Troilus and Criseyde: Epic or Farce?
It has long been argued whether Geoffrey Chaucer intended for Troilus and Criseyde to be read and understood literally, or if it is satirical in nature. Often the adherents to the first perspective suffer from an overly emotional and personal identification with the character of Troilus. However, most close readings reveal a depth of language manipulation as well as a lack of rhetorical fit indicating that Chaucer’s Troilus is a farce. The use of hyperbolic language in Chaucer’s opening address to the Furies and to lovers (lines 1-56) sets the satirical tone for the rest of the poem.
In ancient Greek literature, authors traditionally called on the Gods or Muses to guide their pens and poetry. Some would specify their muse, and invoke Calliope (muse of epic song), Euterpe (muse of lyric song), Melpomene (muse of tragedy) or whichever muse fit the needs of their writing. Chaucer deviates from that by calling on the Furies, the Grecian mythological personifications of vengeance. He invokes Tisiphone, the Fury avenger of murder and homicide, “Thesiphone, thow help me for t’endite / thise woful vers” (6-7). If Chaucer had wanted his audience to read his poem as a tragedy for Troilus, he could have invoked the muse Melpomene, or the Furies Alecto (moral crimes), or Megaera (jealousy, envy and infidelity). Any of those three deities would have more correctly fit the story, for though Criseyde is accused of immorality, adultery and many other things by readers, she is not the murderer of Troilus. This is a direct contradiction of mythological knowledge that any medieval reader would have. Chaucer’s use of Tisiphone is a deliberate exaggeration of the serious nature of tragedy to tell readers that they are not reading a tragedy. He writes that she is a “cruwel Furie, sorwynge evere in peyne” though Tisiphone is an avenger of wrongdoing and not a victim of tragedy (9). Chaucer asks Tisiphone to help him pen words that weep as he writes. His heavy-handed language in his request would be an immediate indicator to a medieval audience that he was writing satire.
Next Chaucer addresses the readers, or “lovers.” Here again, Chaucer exaggerates his requests in order to direct the reading audience towards farce and away from a literal interpretation. He asks that happy lovers pray for those who are in Troilus’ situation and to pray for Chaucer in his attempts “to shewe, in som manere, / Swich peyne and wo as Loves folk endure, / In Troilus unsely aventure” (33-35). His intense humbling of himself and his writing belies the pride he takes in his works, and his coy attitude about modesty instructs readers to take his writings with a grain of salt. Chaucer continues to ask his readers to pray for those who failed in love and “nevere nyl recovered be” (37), those hurt by wicked tongues and “hem that Loves servauntz be, / And write hire wo” (48-49). His repetition and emphasis on the “pain and woe” of love and Lovers sets the satirical framing of the text. His language is heavily exaggerated and contradicts much of what we believe and what courtly love teaches: that is, love is a wonderful thing that makes people happy. To pray for happy lovers and love’s servants in the same breath as those forsaken in love and who suffered from cruel gossip is absurdist and discredits his own statements. This is Chaucer’s purpose: to make the audience realize that his statements are often untrue and contradictory, and so readers must pay careful attention to these inconsistencies that create the sense of irony in Troilus.
Chaucer’s hyperbolic language is often hard to interpret as farce for a passive modern reader, but to his contemporary audience it would have been clearly satirical from the beginning. His use of exaggeration and repetition to create hyperboles is intended to change the audience’s view of the work and force them to look at it from a satirical perspective. Having accomplished this in the opening lines of Troilus and Criseyde, Chaucer is free to play with language, characterizations and situations throughout the rest of the poem, knowing that his readers are aware of his inter-textual interpretations and the purpose therein. To look only at the characters and plot of the poem ignores the rich language that Chaucer focuses so much of his efforts on manipulating and avoids his attempts to manipulate his readers through the language.
