ENG 112 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Contemporary Romance, Courtly Love, Double Bind

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: English
• Course: ENG 112
• Professor: Sean Springer

Document Summary

I(cid:374) late (cid:373)edie(cid:448)al ti(cid:373)es, the (cid:449)ord (cid:862)ro(cid:373)a(cid:374)(cid:272)e(cid:863) referred to stories of heroi(cid:272) knights on adventurous questions. The knight abided by the chivalric code to be loyal, honourable, generous, (cid:272)ourageous, (cid:272)ourteous to (cid:449)o(cid:373)e(cid:374) a(cid:374)d se(cid:374)siti(cid:448)e to the (cid:374)eeds of so(cid:272)iety"s most vulnerable members. Exploring fantastic and idealized worlds, the medieval romance has much in common with contemporary genre fiction, which likewise depicts the world not as it is but as readers wish it were. Love is an art form that the hero must master: he must flatter her, he must spend everything he has on her, he must obey her every command. The woman has power over the man, who must prove himself to her: so overcome with passion, he falls ill in her presence. He must demonstrate moral improvement over the course of the courtship. Was an artistic revolt against the rise of european rationalism during the enlightenment (1650-1800)