The Love Ethics of the Knight Literature in the Middle Ages

Abstract：In medieval Europe， knight literature was created more widely as a feudal class literature. The refined love between the knights， the handmaid of the feudal lords and the noble married women is in fact an extramarital affair ，which is appearing with the development of European knight system. This thesis mainly discusses the background of the Knights' love in the knight literature in the Middle Ages， and analyses some factors about catering for the social moral of the refined love at that times as well as its profound influence on the later literature and other aspects.

Key words：knight literature inthe Medieval Ages； the refined love； love ethics； marriage and religion； honor

中圖分類號：I106 文獻標識碼：A 文章編號：1672-1578（2018）10-0004-02

The middle ages were the feudal times which Christianity and feudal aristocracy ruled the European society， while knights were one of their tools to maintain feudal rule， and the Knights also came into being. With the continuous improvement of the knight class status， knight literature has gradually increased. It prevailed in the eleven and fourteenth century and was mainly popular in two European countries. knight literaturereflects the life ideal of Knight class， describes the knight's love and adventure stories， publicizes and beautifies the knighthood--loyalty， care， and chivalry.It is mainly divided into two kinds： the lyric poem and the knight's narrative poem. So， Some scholars believe that the refined love knight literature is a kind of pastime in the secular society of Europe while other people think it is a kind of romantic and noble emotion. To really understand the love in the European medieval knight literature， we need to analyze it in specific poetry and background.

1 The Formation of the Love Ethics in the Knight Literature

Knight literature is a very representative feudal class literature. The pursuit of love and the love ethics expressed have become a theme of knights life at that time. Therefore， the refined love is one of the most obvious and the most important eulogized objects. In the middle ages of Europe， many children were sent to the local aristocracy at a very young age to train so as to become a knight. In the process of their learning and growth， the noble ladies in the noble family will play a positive role of supervision and guidance， so that they will form an attachment complex towards the ladies. For the refined love， it is a unique love ethic created by the European medieval aristocracy as a product in the development of the knight system， representing a traditional and pure spirit.

The main manifestation of this love is that the knight can sacrifice everything and even give his life in the course of the pursuit and worship of the lady . In this situation， the lady has become a symbol of the true， the good and the beauty in the literary works， and the love becomes the life of the knight and everything in life. So sublimation of a knights qualities has become a very important life goal. At the same time， for Medieval Women in Europe， they often live under the authority of their husbands after marriage and can not pursue romance according to their own wishes. Since twelfth Century， many women believe that they need to find a knight as a lover except their husbands and pursue spiritual comfort from the other person. Moreover， this is also a fashion of medieval ladies in the middle ages. At all， the love between noblewomen and knights is a rebellious and spiritual release for their own feelings in the influence of Christian asceticism .

2 The Factors of the refined love in the secular rebellion

2.1 A rebellion against medieval marriages

As is depicted in novels， the marriage relationship that is driven by the wealth， power， and other interests in the middle ages is far from being a combination of emotions. It is a barbarous and coercive marriage. Women are in a lower position in society， only to marry for the reproduction of their offspring.However， in the refined love depicted in women， they have an absolutely high status and tend to be an idol. Knights feel glorious that they are able to loyal to the beloved lady and bend his knees in worship for them more than the carnal intercourse. To pursue the noblewomans love， knights need loyalty and sacrifice， which is justly a subversion of the relationship between men and women. The form of the refined love was a challenge and rebellion to the feudal political marriage at that time. The Lyric Song of Dawn is one of the most important works in praising the view of the knight's love. In the knight literature， it gives a positive compliment to a love that tries to destroy marriage. In this part of the poem， the knight has made a bold expression of the pursuit and desire of love. But， there is a big conflict with the idea advocated by the society that People need to obey and the feudal autocratic rule.

