthur’s Round Table Knights for his power to heal a wounded knight’s injuries. In order to prove himself worthy of the role, Lancelot embarks on a journey and encounters many successes, such as defeating Sir Turquyn. Lancelot is also known for his many relationships with women. He is widely remembered for his adulterous love affair with Queen Guinevere. Lancelot becomes the model of chivalry due to his
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.
Lancelot, Bors, and Perceval all strive to become more like Galahad, and the author effectively uses these characters to teach his readers lessons about spiritual chivalry and personal salvation. The author provides each of these knights with a series of monks and hermits who counsel and guide him in the ways of spiritual chivalry, for only the most pure Christian knights have any hope of finding the Grail. The adventures of Perceval are very straightforward and easy to interpret, so he provides readers with a suitable introduction to spiritual chivalry and the importance of virginity, asceticism, and complete faith in God. The author faces Bors with more complicated challenges and visions than anything Perceval must handle; since the author tells Bors' adventures after Perceval's, readers should be more prepared to interpret their meaning and significance with regard to spiritual chivalry and personal salvation. The advice Lancelot receives from his series of monks and hermits shows readers the importance of confession and penance, but the author makes it clear that readers should not emulate Lancelot's life of sin ...
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...
Sir Lancelot, from the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, has become by far the most popular and well-remembered knight. Through Malory's rendition of traditional materials, we have inherited a character that has become the image of the quintessential knight. How is it that "the outsider, the foreigner, the 'upstart' who wins Arthur's heart and Guinevere's body and soul" (Walters xiv) has taken the place that, prior to Malory, was reserved for Sir Gawain? Malory has made this character larger than life. Of the grandeur of Lancelot, Derek Brewer says, "In the portrayal of Lancelot we generally recognize a vein of extravagance. He is the most obsessive of lovers, as he is the most beloved of ladies, and the greatest of fighters" (8). To achieve this feat, Malory has molded Lancelot to fit the idea of the perfect knight and the perfect lover.
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.