The Heroic Ideal in "King Horn" and "Sir Orfeo"

Paper Summary:

In a feudal age when lords and ladies lived in accordance with chivalric codes, society viewed the heroic ideal not as an elusive paradigm, but as an essential component of a good man. The paper shows that the ideal, stereotypical hero in a romance is a strong, crafty, brave, courteous, charmingly handsome ladies' man of noble birth. As opposed to the epic hero who retains some degree of individuality as he strives for high achievement, the romantic hero is a type of man who encounters unrelated adventure after adventure while on his quest to accomplish a goal such as rescuing a lady in distress, obeying a king's command, or seeking the Holy Grail. The paper discusses the image of a hero in "King Horn" and "Sir Orfeo", by anonymous authors, where he is a man of high standing who is exiled and then forced to rebuild his reputation in a foreign land.

From the Paper:

"Unlike Horn who consistently relies on his attractiveness, Orfeo forsakes his appearance to assume the appearance of a poor pilgrim; "al his bodi was oway duine" and "his here of his berd, blac and rowel' (356). Such renunciation of the luxurious life he previously led is his effort to associate himself with the natural world so that he can
retrieve his wife Heurodis from the fairies. At the same time, the medieval audience recognized this alienation motif as essential to a hero's development. Only when his beard is shaved off, his self-imposed isolation ending with the acquisition of his queen, can Orfeo once again dress as a handsome king, charming his audience in addition to his subjects."

More papers on The Heroic Ideal in "King Horn" and "Sir Orfeo":

• Analytical Essay # 126396 : "The Heroic Ideal"
• Analytical Essay # 119804 : "The Destruction of the Body Politic in "King Lear"
• Essay # 64187 : "The Heroic Warrior in Masculine Stereotype"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: