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Thesis Cover University of Cambridge Faculty of English Romance Motifs and Ethics in Malory’s ‘Book of Sir Tristram’ Suxue Zhang Magdalene College Supervisor: Dr James Wade This dissertation is submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, June 2017 Dissertation Title: Romance Motifs and Ethics in Malory’s ‘Book of Sir Tristram’ Name: Suxue Zhang Summary Sir Thomas Malory’s ‘Book of Sir Tristram’, a condensation of the Old French Tristan en prose, has not received the attention it deserves. Previous studies notice the two texts’ differences in characterisation, style, moral emphasis, structural arrangements, and so on, but no study has sufficiently demonstrated the overall strategy and the moral purposes behind Malory’s changes. This thesis offers an evaluation of both texts’ approaches to some ethical questions, including identity, violence, justice, and passion, through a close analysis of their presentation of romance motifs. The comparison draws on traditional treatments of these motifs and reveals that the authors of romance can incorporate stratified perspectives to voice ideological interpretations. Malory’s treatment of the moral discourse in the ‘Tristram’ articulates the chivalric ideal in the characters’ expressions of how they understand identity, honour, courtesy, courage, faithfulness, justice, compassion, and love. This analysis shows how Malory renews the meaning of the romance motifs borrowed from his sources by changing the characters’ response to the ethical problems underlying the archetypal actions. Thus, Malory’s narrative generates experiential edification, as it engages the reader in the active moral evaluation of the events. Declaration of Length This dissertation is the result of my own work, produced exclusively for the degree for which it is submitted. It includes nothing which is the outcome of work done in collaboration except as declared in the Acknowledgements and specified in the text. The total word count, including footnotes and references but excluding translations and bibliography, does not exceed the regulated length of 80,000. Suxue Zhang June, 2017 Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 5 Knighthood and the Moral Ideal of Chivalry ......................................................... 5 Can there be ‘A Moral’ in Le Morte Darthur? ..................................................... 10 Echoing: A Technique ........................................................................................ 13 The Episodic Structure and Romance Motifs ..................................................... 16 Chapter Summaries ........................................................................................... 23 Chapter One: Identity .............................................................................................. 27 Naming and Heraldry ........................................................................................... 27 Overview ............................................................................................................ 27 Two Views .......................................................................................................... 28 The Problem of Reputation ................................................................................ 36 Heraldry .............................................................................................................. 44 The (?) Fair (Un)Known ....................................................................................... 54 Overview ............................................................................................................ 54 The Reception Topos ......................................................................................... 58 The Chiding Damsel ........................................................................................... 65 The Growth on the Road .................................................................................... 70 Chapter Two: Violence ............................................................................................ 77 The Incognito Combat ......................................................................................... 79 Overview ............................................................................................................ 79 The Purposes of Violence .................................................................................. 80 The Dilemma of Anonymity ................................................................................ 83 Winning and Mercy ............................................................................................ 89 The Importance of Information ........................................................................... 94 The Tournaments ................................................................................................. 97 Overview ............................................................................................................ 97 Spectatorship ..................................................................................................... 99 The Theme of Love .......................................................................................... 102 Moral Education ............................................................................................... 107 The Political Subtext ........................................................................................ 112 Chapter Three: Justice ......................................................................................... 119 The ‘Rash Promise’ ........................................................................................... 121 Overview .......................................................................................................... 121 Why Rash? ....................................................................................................... 124 Positive Motivation and Outcomes ................................................................... 127 Resistance and Restoration ............................................................................. 134 The Judicial Duel ............................................................................................... 140 Overview .......................................................................................................... 140 What is a Judicial Duel? ................................................................................... 142 Oath and Truth ................................................................................................. 144 The Struggle for Justice ................................................................................... 151 1 Chapter IV: Passion .............................................................................................. 160 DAMSEL IN DISTRESS ...................................................................................... 160 Overview .......................................................................................................... 160 Words Ignored .................................................................................................. 162 Passions that Matter ........................................................................................ 166 Incentives and Rewards ................................................................................... 169 Affective Bonds ................................................................................................ 172 Conversations at the Fountain ......................................................................... 175 Overview .......................................................................................................... 175 Allegory and Lyricism ....................................................................................... 178 The Ethics of Love ........................................................................................... 182 The Hart Chase ................................................................................................ 186 The Passions of Palomides .............................................................................. 190 Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 196 Bibliography ........................................................................................................... 198 Manuscripts ...................................................................................................... 198 Le Morte Darthur .............................................................................................. 198 The Tristan Texts ............................................................................................. 198 Other Primary Texts ......................................................................................... 199 Criticism ............................................................................................................ 201 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is the fruit of four years of close study on Le Morte Darthur and other medieval Arthurian narratives as a PhD candidate in the University of Cambridge. I cannot express my gratitude enough for the constant guidance and encouragement from Dr James Wade, my supervisor, and my advisor Prof. Helen
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