Literature, regardless of its genre revolved around a popular theme during the medieval times. Writers tended to make courtly love an important aspect of the plots of their works. Good examples are Chaucer's The Miller's Tale and its counterpart De France's Guigemar. He uses the importance of class hierarchy as a main element of courtly love whereas she uses love as a driving force on the journey to it.
             Contrary to writers of his time Chaucer used average middle class characters to depict the courtly love tradition rather than nobility. Moreover the lover is the counterpart of the traditional knight. Absalom is the local parish clerk that fancies Alison and woos her in her husband's presence. John the Carpenter is present throughout the story but does nothing to stop him. De France however portrays the lovers alone and the King absent till they are discovered. In both scenarios the authors portray the rightness of extra-marital affairs and the main difference being the level of the husband's jealousy. John's jealously of Alison is not as great as that of the King's regarding his wife. He is aware of all of Absalom's doings yet leaves him and allows Nicholas a poor astronomy student to be near Alison. However in Guigemar the king is extremely jealous of his young wife and locks her up in a tower. He allows no one near her except a priest who "has lost his lower members."
             Love is a powerful force in both these stories. It is not only the driving force behind the character's actions, but it also causes them physical affliction. Chaucer uses the characters of Absalom and Nicholas to portray this. Absalom's love for
             Alison keeps him awake at night and his attempts at winning her love are more traditionally romantic. He sings under her window, sends her gifts and even money to try to earn her love whereas Nicholas professes his love to her and goes to farther lengths to make her his. Contradictory to this De France's
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