Chivalry
Slaying dragons, fighting for honor, rescuing damsels-surely, these must make a knight. Georges Duby, in his work William Marshal: The Flower of Chivalry, challenges this stereotypical fairytale presumption by examining the demands and intricacy of the knight's code of chivalry. This code, which played such an influential part in the choices made by the knights of old, still echoes in current customs.Completely immersed in the idea of chivalry from the earliest days of childhood, the demands of chivalry lived and breathed within each knight. Each story he heard, every song he sang emanated the rules of the ethic (86). Loyalty stood foremost among the requirements. A man was expected to keep his word, never betraying his "sworn faith" (86). But such an expectation was not always the truth, as the knight measured his loyalty "according to a strict hierarchical framework" (86). Should loyalties conflict, the knight first remained loyal to those closet to him politically. Faith owed to more distant allies proved rather flexible when eclipsed by stronger ties (86). With this hierarchical loyalty, no one could take offense at being displaced by a closer commitment (86).
The final precept of chivalry, aligning perhaps most closely to that stereotypical fairytale knighthood, considers the knightly treatment of women. Beyond the pedestal, allies do not realize a further priority; instead, they allow themselves to be offended by any deceit. Duby states that "the champion [sought] no other protection than the expertise of this charger, the quality of his armor, and the devotion of comrades of his own rank whose friendship [sustained] him" (87). Duby states that a "knight [owed] it to himself to keep nothing in his hands," indicating the extent of a knight's generosity (87). We swear allegiance to the American principle, rather than to an individual such as the President. Siblings stand up and fight for each other. Obliged by the ethic, and by an internal desire to impress his peers, a knight would "ride at full tilt to the rescue of wellborn women when he found them in danger" (45). Only after a man's loyalty to himself is concrete, can he concern himself with his ties to another man. Society still expects men to treat women with prescribed courtesies, as evidenced when men hold the door, extend a hand for support, pay for a dinner, pull out a woman's chair, among other common courtesies. Though the obligation for a man to perform such deeds is shifting to a more conservative stance, the fact remains that many men continue to extend these respects. All kinds of clubs, groups, and even gangs not only count on, but also depend on the loyalty of their members for survival. Because every person sees himself first when he thinks of loyalty, he takes offense when any other person is respected above himself. Seldom do nations return to the valor of chivalry, but surely such a shift proves positive as the change allows more men to remain out of harm's way. The ethic of chivalry required equality and openness on the battlefield, but does society still emphasize this equality? Today's powers seek the surprise attack.
Common topics in this essay:
Flower Chivalry,
Regime Society,
Pentagon September,
Despite American,
Red Cross,
Militarily Americans,
Fairytales Slaying,
United Britain,
remain loyal,
concern themselves,
generosity 87,
female's wishes,
stereotypical fairytale,
|
Acceptance Essays
