Jones

1) I think the title implies an idea of the only crusade worth while. The quest for the grail may under mind how important the actual grail is. The last crusade promotes an idea of the grail to end all Grail's type of thing. If Indiana does indeed find the grail then their would be no need for any other crusade.
8) The grail must be chosen from all of the false ones just as only the most appropriate knight for the job can obtain the grail. Indiana obviously has been the knight for the crusade and he had to gain the grail to save his father. Therefore, his quest would only be complete if by some other force such as the hand of the lord were to guide him into his decision.

last day Small World

Persse- This character is seen throughout as the main character for the most part. He was on the grail quest from the beginning of the book. We discussed how he is supposed to be the Perceval character and follows alot of the same path. He was green when coming onto the scene as a brand new teacher. The question would be why he ended up loving Cheryl instead?


- He found out his true love was Cheryl as appose to Angelica and he can also not have her. Just like his grail quest she is unavailable and he finds that she had been fired and was traveling across the world.

small world three

1) How do we see some knights progress?
-We see the one knight get his book review done in a superb manner. He is very happy and finds that it is not just because of Zapp who many look to as a leader but on his own accord. He finds that two newspapers want to cover him and it is as if he has one a major tournament.
2) How do you read the end of the text?
-Not every not is of the chivalrous manner. We see this when this particular knight decides to withhold his secret from his wife. It is hard to tell if there is a legitimate reason or if he simply does not see his maiden as worthy of the news. Either way great accomplishments can happen to people that are not necessarily perfect characters.

Small World 2

1) What does all the intercourse show you in response to knighthood?

- I feel that the intercourse has a lot to do how we interpret knighthood throughout all of the other texts. These men seem to find themselves in awkward situations such as the mile high participant and the threesome with the asian woman and her husband. I feel that this shows a trend of the knights going on quests and fulfilling their needs much like the knights in previous stories.

2) How do the different lives all lead to the same type of conventions?

- Each of these people take very separate journeys to get to the all important conferences. It is important to jump from story to story in order to show us the adventures of the men, and how they plan on obtaining the "Grail". Some use papers while others basically waste their days away. Each knight has a separate journey in order to gain the same goals

Small World

2) I think that Persse is presented as somewhat of a quiet but intelligent character. He is run by his emotions and falls in love quickly with Angelica at an early point in the book, without hardly knowing her. He seems to be able to handle some of the intellectuals at the conference though social settings are not necessarily his greatest asset. Obviously a college graduate who has just finished is Masters thesis on T.S. Elliot.
3) The conference is a ton of hustle and bustle with Persse not understanding a lot of what is going on around him. The parallels are that of a grand precession and the introduction of Angelica in which he falls immediately in love with. Persse is a young man straight out of college and put into a place that he is not ready for at the time.

Grail last day

3) The hermit rightfully tells Perceval to be more charitable in his ways, he is in dire need of being a better person and has yet to do so. He has almost never acted charitably in his quest for the grail and he has absolutely acted egocentrically in his goals. The most charitable act discussed in class was that of Jesus Christ giving up his life for the sins of all of us. Perceval can not ever get the grail becuase of all of his inpurities.
4)Gawain also goes on a quest of sorts a journey much like all of the Knights we have read about do. His is similar to Percevals in that most of his acts are done under a separate name or under falsehoods. After meeting his mother he does not give up his identity and does not act as charitably as possible. He only decides to fight when he has to defend his honor and seems to have a love interest like the one Perceval has with Blancheflore.

Grail 2

2) The grail precession deals alot with mystery for many reasons. First of all, few know of an actual holy grail and this one is to symbolize Perceval's entire quest. He is immediately curious about the grail and does not know of the maiden carrying it. The meal is presented as one of the best ever, full of tons of food and merry talks along with great fruit and even better wine. Again this symbolizes the intensity and honor the quest for the grail entails.
3) I think the face of Blancheflor is vivid in Percevals mind even if it is only contained in three drops of blood. The white flower obviously being the snow that surrounds the blood, and Perceval can not draw his attention away from it. I feel that the blood symbolizes doom in her case and possibly his own. Blood is always connected with death and Perceval has very little idea of what is in store for him. The red blood may also symbolize passion as red is the color of love. His burning desire for the quest may bleed into Blancheflor.

