Knightly novels - fantastic stories about love

Knightly novels of the Middle Ages appeared in the XII century: it was then that writers began to move from a heroic epic to a more understandable and interesting genre for most readers. To this section of the literature in the first place belonged to works written in one of the Romance languages, and not in Latin (hence the name "romance"). Popular until this time, the heroic epic was associated with legends and myths of peoples, but the new genre became more like a fairy tale, combining two components: fantasy and love.

All knightly novels unite one thing - the main character in them is necessarily a noble knight. He fully corresponds to the ideal by the standards of courtesanism, travels alone, with his faithful squire or with a small group of soldiers. The knight performs various feats, battles with monsters, robbers or "infidels" - it all depends on the plot and fantasy of the author. Heroes in most cases, writers endow with personal motives, what distinguishes this genre from the heroic epic. A warrior fights for the lady of the heart, personal gain and glory, but not in the name of religion, country or people.

The knightly medieval novel was written in the 12th century in verse (the eight-compound with a pair rhyme), but there were exceptions. So, "The novel about Alexander" was written in a 12-complex verse with a pair rhyme. Thanks to this work a new form of versification has appeared - the Alexandrine verse. In this form was written a huge number of French comedies and tragedies in the XVII-XVIII centuries. Also the Alexandrian verse was used by neoclassicists, romantics and neoromanticists of France, Russia and other countries.

Prose chivalric novels appeared only in the XIII century, at the same time this literary genre is going through not the best of times. In most of the works, the parody of courtly values and norms is clearly traced, but despite this, this literary genre has long remained a favorite reading of the inhabitants of France.

The genres of the knightly novel differ from each other depending on the region, the origin of the work and what formed its basis. In those days, a huge number of small narrative forms and folklore foundations. In a separate genre, one should distinguish Celtic oral literature. The source of the novels was the Christian world - such literature gained popularity during the Crusades, because the knights could feel the moral unity, understand the importance of their mission.

Knightly novels differ from the heroic epic in that in them the main character is an understandable person familiar to the reader, and not a fictional character with supernatural abilities. In such works you can often meet Alexander of Macedon, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Also in the novel were written the names of other real personalities: bishops, popes, cardinals, etc. Despite the fact that so many centuries have passed since this literary genre appeared, the chivalric novels still find their readers, because sometimes one wants to feel the era of brave knights and beautiful ladies, a romantic world where each story has a good ending.