Chivalry
After watching the movie, I have some questions which puzzle me. And I have read some books about chivalry to find the answer to these questions. Now I want to talk about the relationship between knights and wars, courtly love.
(Knights and war)I really enjoy this movie, especially the scenes of battle. As a Chinese, their fighting-pattern really impressed me. Our ancients used swords or spears to fight each other, but they didn’t. And I was really surprised at the way of war in medieval Europe. There are three battles in the movie.
The first one is that Ivanhoe fights with other five knight. They aim or thrust a lance in a joust. You may think it is very easy, but as a matter a fact, if you want to make your opponent fall down, you need to practice much and have a clear idea of other's shortcomings. If you have courage, but without money , you cannot take part in it. The second battle of the Tuo Kuier Stone Castle is verymagnificent. This is a struggle between evil and justice. Almost everyone has appeared in the battle, and the battle completely unmask the evil of Norman. The third battle is the duel between Ivanhoe and Guilbert.
This movie is only 106 minutes long but contain three battles, do you know why? From my perspective, it is a movie about knight, and war has close relationship with knight. In medieval, Knights’ profession is fighting against the enemies, and fighting against the enemies is viewed as the most noble and scared job. The tournament is knights’ second job, which is showed in the first and third battle.
It goes without saying that people hate war nowadays, but why knights love war and tournament so much in middle ages? Medieval aristocratic society is a honor society. In medieval aristocratic society, nothing is more important than the respect for honor, that’s to say, everyone pursue honor. Honor view is the core of chivalry, and war is the source of knight's honor. I think this is the reason that knights used violence to solve problem, they can show off and gain respect as well.
The film fully shows the significance of war and honor for knights, which I really appreciate. Before the duel between Ivanhoe and Guilbert, Guilbert says that if he gave up fighting with Ivanhoe, he will lose the honor and respect. At first, I didn’t understand why he says that. In my culture, it is a good thing that you give up fighting against somebody who can save the people you love. But now I seem to understand what he says. If he give up, he would lose the title of knight, his dignity, honor and the respect from others, which mean everything for a knight.
(Knights and Courtly love)In the first battle, Ivanhoe wins other knights, the king says: “According to the knight system, you has the right to chose the most beautiful and popular queen”. I was puzzled at the beginning, why he give a crown to a noblewomen? As we all know, in ancient China, the beautiful women are often depicted sirens who confuse emperor and bring the fall of the country. China and Europe has really different attitude to women in the past. In the view of Chinese, women make monarchy fatuous and dissipated. But from the opinion of many Europeans, women make men more crazy and brave. In order to win the love of noblewomen, knights can sacrifice everything, which is seen as Platonic love. Noblewomen is the symbol of truth , virtue and beauty. Love become the power source which help knights change themselves and achieve the moral quality of sublimation.(实现道德品质的升华). The love among Ivanhoe, Rebecca and Lady Rowena also makes the film more brilliant. Courtly love is pure and sacred. It has great and far-reaching influence on Western Civilization. It sublimate and remodel chivalry, makes knights more brave and polite.(典雅爱情重新塑造了和升华了骑士精神，使骑士更加英勇，同时融入了风雅，英勇中浸染了文雅和彬彬有礼，并蓄了刚柔文武).What’ s more, courtly love also improves the status of women and the thoughts of respecting women also spread in middle ages, which have profound impacts on the society. For example, when the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank more than 81 years ago, only about a third of the great ship’s passengers survived. Most were women and children. Several male passengers refused to enter lifeboats because they weren’t sure all the women were safely aboard. But it is a pity that the chivalry of respecting women and protecting the weak is gradually fading away in the movement for women's rights.(尊重妇女、保护弱者的骑士精神在女权运动中逐渐消逝)
What I said above is the chivalry which has been idealized and prettified. When you see the movie, you pay more attention on Ivanhoe than Guilbert and other knights, so you may ignore the shortcomings that shown by other other knights. Ivanhoe is brave and justice, but not every knight is brave and justice. We need to more rational and have a good understanding of chivalry.
We know that the Roman Empire was overrun by Nordic barbarians. And it was Germanic people that bring Roman Empire to life. How can a barbaric race make a dying civilization come into life? (野蛮的日耳曼民族是如何使一个垂死的文明重新焕发生命力？) Gentile institution(氏族制度) has a great impact on Germanic peoples, Germanic peoples like war and it make them brave, generous and respect honor. With the establishment of western feudal system, the German bodyguard system has been developed into chivalry. And the spirit of brave, generous and honor are the basic contents of chivalry. Then, with the limit of religion, the nourishment of love, the influence of literature a rough warrior becomes a model of social justice, but fighting against enemies is always their regular occupation. Now, we have a general idea of the origin of chivalry. War is a essential part of knights ‘life . That is why the movie of Ivanhoe show three battles and to us. The courtly love is shown in the movie, but it is not a key point, its function is to drive the plot.