The Grail

1) Chretien once again has a lengthy speach at the beginning of the tale that tells us a little about the text and alot about how good of a writer and story teller he can be. He talks alot of God's good will, such as the concept of hiding the charity done so that only God knows you are worthy of his kingdom, and uses your own abilities to get you where you need to be in the world. Smarts are key, and as we find out early on Percival has few street smarts.
2) Percival first sees the knight's and is dumbfounded by what he beholds. He of course has zero street smarts and has no idea what a knight is. The knights on the other hand are seen as the most gentle and chivalrous characters. They answer everyone of Percivals somewhat dumb questions without haste and ask very little of him. This does not fit the descriptions of past knight's in that they have rarely been upstanding people. They conflict in that Percival knows very little of what is in store for him if he does go on this grail quest.

movie

1) I think the title of the film suits it perfectly in that no one actually ever got what they wanted, but in fact were burdened by their desires throughout the entire movie. The man did not ever get to sleep with the young girl, though that seemed to be his only desire throughout the whole film. She in return never settled down, her desire was never fully figured out because she seemed to hate the man and only use him for his money. He also had trouble pulling himself away from watching her make love to the young man. His desire was so obscure that his mind became twisted.
5) Matheiu is the narrator for a few reasons. First of all it is used as a device to set the scene, it is much easier to tell the story with little background of the characters when a story is being told. Maybe a few months past in the only necessity to tell a story. Also we see the man as a generally smart person, so to relive his acts it makes sense to have a therapist sitting next to him and analyzing all of his mishaps. I think it is a very easy way to have someone deal with the awful issues and the unbelievable lies that the woman puts him through.

last day Celestina

1) The dead of the night represents how untrue their love actually is. The night always speaks to acts of disrespect and mischief much like the two of them sleeping around. The objects of light are representative of the small pieces of guiding light that seem to lend themselves to their meetings. Although they should not be meeting like this there is plenty to say for having a lover and desiring someone. Both of them understand that it is wrong and therefore need darkness to cover their wrong doings.
2) The love that the two of them share for each other is a falsehood. Each one only has desire for the chase, and lust for the sex and neither exhibits true love. The reason for keeping the wooden doors shut the first time was to prolong the chase, and to say that one loves another after meeting for merely minutes is impossible. I do not feel that any characters exhibit true love. Even his servants keep up a false act with their prostitutes of choice and all of it is based on lust only. I think the idea of love is so appealing that the text uses it so much to convey basic hormonal needs as appose to actual love.

Celestina

1) The speech by Calisto illudes to a magical moment for him. He even says that Lucrecia should stay to witness this great part in his life. It is everything he had planned on and therefore was estatic with how it played out, even afer he finds out his men have died.
"how tardy came my pleasure how quickly my greif"! Melibea says after learning of the misfortune Calisto suffers while leaving her place. The death of Calisto burdens her deeply and we are completely convinced that she did indeed love him and loved the desire they shared.

Celestina 3

1) Celestina is not at all good hearted. We see this when dealing with Areusa and her illness early on in this section. Instead of actually trying to help her she in deed feels her up so to speak and Areusa must tell her the pain is higher up. Celestina we see does not only care for men, but enjoys the feeling of women too. Sex is her life and she does not differentiate between genders. She is not a nice woman at all, and has no morals when it comes to boundaries.
2) The chain for Celestina represents a job well done and her most high of presents thus far. She has complete power over Calisto and his two servants now understand that they have very little say in what he does. One even comments that she does not deserve the chain. Chains in general represent holding someone back, or physically stopping them from doing something. Much like Calisto's love is stopping him from performing day to day as he should

Celestina one

1) I believe that the garden can symbolize growth and a sort of purity at the moment. The garden may even have a biblical reference, like the garden of Eden. The growth may be of the two lovers later on in the book. Calisto talks of unlawful love and how he feels about her, she in turn throws him away saying no one shall speak to her in that manner. I feel that we can not see her words as genuine and that she may in fact be flattered by the entire episode.
2) Calisto has fallen sick becuase of the spell Melibea has put him under with his beauty. When he returns home he is so distraught by the torture she has put him through that he tells his servent Sempronio he is ill. I feel that the whole conversation is over exaggerated and played out. He loves a woman he has just met, and even remarks that he is not a Christian but a "Melibean", that he infact loves and worships her and that he "believes in Melibea". They discuss woman in general and Sempronio has a bleak outlook on them while Calisto sees them as marvelous creatures, and finally that Melibea is "beyond compare my better". He is not uses his head and over reacts to his infatuationt.

