The Representation of Men in "Guy of Warwick" and "King Horn"

1. Introduction

Before I investigate the way masculinity is represented in the two romances more precisely, I want to clarify the socio-historical context and theoretical backgrounds of this essay first. The social system of the Middle Ages was strictly hierarchical regarding class (peasantry, clergy, nobility) and sex. The differences between men and women were considered natural (Cadden, p. 188) and based on ancient philosophy men were held as the supreme “human being”. As Bullough (in Lees) puts it on page 31:

“Aristotle, for example, had held that men were not only intellectually superior to women but morally superior as well. As proof, he pointed to nature, where he said the male of each species demonstratively was more advanced than the female - larger, stronger, and more agile. This led him to conclude that male domination was the will of nature and that to try to challenge nature in the name of an imagined principle of equality was quite contrary to the interests of both the individual and the community.”

Nevertheless Cadden says that there were great economic, social and cultural changes going on from the 11th to the 14th century in Europe and that the medieval thought should not be regarded as a derivative of ancient philosophy.

Of course, gender studies is a “modern invention” and its theories were not familiar to the people of the Middle Ages. Nonetheless I want to summarise the (for my essay) most important aspects of “The Critical Studies of Men and Masculinities”, because gender studies have become one of the fundamental bases of literary analysis during the last decades. Today gender is widely regarded as “socially constructed, produced and reproduced” as well as “variable and changing across time (history) and space (culture)” (Kimmel, p. 3). An important contemporary tool to investigate gender and its numerous effects is the concept of intersectionality, for it must be clear that medieval romance does almost exclusively depict the upper class, the well-off nobility, whereas the vast majority of the medieval society (i.e. peasants) is neglected. We should also be aware of the fact that medieval romance is primarily representing a public, idealised masculinity (i.e. chivalry) and that it tells us little of how private relations of men and women in the Middle Ages really were like. According to Holter (in Kimmel et al.) we find a “direct gender hierarchy” in the Middle Ages and as he writes “Premodern patriarchy was mainly a socio-political structure, underpinned by religion and the military” (p. 26).

Braudy argues that the extreme version of “wartime masculinity”, which we mainly find in the two examined texts, is older than what he calls “peacetime masculinity”. He sees the reason for this in the structure of ancient economies, expansions and plunderings were common in most parts of Europe. Force was the means to uphold legal power in the Middle Ages (p. 22) and the concept of honour (individual and collective) was a crucial element of masculinity (pp. 49+50). Knighthood the “primary, if not exclusive, masculine model in Europe” (p. 60) was inspired by pagan warriorship, Christian soldiery and classical heroism (p. 81).

I want to examine certain characters of both romances, two fighting scenes and the love relationships of the two protagonists, to show were we find depictions of a “hypermasculinity”, i.e. exaggerated, stereotypical kinds of masculinity, and discuss them.

2. The Depiction ofMale Characters

First of all, I want to take a close look at five male characters depicted in the two romances (Guy, Horn, Tirri, Amoraunt and Colbrond), concentrating on the protagonists. Both romances give a direct characterisation of the protagonists at the beginning. In Guy ofWarwick we find the following description of Guy:

The best bodi he was at nede That ever might bistriden stede And freest founde in fight.

The word ofhim ful wide it ran Over al this warld the priis he wan, As man most of might.

Balder bern was non in bi,

His name was hoten Sir Gii Of Warwike wise and wight.

Wight he was for sothe to say And holden for priis in everi play As knight of gret boundé.

(ll. 3-15)

He is described as the best man in times of danger that ever rode a horse. Whom is most noble in fight, well known and respected all over the world. He is mighty and bold, wise and courageous, winning every tournament. All these values and virtues ofhim are summarised in line 15 “A knight of great valour”. In the prologue of The Stanzaic Guy of War-wick he went to many countries, where he fought against dragons, beasts and worthy foes, to win the reputation as the best of all knights, in order to convince Felice, the daughter of the Earl of Warwick, to marry him. The Stanzaic begins with a two-week wedding celebration during which Guy begets a son and heir. Just after the feast he experiences a nightly epiphany (Rouse, p. 6) which underlines the religious (Christian) motif of the whole story.

To a turet Sir Gii is went And biheld that firmament That thicke with steres stode, On Jhesu omnipotent That alle his honour hadde him lent He thought with dreri mode, Hou he hadde ever ben strong werrour, For Jhesu love, our Saveour, Never no dede he gode.

Mani man he hadde slayn with wrong; "Allas, allas!" it was his song, For sorwe he yede ner wode.

"Allas," he seyd, "that Y was born, Bodi and soule icham forlorn, Of blis icham al bare For never in al mi liifbiforn For Him that bar the croun of thorn Gode dede dede Y nare.

Bot wer and wo ichave don wrought And mani a man to grounde ybrought, That rewes me ful sare.

To bote min sinnes ichil wende Barfot to mi lives ende To bid mi mete with care."

