The role of fairies and/or the supernatural in the medieval lay Essay Example

The role of fairies and/or the supernatural in the medieval lay Paper Medieval lays are essentially tales of romance, often of Celtic origin. Similar patterns of events, or certain features are common in many lays, for example the theme of deeply felt love or a complex love situation where two lovers are separated, go through a period of grief and are eventually reunited. This pattern of events can been compared to rites of passage, as will be discussed later. The mixture between reality and the otherworld is a key aspect of the medieval lays. The supernatural is not over-emphasised, instead it works alongside the reality of the lay, making it much more believable to the audience. Fairies and the supernatural play a particularly important role in Sir Orfeo, based on the classical Orpheus myth. Sir Orfeo enters the fairy-kingdom to rescue his wife Heurodis who has been snatched by the fairy king. Sir Orfeo is able to charm the fairy king with his harp-playing ability, and the fairy king agrees to let Heurodis go. Other lays containing elements of the supernatural include Lanval taken from the Lais of Marie De France, and the Franklins Tale from Chaucers Canterbury Tales. Lanval is lead into the otherworld by two beautiful maids to see their fairy-mistress. She gives him everything he desires, but makes him promise that he will never speak a word of their love to anyone, otherwise he will never see her again. On returning to his own world, Queen Guinevere makes a pass at him but he refuses, insults her in his anger, and talks of his love for the fairy-mistress. Despite this, she forgives him and rescues him from his trial before King Arthur and they return to Avalon. In the Franklins Tale, Dorigen marries Arveragus (a Knight), but then he has to leave to go to England. Dorigen is heart-broken and inconsolable. She attends a May dance, where Aurelius falls in love with her. 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Motifs and Celtic tradition relating to fairies and the supernatural Many of the medieval lays contain motifs relating to the supernatural. It is common, for example, for mortals to be snatched away by the fairies when lying in a meadow or under a tree particularly the ympe-tree described in Sir Orfeo. In Celtic tradition is it believed that those who lie or fall asleep under a tree or in a meadow place themselves in the power of the fairies. In Sir Orfeo, Heurodis first encounter with the fairy king occurs whilst she is asleep under an ympe-tree. The use of the orchard/meadow in the lays creates the impression of a walled-garden used so often in medieval romance, which should signify safety and serenity. The fairies, however, often appear in this environment sometimes through dreams (as is the case in Sir Orfeo where Heurodis is first visited by the fairy king in her dreams). This motif is also used in Lanval, where the fairy mistresss two maids approach him while he is laying by a stream in a meadow. Unlike Heurodis encounter, Lanval is approached whilst he is awake, which to some extent makes is less fantastical and more realistic to the audience. The maids appear to be much more like mortals. Other motifs relate to the idea of rite of passage, as discussed earlier. The transition stage is the most important in the lays, as it is the point in which the supernatural usually plays the most important role. It is apparent that the transition stage is often a period of immense grief and sorrow, and involves some kind of complication for the lovers involved. In Sir Orfeo, he comes across the fairy king on a hunt after being separated from Heurodis, and his quest to reclaim her from the fairy kingdom begins. Also, Lanval meets the fairy mistress when he has been separated from King Arthurs court. The three stages in the Franklins Tale are not as obvious because there are two possible elements of separation one of Dorigen from her husband, and one of Aurelius from Dorigen. The encounters with Aurelius and the supernatural could, however, be interpreted as an obstacle to Dorigens marriage an obstacle that they are able to overcome. The fact that the supernatural encounters generally occur during the most important stage shows a heavy reliance on the supernatural for the progression of events in the lays. This is characteristic of medieval lays and, to some extent, the way in which it is used distinguishes the lays from other medieval romance. Sir Orfeo is based entirely around Heurodis being snatched away by the fairy king. Similarly, Aurelius being able to fulfil his promise to Dorigen in the Franklins Tale is totally reliant upon supernatural intervention in the form of the astrologer. Portrayal