Dec 4

9.2- The pants are symbolic of the hippocracy that the church has been turned into throughout the stories. The head nun is no better than any person on the street, committing one of the worst sins known to the religion and then scolding another for the exact same reason. The sin in fact is irrelevant, and the Abbess merely scolds to save face, she does not feel that the sin is true, and therefore the sin becomes little more than a side note.
9.3- I feel that his friends are completely at fault. Although Calandrino was stingy and not as smart as them, he should not be unjustly duped as he was. His friends not only stole his money but they also made him so upset at his wife that she was almost beaten. She was also embarrassed by her husband when he told his friends she preferred to be on top. The wife's role is slightly different from other stories. Although she is told she will be beaten, she does have control in bed which is a rarity in these stories.

Dec 4

7.3- How do we see the woman's role as the negative in the story?
- The woman is committing adultery as we have seen a thousand times in The Decameron. However the deceit falls much deeper in the fact that she lies to her husband. The sin of the cloth is down played in that the wife is not caught because she lies about the son having worms, and in fact the brother helped to exorcise him.
7.4- How do we again see the woman played is the villain in the situation?
- The wife tricks her husband by pretending to throw herself down the well. This is a a reasonable thing to do when the husband drunkenly locks her out of the house. However the fault falls upon her when she gets back into the house and uses lies to yell to the neighbors. We see her as evil when she makes him out to be more unreasonable than he is.

Dec 3

5.8- We see the father of long ago fight for his son's freedom, how do you read the love a parent always has for his child?
- The son did commit a crime in every sense for he believed he was a slave and his lover saw him as a slave. They both decided afterwards to lie about their great sin and therefore deserved the death sentence. However we see the father recognize his son as a noble man and free him of his sins by proving it. The son also gets his wife and child and they live happily ever after with the love from the father. I read this as no matter how bad a child screws up, a parent is always there to fight the battle as best they can, this theme is as strong today as it was then.
6.7- A woman's role is presented much as a Male's would be in this text, explain.
- This woman of adultery is the most cunning person we have read about thus far. She does not abide by any of the rules that affect her and the women of that time and she does as she pleases. Her role seems to be one of a male character in that in front of a court of law she breaks down the unjust law and gets them to change it. This type of women's liberation is still a very strong idea in our society today, but one of the few we have read about thus far.

The Dec 3

3.3- The woman uses the friar as a middle man in a deceitful way. She urges him to stop the man from ever speaking to her or seeing her. This of course is what the friar would like to hear because he is a holy man and does not condone multiple partners. She uses props such as the purse to woo her man and the friar is never the wiser. He is a holy man, the first of which we have seen from the clergy.
3.6- First of all, the jealousy is the largest factor that he plays upon to get her into the sheets with him. He lies to her and uses other people to get what he wishes. In fact, if she was not jealous he would never get her into the baths, and therefore never get her into bed. The way he uses dishonor is awful. It is not fair for him to make her deceive everyone she knows because he has basically raped her. The only resolution is that she falls to passion as well.
4.3- I feel that love finally has the last laugh. In each of our story cheating and lying has worked well for the characters. This is somewhat of redemption in that the deceit of love has finally killed two of the six involved. The only remorse felt is for the two killed, for they had nothing to do with the murders, in fact they were the only two pure of any issue in the story.