(ll. 241 -264)

Guy realises that he has never done any good deeds, but instead unjustly slew many men. He says that he has forlorn body and soul (he is damned to hell) and in great mourning he decides to leave Warwick in order to cure his sins by walking barefoot to the Holy Land and beg for his food. His pilgrimage to Jerusalem and back, where he meets several people who he feels obliged to help, is the main body of the Stanzaic. Of course, I had to choose certain scenes which underline aspects I want to focus on. In Jerusalem Guy meets King Triamour, who holds a conflicting view of him, but as Guy is disguised and only revealing his true identity shortly before departure, he speaks openly about his opinion of the Guy of Warwick.

"Min em he slough, the riche Soudan, Ate mete among ous everilkan. Seyghe Y never man so bigin.

Y seyghe hou he his heved of smot And bar it oway with him fot-hot Maugré that was therinne.

After him we driven tho - The devel halp him thennes to go, Y trowe he is ofhis kinne. Mahoun gaf that thou wer he, Ful siker might Y than be The maistri forto winne."

(ll. 985 - 996)

Triamour says that Guy disgracefully cut off his uncle's (the Sultan's) head while everybody was eating at the table. Furthermore he believes that Guy got assistance from the devil for he is of his (the devil's) kin. Nevertheless he wishes that Guy of Warwick was there, because he would guarantee the victory over Amoraunt and free his son Fabour. The Stanzaic emphasises the conflict between Christendom and Islam several times, which aroused essentially from the crusades between the 11th and the 13th century. As we will later see, the Muslim characters are as well reviled, if not even to a worse extent. Guy's only motivation for leaving his “family” is a religious one and so it is not surprising that one of his main attributes is that of being a Christian. A lot of more or less obvious religious allusions can be found throughout the text. One of the major Christian virtues, which I want to show through two scenes, is humility. When Guy, before the battle against Berard, is offered a silken dress he refuses and says that a good armour is all he wants.

In silke sche wald him dight.

Ac therof was nothing his thought; Bot of gode armour he hir bisough (ll. 2157 -2159)

After the victory against Colbrond and the defence of England against the Danes, King Athelstan even offers Guy half of his realm and begs him not to say no, but Guy refuses again and prefers a life as a hermit in the woods near Warwick.

That Y schal this day Sese and give into thine hond Half the reme of Inglond;

For Godes love say nought nay."

"Sir King," seyd Gii, "Y nil nought so. Have thou thi lond for evermo

(ll. 3297 - 3302)

Just as Guy, Horn is also directly characterised at the beginning of the text. However, the two protagonists differ immensely from each other as we will soon see. Horn is only 15 years old when the Saracens conquer his land and send him away. He is still more a boy than a man and although he later gains a chivalric reputation comparable to Guy's, he shows some (rather) feminine traits as beauty, which are not that directly attributed to Guy. Horn is described the following:

He hadde a sone that het Horn; Fairer ne mighte non beo born, No rein upon birine,

Ne sunne upon bischine.

Fairer nis non thane he was:

He was bright so the glas;

He was whit so the flur;

Rose red was his colur.

He was fayr and eke bold,

And of fiftene winter hold.

In none kinge riche Nas non his iliche.

(ll. 9 - 20)

Muchel was his fairhede,

For Jhesu Crist him makede.

(ll. 87 - 88)

He is beautiful and also bold, so beauty is his main trait at first. In the Middle Ages infancy was often related to womanhood and vice versa (Braudy, p. 21). Only through the detachment from his mother a boy could become a man. So Horn is still an adolescent going to be a man someday, whereas Guy already is a knight of the highest reputation right from the beginning. Horn's beauty is the main reason why the Saracens spare him and his companions. Although the emir also calls him eager, great, strong and quite tall, he says that Horn shall grow for seven full more years (to become an adult).

Payns him wolde slen,

Other al quic flen,

Yefhis fairnesse nere:

The children alle aslaye were. Thanne spak on admirad - Of wordes he was bald, - "Horn, thu art well kene,

And that is wel isene.

Thu art gret and strong, Fair and evene long; Thu schalt waxe more Bi fUlle seve yere.

(ll. 89 - 100)

When they arrive at King Almair's court in Westernesse, Horn the most beautiful and most intelligent, takes the word and emphasises his noble origin (as a king's son) and Christian belief, which was extremely important at the time. Pagans (non-Christians) were often automatically regarded as enemies.

He spak for hem alle, Vor so hit moste bivalle: He was the faireste And of wit the beste. “We beoth of Suddene, Icome of gode kenne,

Of Cristene blode,

And kynges swthe gode.

(ll. 175 -182)

After some time at the court, Ailmar says to Horn:

God knight he schal yelde." The king sede sone,

"That is wel idone.

Horn me wel iquemeth; God knight him bisemeth. He schal have mi dubbing And after wurth mi derling. And alle his feren twelf He schal knighten himself: Alle he schal hem knighte Bifore me this nighte."

(l. 486 - 496)

Horn pleases Ailmar a lot, so he agrees to dub him because he thinks he will turn out to be a good knight. Furthermore he shall marry his daughter Rymenhild, who is so wildly in love with Horn, and knight all of his twelve companions himself. To become a knight is extremely desirable for Horn, for he used to be a crown prince and becomes one again.

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