The knight is so smitten with the damsel that he makes an oath to her before he knows what it entails, purely to make her happy. He says "He is no lover who does not unhesitatingly do whatever pleases his lady, unstintingly and neglecting nothing, if ever he can in any way." This is similar to Erec neglecting all duties when he is with Enide. He gives up absolutely everything to spend time with her. He also does a lot to keep her safe, including fighting many during their adventures in the central part of the story.
2. Explain what a "boon" is (p. 111): who asks for it, why, what are the conditions, and are there any drawbacks?
A boon is a favor or deal that someone makes with another person. The damsel asks the knight for it because she wanted to keep him there. The conditions of this boon are that the knight would never leave this garden where he was dubbed knight until another knight came and defeated him in combat. The drawbacks are that he is constantly fighting, could get hurt, and may never get out. He did it anyway though, because he did not want to be "false and faithless and disloyal."
3. Does Erec fight in the Joy of the Court just for the fun of it? To enhance his reputation? What is the larger purpose that is served?
According to the king, the purpose is for "honour and renown" (106). Erec seems to be doing this for the glory of it, but he says "anyone who is overconfident and threatens too much is clearly a fool" (109). If he wins, his reputation would definitely be improved and he was well aware of this. The larger purpose that is served is to free the knight.
No comments:
Post a Comment