the decameron-2

2.5- Andreuccio is easily persuaded in the text, his arrogant behavior leads him into his first trap while his faith in others leads him to his second. By the third event he is more cunning and at the very least holds a profit for himself. The repetition is evident in that each time he is tricked by the words of others, however he gains knowledge and figures out that he is capable of trickery himself. For example on his final trial he steals the ring for himself, and although locked in the tomb he is a very rich man. I feel that the text is teaching us to learn from our mistakes, and to protect ourselves from being tricked by always being on our guard.
2.6- I feel that the text does not reveal a whole lot more than we as humans already know about our race. The love and affection a mother has for her children does not wither as her mind and body does. She protects her son after a certain death occurs when he is caught sleeping with the kings daughter. Although the mother is found on the island she never loses faith in her sons and in the end the king shows mercy as well as smarts for his own wealth and everybody lives happily ever after.
3.1- The muteness shown by the man is of an extremely shallower basis. He is a smart man that knows he can easily trick the so-called cunning nuns by pretending he can neither speak nor hear anything they do or say. In this way he gets many young women to denounce their vows and make love to him each and every night. The difference his is a falsehood that the man creates, he is neither deaf nor dumb and in this way does not use his lack of speech as the woman does. He is completely confident in his plan and does not see the muteness as a handicap

The Decameron

1.1-"I have committed so many offenses against god during my lifetime, committing one more against him now will make no difference"; This quote seems to me some of the worst logic I have read in any of our texts thus far. The lord is one to forgive in most cases, repentence and prayer are part of the daily lives of millions. However, a feeling of total damnation is easily interpreted here in that he has done so much wrong he can do no good.
1.3-"each believes itself to be the true heir, to posses the true Law, and to follow the true commandments, but whoever is right, just as in the case of the rings, is still undecided"; again a religious quote came to my attention because the metaphor reaches much further than the three rings. I feel that the quote has a lot of weight in a battle that has been present since the beginning of time. Many follow the Law of the lord to the "t", but which one is correct? Of the most drastic consequence, some may be following what they believe to be true and in turn only hurting themselves for the after life. As humans we will never know what the right answer is.
1.4-"The Abbot, thinking that the monk did not know he had been observed by him, was happy at this turn of events, and since this offered him the opportunity to get more firsthand information on the sin committed by the monk, he gladly took the monks key and gave him permission to leave."; The trickery behind each of these stories does not falter at the doorstep of the followers of God. Each person shows corruption in one way or another, and although the Abbot did not know the depth of his deception he is minutes away from committing the same crime that the monk previously had. We see as the reader that no man has his morale's completely straightened out.

Film

2) Yes the lack of love potion does change the whole idea of Tristan and Isolde. In the film their love is portrayed as true love as apposed to the love in the text which is only brought on by the love potion. Although it does not justify their love it does give more credit to them as betrayers of the king. What they do in the film is more cruel in that they could control their love, save the kingdom, and pay their loyalties to King Mark. The film portrays Tristan and Isolde as the bad guys, in the text God and the author are on their side.
5) The barons are portrayed as better people in the film. In the text they are conniving men who worked only for their own gain. In the film they do seem to be working in favor of the king. Although the plot to catch Tristan in the act is somewhat slimy, I feel that the director shed a kind light on them. In this case, the author did not have a say in who the actual evil men were, and the barons are better men striving to hold the structure of the alliance.

Last Yvain

1) His new identity symbolizes a rebirth of sorts for Yvain. Before his encounter with a lion he was somewhat soft on his Morales. Although he meant well he did things like avenge his cousin's honor without permission and was easily influenced when deciding whether to stay with his wife or proceed with his brotherhood like personality. The lion acts as somewhat of a guardian angel or in the case of his rebirth the holy spirit guiding him throughout the rest of his quests. The new name is vital to the change in his demeanor and the lion plays such an important role that it is necessary to add him as well.
3) Their meeting at the end brings the novel full circle. As the quest has been for the majority of the text all Yvain wanted to do is get back to his wife. He did not see the significance early on in the story but once he gained his lion he seemed to have an epiphany. All of his other journeys were merely side notes of him doing good deeds to prove his obedience. The fact that he ends up with Luadine again also protects the spring, a major symbol in the text and another support of Yvain's true identity as the greatest Knight.