(Knights and war)I really enjoy this movie, especially the scenes of battle. As a Chinese, their fighting-pattern really impressed me. Our ancients used swords or spears to fight each other, but they didn’t. And I was really surprised at the way of war in medieval Europe. There are three battles in the movie.
The first one is that Ivanhoe fights with other five knight. They aim or thrust a lance in a joust. You may think it is very easy, but as a matter a fact, if you want to make your opponent fall down, you need to practice much and have a clear idea of other's shortcomings. If you have courage, but without money , you cannot take part in it. The second battle of the Tuo Kuier Stone Castle is verymagnificent. This is a struggle between evil and justice. Almost everyone has appeared in the battle, and the battle completely unmask the evil of Norman. The third battle is the duel between Ivanhoe and Guilbert.
This movie is only 106 minutes long but contain three battles, do you know why? From my perspective, it is a movie about knight, and war has close relationship with knight. In medieval, Knights’ profession is fighting against the enemies, and fighting against the enemies is viewed as the most noble and scared job. The tournament is knights’ second job, which is showed in the first and third battle.
It goes without saying that people hate war nowadays, but why knights love war and tournament so much in middle ages? Medieval aristocratic society is a honor society. In medieval aristocratic society, nothing is more important than the respect for honor, that’s to say, everyone pursue honor. Honor view is the core of chivalry, and war is the source of knight's honor. I think this is the reason that knights used violence to solve problem, they can show off and gain respect as well.
The film fully shows the significance of war and honor for knights, which I really appreciate. Before the duel between Ivanhoe and Guilbert, Guilbert says that if he gave up fighting with Ivanhoe, he will lose the honor and respect. At first, I didn’t understand why he says that. In my culture, it is a good thing that you give up fighting against somebody who can save the people you love. But now I seem to understand what he says. If he give up, he would lose the title of knight, his dignity, honor and the respect from others, which mean everything for a knight.
(Knights and Courtly love)In the first battle, Ivanhoe wins other knights, the king says: “According to the knight system, you has the right to chose the most beautiful and popular queen”. I was puzzled at the beginning, why he give a crown to a noblewomen? As we all know, in ancient China, the beautiful women are often depicted sirens who confuse emperor and bring the fall of the country. China and Europe has really different attitude to women in the past. In the view of Chinese, women make monarchy fatuous and dissipated. But from the opinion of many Europeans, women make men more crazy and brave. In order to win the love of noblewomen, knights can sacrifice everything, which is seen as Platonic love. Noblewomen is the symbol of truth , virtue and beauty. Love become the power source which help knights change themselves and achieve the moral quality of sublimation.(实现道德品质的升华). The love among Ivanhoe, Rebecca and Lady Rowena also makes the film more brilliant. Courtly love is pure and sacred. It has great and far-reaching influence on Western Civilization. It sublimate and remodel chivalry, makes knights more brave and polite.(典雅爱情重新塑造了和升华了骑士精神，使骑士更加英勇，同时融入了风雅，英勇中浸染了文雅和彬彬有礼，并蓄了刚柔文武).What’ s more, courtly love also improves the status of women and the thoughts of respecting women also spread in middle ages, which have profound impacts on the society. For example, when the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank more than 81 years ago, only about a third of the great ship’s passengers survived. Most were women and children. Several male passengers refused to enter lifeboats because they weren’t sure all the women were safely aboard. But it is a pity that the chivalry of respecting women and protecting the weak is gradually fading away in the movement for women's rights.(尊重妇女、保护弱者的骑士精神在女权运动中逐渐消逝)
What I said above is the chivalry which has been idealized and prettified. When you see the movie, you pay more attention on Ivanhoe than Guilbert and other knights, so you may ignore the shortcomings that shown by other other knights. Ivanhoe is brave and justice, but not every knight is brave and justice. We need to more rational and have a good understanding of chivalry.
We know that the Roman Empire was overrun by Nordic barbarians. And it was Germanic people that bring Roman Empire to life. How can a barbaric race make a dying civilization come into life? (野蛮的日耳曼民族是如何使一个垂死的文明重新焕发生命力？) Gentile institution(氏族制度) has a great impact on Germanic peoples, Germanic peoples like war and it make them brave, generous and respect honor. With the establishment of western feudal system, the German bodyguard system has been developed into chivalry. And the spirit of brave, generous and honor are the basic contents of chivalry. Then, with the limit of religion, the nourishment of love, the influence of literature a rough warrior becomes a model of social justice, but fighting against enemies is always their regular occupation. Now, we have a general idea of the origin of chivalry. War is a essential part of knights ‘life . That is why the movie of Ivanhoe show three battles and to us. The courtly love is shown in the movie, but it is not a key point, its function is to drive the plot.
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