Liveblogging Arthuriana: The Lai of Launval by Marie de France
So I've been trying to read as much Arthuriana as I can and I definitely go on binges. And previously I've been posting my thoughts when I was done, but I thought, what if for this one, I just sort of made a post and added to it as I go? So by the time I post it I'm done with the story, but this'll prevent me from forgetting to much. So here we go, with the Lai of Launval
First of all, I'm excited that this story is (ostensibly) written by a woman. I wonder if that'll affect anything?
I've also heard this one is kinda gay. But I've also heard the gay comes from misogyny. You know, when you hate women so hard it loops around and becomes homoerotic? But maybe this isn't the one I'm thinking of. Either way, I study ancient Greece, so that doesn't really bother me
Just in the first paragraph I feel bad for Launval, everyone gets gifts and he doesn't. I'm such a BBC Merlin fan, I often imagine King Arthur as Bradley James, and like....that's something his Arthur would do. Like forget this one dude because....idk oops, and then it turns into a big thing. But everything turns into a big thing in Arthuriana.
I love this guy's gift from the random naked lady lying in a tent: not only does he have all the gold he needs, but the more he spends the more he has. Count this down for how to become rich without a genie fucking you up if you get three wishes
Do knights just go around sleeping with random women? Like a lot of them just....do. sometimes it's a bad thing.
Aaaaaaand Gawain is here. It's literally inevitable. It's just not an Arthur story till he makes a cameo. It's like X-Men without wolverine. I also tend to imagine Gawain as Eoin Macken. Dev Patel is wonderful and all, but he doesn't have that "I fucked/fought my way into this and I'll fuck/fight my way out" energy Eoin Macken has.
Guinevere, darling, no means no. Don't you have a nice Launcelot to flirt with?
Also, from a note is says that the word for the relationship Guinevere is offering in the original french implies a physical relationship, and also a relationship where the woman had power over the man. So Gwen is inviting him to be her sugar baby?
Okay I see the Lysistrata problem here. To the medieval eye Gwen's behavior is the "women are lustful" trope, and her vengefulness and anger is a negative trait. To the modern eye she definitely appears a little over the top, and femme fatale, don't get me wrong, but I'm also here for a queen just hitting on a knight and asking him to be in an FLR with her. Like, I'm here for that.
....okay but Launval I know she's coming on strong but maybe we shouldn't INSULT THE QUEEN???
Oh yep, she called him gay. Again, huge insult in medieval times. Modern eye sees it as sort of Gwen being a Nice Guy and saying "if you don't want to sleep with me you must be gay." Which...not here for. But funny.
I'm starting to see how people talk about the later charecterisation of Guinevere as a seductress and a terrible person. Not here for that. Love for Guinevere.
Yeah, and now she's lying about it and said he came on to her.
Okay so no one's concerned that he hit on the queen, and that his defense for that is she hit on him first? Like if we have to get upset about this stupid thing, shouldn't that be what we're concerned about? But no, they're just concerned about weather this woman is hotter than her. Camelot priorities aren't your Earth priorities.
But I guess it's like lese-majeste or something. To insult the queen.
But yeah, this is not about weather he went all nice guy on the queen or weather she went nice guy on him. Or even the morality of her wanting to sleep with him (she's married!) Or him with her. It's just IS THIS WOMAN HOTTER THAN THE QUEEN.
It's one of those truth obsession things. If she IS more beautiful he did nothing wrong.
The more you read of Arthurian lit the more it makes sense when you turn your medieval brain on. But. Modern eye still like ....this is so odd. This is why Camelot is a silly place.
This is another place to make the joke "if these tits are legit, you must acquit."
Hey yvains here! I love Yvain! I always imagine him just ...with a lion. Like he's sitting there at court and there's just a vaguely anthropomorphic lion next to him. Sometimes it has its own seat. Like a Scooby Doo lion.
Yep she basically says "if these tits are legit you must acquit." But she also does clear his name for being the one doing the hitting on.
And then they fuck off to Avalon to live happily ever after. Cool. Also the translation I read used the phrase "she ravished him". Which....very here for the sugar mama.
So that's it! That was short and sweet and easy to just get another fun story under your belt! These lais are pretty short. I might try a few more.