In the Middle Ages, women were usually forced to depend on a man for their safety, prosperity and guidance. Yet, in Marie de France's fictional tales of courtly love, men are actually victims of women's charms. Men are unable to live without their lovers, and their desire for love leads these men to be more noble and obedient. Marie de France does not follow the conventional rules of courtly love, but models relationships between men and women according to some of her characteristics. In fact, women in relationships often fall into one of three groups; those unpunished for adultery, those condemned for disloyalty and "God-like" women impeccable in body and spirit. Distinct symbolisms of marriage, social hierarchies, and gender roles arise from these imaginary relationships. The particular tales of Guigemar, Eliduc, and Lanval are all examples of relationships that show men and women in questionable social roles. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The Lay of Guigemar, a poetic description of lovers separated by distance and circumstance. Guigemar, a noble knight condemned to the inability to love, finds a deer in the woods and tries to kill it. When the arrow ricochets and wounds Guigemar, the deer tells him that he is cursed and that he will never heal his wound until he finds a woman worth suffering for. Guigemar finds comfort aboard a ship, which sails while he sleeps, and pushes him towards the kingdom of his future lovers. The queen of the land he comes across, as well as a maid, find him and offer him comfort and a place to heal his wound. In the end, Guigemar is not bothered by his wound but is troubled by his love for the queen. Both the queen and Guigemar believe that their love for each other is unrequited, so Guigemar hopes to die. However, he is invited to join the Queen, where they begin a relationship that lasts a year. To seal their mutual affection, the queen ties Guigemar's shirt in a knot that only she can untie, and Guigemar wraps it with a belt. When the king discovers their affair, he sets Guigemar free, leaving the queen behind to wonder if suicide is her only option for two years. He finds the boat on which Guigemar had originally arrived, sets sail for Brittany, but falls prey to Meriaduc's advances. Meriaduc cannot undo her belt, but Guigemar does, after learning that she is participating in his jousting tournament. Guigemar starves the enemy city, kills Meriaduc and is reunited with the queen. The immediate reaction to this poem is contempt of the queen's marriage. At the beginning of Guigemar's Lays, Marie de France explains Guigemar's lack of interest in women, but only uses the word for "unmarried". He says at the beginning, "There was no lady or maiden under heaven, however delicate and gentle, to whom he paid attention, though if he had requested his love for a damsel, she would most gladly have granted his wish." (P 3). Marie de France twice uses a word commonly referred to as unmarried woman to explain Guigemar's plight, but she later faces no punishment for sleeping with a married royal. Marie de France also has little problem with Guigemar's territorial nature, as she places a chastity belt around her lover, to ensure that she would "never bestow her love, except to him alone." (page 29). Marie de France shows little respect for the promises made in marriage, for there would be little romantics in Guigemar who would be immediately executed for her actions. Furthermore, both authors of this story remain unpunished for their crimesactions. Guigemar knew that he had to leave because of the queen's dream, and the queen was always locked in her tower before her lover arrived. This story constitutes a theme for subsequent stories; all moral, ethical and social boundaries are broken when love naturally presides over mortals. Eliduc's story is more normative for the time period Marie de France wrote, demonstrating that one male has unshakable control over two women at once. In this story, a knight named Eliduc was married to his wife Guildeluc and lived happily serving the king of Brittany, until he was vilified by jealous enemies. The king banishes him and leaves with ten knights. They promise to be faithful to each other. Eliduc arrives in a new land, where the lord has refused to give his daughter away. Eliduc gains the lord's approval by defeating the enemies who come to this land, much to the joy of his daughter as well. Initially, Eliduc behaves respectfully because he is married, but he finds it increasingly difficult to remain sincere with his wife. He is tested by Guilliadun, the lord's daughter, to see if his love is accepted. After much torment, Guilliadun expresses his love for Eliduc, which he denies, saying he is only in his presence for a year. He leaves after rejecting Guilliadun's advances several times, only to return to sadness once reunited with his true wife. Eliduc returns to Guilliadun again and attempts to take her back to his home. However, on the return journey, a great storm arises and Eliduc is accused of causing the storm with his affair. Guilliadun faints at the thought that Eliduc is married and is apparently dead. Guildeleuc finds Guilliadun's "dead" body in a chapel and brings Guilliadun back to life. He allowed Eliduc to marry his new love, on the condition that she could be granted a nunnery in the land where Guilliadun was resurrected. This story