part two the lion

1) Gawain's speech is one of manhood. He tells Yvain that he must travel with the other Knights and continue on adventures with the round table. The problems for Yvain is that he has just married the woman of his dreams and he does not wish to leave her. Gawain says that Yvain can not be a man who is burdened by his wife. He therefore asks permission to leave and she gives him one years distance that he may venture out. This is extremely problematic as we find out because he does not return in the time allotted.
5) Lunnette's problem with the barons is one that we have seen multiple times in texts like this. She was wrongfully accused of lying to her lady with regards to a love making. They plan to stone her without a fair trial and she has no one on her side except Yvain who just barely makes it in time to rescue her. I believe that when she is on deaths bed praying for forgiveness that she was right, she had on her side a very noble Knight and she did indeed survive.

day one of Yvain

1) The absence of a prologue allows readers to form their own parallels as to the character's relationships, troubles and triumphs. The author's lack of prologue forces readers to dive into the story with no background information and in doing so makes us quickly form opinions on the characters, while giving us an open board on which to create opinions about how the author wants us to feel. I believe Yvain's text is different, the heroic Knight does not come upon his damsel naturally, rather he kills a Knight and steals her right under his dead body. The prologue would have covered a basic reaction to the beginning of the text had their been one.
2) The story was written much like the other few we have read to entertain great nobles of the time. However this story is different in that the teller is also present in the text which automatically makes it more sincere and possibly more embellished than the others. Major themes that stand out right away are loyalty, love, devotion, and betrayal. Yvain first avenged his cousin's loss in battle to prove loyalty to the family. The love and devotion come simply from Yvain's direct viewing of the Lady, his love immediately rendered him captive. Finally the betrayal of the Lady, who in one short week grieved her husband and remarried the man who had killed him

last of Erec

1) I feel that the relationship between Erec and Enide does change dramatically. Although the test was unfair his wife never strays from Erec's wishes, she truly loves him and denounces the count several times. She also mourns his supposed death appropriately and we find that everything in her previous monologues was true, she did everything in her power for Erec. I feel that Erec tested Enide because he could not decide if her love was as obedient as he preferred, she constantly defied his wishes, something that he saw to be a lack of love. Everything is in perfect harmony after his test is completed and the count was killed.
3) The Joy was simply the final excursion Erec was upon before settling down for two to three years. The actual fight was made to be a major battle between one of the best Knights in the land, and the secrecy added to the suspense of the match. However as a reader it was evident that the major build up was put in place to solidify Erec as the best Knight ever. The theme has been the same throughout the story, one of a truly great Knight helping others, even if at first he set out merely to gain the Joy of the Court for himself. He ends up freeing an extremely grateful Knight and life is again harmonious.

Second section Erec and Enide

1) The second part of the text most certainly does belong to Enide, however she is still heavily burdened by the matriarchal society. We first learn her name by way of the wedding, we also learn that this was her name given to her at her christening, though she was never called by this in the first section. Her role changes in that she does as she pleases in regards to Erec. She is "not afraid of him" and she decides to tell him of the reputation he has acquired since their marriage. Although Erec says many times on their journey to not speak at all she very rarely holds her tongue when it is necessary, and as a gentleman Erec always forgives her. She becomes a stronger woman through out this section.
4) Enide's inner monologues portray a very wise and torn woman. She understands the complexity of her situation and does not feel that her opinion is ever wasted. She is however always torn with the idea of what will be the correct thing to say and when she is allowed to. From the beginning she tried to lie to Eric, saying to herself that she is a wretch for even revealing to Erec how all the people viewed him. She also shows some form of restraint when she hesitates to tell Erec of the oncoming dangers. Multiple times her monologues include a decision that she ultimately makes for the good of her husband.