Chivalric Challenges in Gawain and the Green Knight
All proper romances are full of challenges for knights in shining armor. Arthurian Romance and Gawain and the Green Knight are no exception to this rule. In the tale, Gawain fights dragons, wolves, giants, bulls, wild-men and great knights of the land. The Gawain-poet writes that “never did he come to a stream or a ford but he found a foe before him” (1). He wins a great many battles in his travels to the Green Chapel, but the greatest challenges he receives throughout the story are to his identity as a chivalric hero. Within Arthur’s court Gawain is known as the greatest knight of the land, yet he allows himself to lose sight of what knighthood means. It is for this reason that Gawain is considered by the literary world as a “would-be hero.” Gawain’s failures in the tests and challenges of the Green Knight during Yuletide, Lady Bernlak in the castle and the Green Knight at the Green Chapel necessitate the re-identification of Gawain from chivalric hero to “hero manqué.”
During the Yuletide feasting is the first time Gawain fails as a chivalric hero. When the Green Knight challenges the knights of King Arthur’s court, all remain silent. The Knight laughs at their fear and asks, “’ What, is this Arthur’s hall, and these the knights whose renown hath run through many realms? Where are now your pride and your conquests, your wrath, and anger, and mighty words?’” According to the rules of chivalry, a knight cannot back down from a challenge, and yet that is exactly what Gawain does. His fealty as a vassal redeems his public image when he exchanges places with Arthur, but it cannot be forgotten that his private desires overrode his duty to accept the challenge. The rest of the court is even less interested in chivalry, as no other knight volunteered for the challenge even when Arthur was endangered. The court disbelieves that Gawain will do his duty as well and they laugh as the Green Knight leaves because they think the danger is past.
Gawain puts aside desire for duty at points throughout the story, and despite his original failure at the feast he becomes almost the only example of chivalry in this scene. When his king attempts to rise to the challenge of the Green Knight, Gawain is the first and only knight to request the honor of serving in Arthur’s stead. His duty to serve is of greater importance to Gawain than his fear of the Green Knight and what may happen in a year and a day, and his actions are identifiably chivalric. It is also obvious that Gawain intends to keep his promise to the Green Knight, though the court does not. Gawain sets out to find the Chapel months before he is due in order to make sure that tardiness does not become a factor in upholding his agreement. He is even commended for his timeliness by the Knight when he arrives at the Chapel. The Gawain-poet juxtaposes Gawain and Arthur’s Court, and uses the Green Knight to commend Gawain and rebuke the rest.
The agreement with Lord Bernlak plays the pivotal role in Gawain’s identification as a chivalric hero. For two days he keeps to his covenant with the lord despite Lady Bernlak’s insistent efforts to change his mind. It is quite common in Arthurian Romance for infidelities to occur, so for Gawain to keep to his promise and receive—and subsequently give—only kisses from her speaks to his good intentions to remain chivalrous and true to his word. Even on the third day Lady Bernlak offers first her ring and he refuses, and then her girdle which he refuses again. He tells her, “’and therefore, I pray ye, displease ye not, and ask me no longer, for I may not grant it’” It is only when she tells him that it is of magic origin that can save him from the Green Knight that he is tempted. When her husband returns Gawain gives him three kisses but keeps the girdle and breaks his word. Once more Gawain’s interest in glory and continued survival is given greater importance than his chivalric requirements.
The final test of the story is the scene at the Green Chapel. When asked to bare his neck he does so willingly, but when the Green Knight lowers the axe for the first blow Gawain flinches away. His reaction is very human, but the Knight rebukes him and asks, “’Thou art not Gawain,” he said, “who is held so valiant, that never feared he man by hill or vale, but thou shrinkest for fear ere thou feelest hurt. Such cowardice did I never hear of Gawain!’” The Green Knight is once again questioning Gawain’s identity as a chivalric hero, and Gawain’s reaction is angry and almost impatient. The Knight knows that Gawain has already failed the real test, but Gawain still believes he can redeem himself by standing as still as a rock or tree stump for the following beheading attempts. Gawain is interested in regaining his heroic identity in front of the Knight and retrieving the glory and fame associated with heroism once he returns safe to Arthur’s court. His sleepless night over the girdle is forgotten in the face of his public image.
This is Gawain’s failing, seen three times in the story. He is concerned with chivalry, duty and public image up until a point when glory outweighs honor. As a hero Gawain craves the fame associated with being known as the greatest of all Arthur’s knights, and when offered the girdle he realizes that when life and chivalry become mutually exclusive he chooses life. He allows personal desire for glory to win against chivalric duty and this decision makes him into the “hero manqué” as opposed to the chivalric hero that he had believed himself to be.