of fairies, the otherworld and the supernatural in medieval lays It is common in Celtic tradition for mortals to be snatched away by fairies and taken into their kingdom. The image that Sir Orfeo sees when he enters the fairy kingdom is that of all those who have been snatched away, frozen in their last state as they were on Earth. Heurodis is shown to him asleep under a similar tree in the fairy kingdom to that she was snatched from in the mortal world. This not only stresses the significance of the orchard motif, but it also suggests that these surroundings provide some kind of gateway between the two worlds. It is no coincidence that the writer describes Heurodis sitting under similar trees in both worlds. If this environment does act as a gateway, it may be seen as a ray of hope for Sir Orfeo as there is a possibility of transporting Heurodis back. The similarity between the mortal world and the fairy world in Sir Orfeo is a striking feature of the lay. When Heurodis is snatched away an taken into the fairy kingdom, she is shown castels and tours, rivers, forestes, frith with flours (Johnson 1987:6) This same line is repeated to describe what Sir Orfeo has left behind in his kingdom when he goes to live alone in the woods. Again, it is not a coincidence that exactly the same line is repeated for both worlds. This makes the two worlds much more alike, reducing the strangeness of the fairy world. Here the poet is trying to create a world that is familiar to the audience. It is easier to accept the supernatural, as it is closer to reality. Similarly, in Lanval there is a strong sense of reality despite his love being immortal. Here, the supernatural elements of his fairy-mistress and being taken into the otherworld are balanced with the very real issue of Lanval facing a legal system and ultimately death because of his encounter. The supernatural is not for fun, it creates some element of danger for the mortals involved. Lanval and the Franklins tale are not supernatural in the same way as Sir Orfeo. The supernatural elements in the two are played-down, and much more believable to the medieval audience. In Lanval the fairy-mistress appears mortal until the very end of the lay where we are told she returns to Avalon the fairy kingdom. In the Franklins Tale, the supernatural is in the form of an astrologer/sorcerer. The fact that he is more closely related to natural magic is more believable, and shows that the supernatural plays a structural role rather than just making the lays more interesting. Other similarities can be seen in Sir Orfeo, where the hunt with the fairy king and his thousand Knights is reflected in the mortal world by Sir Orfeo and his ten hundred Knightes (Johnson 1987:7) when they try to protect Heurodis from being snatched away. The fact that one world seems to be a reflection of the other means that the presence of the supernatural within the lays does not detract from the main theme usually love. The similarities between the two worlds emphasise the theme of what a good ruler should be. The fairy king displays chivalrous behaviour similar to that of Sir Orfeo by keeping his word and letting Heurodis go back to the mortal world, despite the fact that he is under no obligation to do so. If the fairy king did not conform to these rules, Sir Orfeos method of rescuing Heurodis would not have been successful. The immortal also appear more humanly as they can, to some extent, be controlled or subtly manipulated by mortals. Sir Orfeo, for example, is able to charm the fairy king with his harp-playing ability into making him promise to let Heurodis go. This is also true in Lanval, where despite her promise that Lanval would never see her again if he spoke of their love, the fairy mistress remained loyal to him by rescuing him from King Arthurs court. Conclusion It is apparent from the three lays discussed that the structure of the lays relies heavily upon the supernatural, it is essential to the development of events rather than being added for decoration. In each of the lays it is presented in a way that makes it reflect the mortal world in values as well as appearance, particularly in Sir Orfeo. It also acts to highlight the rites of passage motif, as the supernatural encounters occur in the transitional stage. Finally, it acts to emphasise the values and lessons to be learned from the lays, such as the values needed to be a good leader as with the fairy king and Sir Orfeo; also the importance of being true and forgiving like Aurelius in the Franklins Tale and the fairy mistress in Lanval. Overall, the supernatural plays an essential structural role, but does not undermine the main themes of the lays instead it makes them clearer and for the audience to see.