Erec first blog

4) The hawksparrow fight was a very understandable battle for the time period. The fight meant a lot for Erec for multiple reasons. He felt it necessary to save face after the dwarf had ruined his good name in the forest. He also wanted to win Enide and needed that victory to do so. After all, Enide is the most beautiful girl in the land, and we can start to draw parallels to Yseut, a major battle must be fought to win over what seems to be property symbolized by a female. The gender role and masculinity are seen easily, may the stronger man win and receive the prize, Erec won the battle after a renewed sense of strength after gazing upon Enide.
5) I think the dress is symbolic of a power that Guenevere will try to hold over Enide through out the story. The dressing itself shows a hierarchy, one that Guenevere belongs to and one that Enide is simply joining now later in life. Enide's character is one of quiet and proper so far in the text. Erec simply sees her as a prize he won, and knowing of her background regardless of the beauty she has, he follows protocol and has her receive a dress from the queen. Enide on the other hand doesn't even hesitate to accept the dress, she is extremely happy with her new found life.

Final Section

1) Yseut's oath spoken with a forked tongue is an understatement. She applies reasoning that is an extreme stretch of the truth to appease the lord and his followers. Although she is not lying by saying the only two men that have been between my thighs are King Mark and the "leper" she decides to leave out the major fact that the leper is actually Tristan disguised in order to be present at her oath. I feel that the oath only solidifies Yseut's actually personality as a conniving woman willing to do whatever it takes to keep herself safe, and to save face. It also gives another example of the author's unreasonable need to provide a scapegoat for the two lovers.
2) The murders of the barons may have been well approved by the readers and characters alike, however they are not justified. The barons never lied in their accusations and furthermore they were unarmed and not ready for deaths that were bestowed upon them. I feel that these murders do give some respectability to the love potion, or in reality the overwhelming love that they have because both characters will do whatever they can to stay together, now through two broken marriages and false characters like beggars and lepers. Their final deaths seemed to fit in their story with falsehood and trickery finally ending Tristan's life.

section 7-13

1) The stay in the woods for these two characters leads the reader to believe of hardships caused by the lack of luxurious living the two are extremely familiar with. Although Tristan is a hunter, he would not normally shoot deer solely for eating and no sport at all. On multiple occasions it describes Tristan running for the entire day just to catch a wounded deer. However it is Tristan's responsibility, he must provide for himself and Yseut or they will both parish.
It is told that Yseut has lost numerous pounds in the meeting with the king. He has very little trouble removing the ring from her finger, though it used to fit tightly. The idea of this one line in the text provides details on the hardships of living in the forest.

3) The author provides detailed information on how Tristan and Yseut are sleeping when the king finally finds them in the borrows. The most obvious detail is the fact that both parties were wearing clothes. This symbolizes the love being more of a friendship than a sexual one. The fact that the sword was between them and their lips were no where near each other's also implies friendship, they are seen not even being comfortable enough to lay in each other's arms. The sunlight may act as a symbol of a new day, a turned over leaf of sorts for everyone involved. The king sees them not as lovers but as criminals and warns them, they in return are not together and the spell is lifted shortly there after.

First blog, parts 1-6

1) I would first characterize Tristan as a person with morale responsibilities that chooses to follow his heart above all else. The idea being that he will do whatever it may take to keep Yseut by his side and in doing so disobeys the king, as well as all that he has pledged to be as a noble Knight in the king's service. His love and deceit such as the faithful meeting in which the King set aloft the tree to spy proves that he will take matters to an extreme to protect his own self. I find him to be a one dimensional character thus far, completely acting on will over logic throughout the first six chapters.
Yseut is also very deceiving and should not be trusted as a fair queen. She too feels that her heart guides her actions solely, instead believing that her true allegiance belongs to love over responsibility as the Queen. Once found and condemned to punishment she begs for forgiveness and even death before the lepers, a punishment well deserved of the time, instead of owning up to major mistakes and finally being loyal.

4) I fully agree with the King to punish both Tristan and Yseut. Adultery is one of the highest sins and the loyalty to the kingdom and it's leader was brutally dismissed for a love affair. The punishment was not condoned by the people for lack of a trial, this part does not put the king in any better position than the two criminals. Truth, loyalty, and respect for the law should be held at the highest of moral rule to provide an environment that the King's followers can feel safe and protected within. Without justice crimes would happen rapidly, however without the correct form of punishment few would feel the adequate protection of a country running smoothly. Again, the death by fire as punishment for Tristan, and the final stay with the leper's for Yseut seems to be a reasonable punishment for such betrayal, however the conniving approach lacks morality.