In Marie De France’s “Lanval”, It is interesting how, in spite of a woman’s common status as a tool toward greatness or moral poverty, the fairy queen is still technically a positive character because she raised Lanval to greatness, even though her interference in Lanval’s life appears to consume his personality and identity.
In the beginning, Lanval does have some semblance of personality, indicated with the lines “For his valor, for his generosity, / his beauty and bravery” (21-22) which imply a generous nature but not intelligence or strong character, and his weak personality is evidenced by his actions as Lanval ultimately falls to the shallow trait of the fairy queen’s beauty despite the fact that her simple presence indicates far more
In the beginning, Lanval does have some semblance of personality, indicated with the lines “For his valor, for his generosity, / his beauty and bravery” (21-22) which imply a generous nature but not intelligence or strong character, and his weak personality is evidenced by his actions as Lanval ultimately falls to the shallow trait of the fairy queen’s beauty despite the fact that her simple presence indicates far more