Essay on Attitudes Toward Love in French literature

Throughout the centuries, literature has provided a way to express oneself, while at the same time, allowing the reader to experience a different kind of life through the stories. As a creation of humans, literature tends to reflect the ideals and thoughts of its writer, while also providing a glimpse into the society, in which the writer penned the story. Perhaps one of the greatest and most intriguing human emotions is love and this theme is present in literature from its beginning to the present day. However, as people and societies changed and evolved, so did the attitudes toward love change with the times. In Medieval French Literature, love is often portrayed as an unreachable emotion and is associated with challenges and suffering,†¦show more content†¦At the beginning of this chantefable, Aucassin is forbidden to marry Nicolette, whom he loves greatly, because â€Å"†¦a slave girl she is, out of a strange land, and the captain of this town bought her of the Sar acens†¦Ã¢â‚¬  They are kept apart because of their different social standings and have to face many obstacles before they are finally united and allowed to marry. However, it is not their never-yielding love for each other that finally allows their marriage, but the fact that Nicolette learns that she is the daughter of the King of Carthage and could be a befitting wife of a count, further highlighting the importance of one’s title over one’s happiness. Geoffrey Rudel’s lyric poem â€Å"Why should I live?† also talks about the suffering that one has to endure, when he cannot be with his love: â€Å"Far off those towers and castles frown/ Where she resides in regal state,/ And I, at weary distance thrown,/ Can find no solace in my fate.† In this poem, his love is again forbidden by her higher social position. All in all, in Medieval literature, love is often unattainable and associated with suffering, reflecting a society that focused more on the established values of social position and rules of society than on emotions, especially love and happiness. In contrast, the French Renaissance was a period, where the values of the Medieval Period were slowly being changed due to the rediscovery of the literature of the Antiquity as well as innovations in science, religion andShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of John Fowles s The Magus1739 Words   |  7 PagesA written piece of literature means nothings without the reader. 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