portrays high amounts of social hierarchy when examined through careful analysis and distant reading. First, if you look at the plot as a whole, there is an overbearing amount of male dominance. The man has a wife, rejects the advances of a potential lover, but ultimately takes her home without telling Guilliadun about Guildeluec, or vice versa. Marie de France presents this story with conflicting and distorted images of loyalties. Eliduc left the king of Brittany upon request and served both dutifully when called upon, but could not remain faithful to his wife. He doesn't sleep with Guilladun, but he allows himself to be emotionally fascinated by her. In this process, he guides Guilladun, leaving her with two choices; Eliduc takes her with him or lets her commit suicide. Guilladun is so adamant in his demands as he says, “'Since you cannot stay,' said the maiden. «Take me with you, wherever you go. Otherwise my life would be so sad without you, that I would like to end it with my knife'” (p. 42). Guildeluec shows similar desperation when he says, “'See,' he said, 'this woman, who in her beauty shines like a gem! This lady, in her life, was my lord's lover. It was because of her that all his days were ruined by grief. By my faith I am little surprised by her displeasure, since I, who am also a woman, will never again know, through pity or love, joy, having seen such a beautiful lady in the dust'” (p. 58) . Marie de France offered little mercy to show for Eliduc's real wife, to whom he promised not to cheat. However, she is shown as fragile and compassionate to Eliduc's fortune, standing over her lover's deathbed. Women are seen as completely subservient to men in this piece, and neither female character makes any choices that are not influenced by Eliduc. Marie deFrance gives the women little power or control in this story, leaving both lovers at Eliduc's mercy. An excellent example of reversed gender roles is depicted in Lay of Sir Lanval by Marie de France. Lanval is described as a loyal and charming knight, yet he is lonely and sad. He decides to explore the forest to free himself from his misfortune, where he comes across a stream. Two beautiful women approach him and explain that their lover was waiting for him. This girl tells him that she is looking for deep love and that he would be rewarded for loving the "Fairy Queen" in exchange for his silence. Lanval agrees and is promised an extravagant wish. The consequence for revealing their love to the outside is to lose the Fairy Queen forever. Later, during a sort of lunch in King Arthur's garden, Queen Guinevere tries to persuade Lanval. She confesses her desire to him and immediately offers herself to him out of affection. When he rejects the queen, she accuses him of homosexuality, to which he explains that he is in love with another woman whom he cannot betray. Guinevere accuses Lanval of having wronged her against King Arthur and he holds a trial to determine Lanval's innocence. Although Lanval does not speak of his love for the Fairy Queen, he vehemently denies the claims made by Guinevere, which King Arthur does not believe. The jury is divided in their decision, which angers the queen, but Lanval's love comes to clear her name. She forgives him for breaking his promise, but acknowledges his attempts to hide his identity during the trial. This story is very interesting in its portrayal of gender roles. In the previously mentioned stories, women were more faithful to their word than men. For example, in Guigemar's story, the queen has a chastity belt tied around her waist, while Guigemar simply has a knot on his shirt. Yet in this story Lanval risks execution without the help of an outside witness. Lanval is either at the mercy of King Arthur, which is normative, or at the mercy of his mistress, which is socially unusual. The descriptions of Lanval's interactions with the Fairy Queen are very clearly subservient, as explained when Marie de France says that "Lanval promised to strictly observe this commandment." Marie de France does not explain the Fairy Queen's wishes as a request, but as a commandment. He later describes this vow as a “covenant,” which is also a moderately severe word in place of “covenant” or “bond.” Lanval is always at the mercy of others, although he is a knight gifted with "beauty and valor". He is first tied up by his mistress, then threatened by Queen Guinevere and almost executed by King Arthur. In earlier tales, like Eliduc, both kings offered high praise to their knight, and both women found themselves subservient to who Eliduc chose to be with. Even with certain death in his future, Lanval kept his promise not to reveal the identity of his lover. When the maids arrive at the trial to present the Fair Queen, Lanval “replied very simply that never before had he seen these damsels with his own eyes, nor known and loved them in his heart” (P. 40). Lanval was not obligated to keep the Fairy Queen's handmaidens a secret, but Lanval was so deferential to his lover that he did not even want to admit their existence. Lanval, a male in love, shows extreme submission to the desires of his lovers, which is in contrast to other tales written by Marie de France. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get Custom Essay Marie de France's Lai are not at all coherent, nor do they carry a single overarching theme about love. Everything is fine.