2.2 The Influence of Christian Ideology

However， in the middle ages of Europe， the Christian ideology occupies a dominant position. The strict hierarchy has imprisoned the personality of the people. Christian asceticism believes that sexuality is a representative of the disease and dirty. Christian can save their soul only by pressing the body of comforts desire and negating the inner pursuit of joy， advocating celibacy， denouncing sexuality and marriage. While Christianity devalues sexual desire， it is natural to raise the importance of chastity， and chastity is the peak of the moral perfection that Christians pursue. Every Christian who yearns for the city of God should be reserved and chastity. Whats more， this is not only because sex is incompatible with God's contact and prevents people from being saved， but because the married people can't devote themselves to the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore， as a lower knight and a Christian pious， the refined love in the knight literature seems pure， but in a sense， catering for the attitude to the religion to the sexual desire and marriage.

2.3 The spiritual pursuit of the knights honor

In the knight literature， “refined love” of the knights is often tied up with his honor. The sense of honor origins from a kind of palace custom and moral code that prevails in the middle ages of Western Europe， which is also a symbol of human status， fame and dignity as well as the yearning and the spiritual pursuit of the Knights. In essence， honor is a moral ideal of the social group， and love is a kind of emotional pursuit of individual life.

Generally speaking， the relationship between extramarital love and social ethics is always inharmonious. The marriage can also be recognized by the society on the basis of sexual gratification since the establishment of the monogamous family. Such an extramarital affair that destroys family stability is always an immoral and dishonorable behavior. Millions of love literatures show the fact that Men or heroines who get entangled in extramarital feelings will always have a tragic end. To our surprise， this phenomenon was miraculously bridged in the medieval knight literature of the Western Europe. The love between knights and noblewomen is not only regarded as a moral act， but also a source of honor for them. Knights regard the love of a lady as the greatest honor that a knight can achieve， which means that this refined love is at least inconsistent with social morality at that time. Moreover， the Knights are imitated by people and become the most direct influence of the social customs due to their social status， superb skill， and chivalrous spirit.

3 The Influence of the Refined Love on the Western Civilization

For the refined love of the knight's works， it has a profound influence on the Western civilization. The noble lady has become an important reason for the knight's active fighting rather than for the Lord at an earlier period of time. It makes knights more brave in the battle through the love and pursuit of the lady， and even be willing to sacrifice for them in the heart， shaping knights positive quality with the graceful bearing， refined and courteous characteristics. In the process of active communication with the aristocratic women， knights give expression to the courtesy， care and humility. This is also an important transition of chivalry society from the rudeness to gentleman， promoting the development of Knight Culture and social communication etiquette in the middle ages of Europe. And many people in the middle and lower classes of Britain have formed an upsurge of imitating the life of the aristocracy. Knight's concept of love has a direct influence on the Renaissance. Moreover， the whole Knight group with the rough and brutal nature of the Germanic people can respect and admire women， which is a great progress of society.

4 Conclusion

From above， it can be seen that the refined love is a love between the elegant women and the romantic heroes at that time， explaining why the love ethics of the medieval knight literature appeared from some aspects of medieval background and religion as well as knighthood. As the protagonist of the refined love， knights not only need to challenge the strict hierarchy at that time and break through the bondage of worldly affairs， but also need to overcome their behavioral obstacles and psychology to avoid falling into the mire of flesh desire. From that， the refined love in the knight literature is only the beautification and portrait of the aristocratic privileged class's corruption and enjoyment life， indicating the immorality of the privileged stratum， pointing out the hypocrisy and decay of the feudal ruling class， and reflecting some thoughts of the oppressed against religious asceticism， the pursuit of freedom and equality， longing for worldly love. Whats more， the discontent of the feudal marriage and the thoughts of pursuing free love fully reflected in the future romantic literature. Therefore， it also has a profound influence on the changes in the relationship between men and women in the western world.

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作者簡介：熊丹云，漢，女，南昌大學在讀碩士研究生，英語語言文學專業。