The answer is no. But could he be prosecuted for treason against Charlemagne? In this case, the answer is yes and we shall see why later on. Charlemagne is ready to entrust Ganelon with the mission by offering him the symbolic glove, but the glove is not taken and it falls on the ground. Ganelon failed to take the glove because his mind evidently was distracted by thoughts of anguish, despair, hate, anger, and revenge.
So much troubled was his state of mind! The failure of taking the glove is considered by the Franks as a bad omen and this apprehension aliments Ganelon's determination to get his revenge and he attests so with his ominous exclamation,.
Before Ganelon leaves the council to get ready for the mission, Charlemagne absolves him and blesses him with the sign of the cross v. Why the absolving?
Does it imply that a sin has. I am sure that anyone who is in a biased way unfavorable to Ganelon will tend to agree with this interpretation : a sin is not committed only in the actual deed, but it is also committed in thought. Ganelon thought of a sinful act — to perpetrate something dirty at the expenses of Roland — and therefore he has already committed a sin.
In my view, this interpretation does not stand. If it is true that the absolving of Ganelon implies that a sin was committed, then anybody else who is absolved in the Song is a sinner. Turpin absolves the rearguard before it is being attacked by Marsile v. It will be very ironic and paradoxical that an army of « sinners » fight the Infidels to sustain the Religion of Christ!
The absolution, in the case of Ganelon as well as in the other cases, is to be viewed merely as a religious practice which, in the Christian tradition, is almost required by anyone who, for one reason or another, exposes his life to death whether through a perilous voyage, or a dangerous mission, or warfare activities.
Ganelon then goes to his quarters and gets ready to leave. His men are all around him and express their sympathies for their lord,. En la cort al rei mult i avez ested, Noble vassal vos i solt horn clamer. Other good qualities of Ganelon are put here to light. He is ber.
According to Jones « the word [ber] is most frequently associated with strength and courage » 1 and therefore we have to concede that Ganelon is strong and courageous. He has been at the court of the Emperor for a long period of time and, if nothing else, it. Jones, op. At the court he was esteemed as a noble vassal. Both the word vassal and the adjective noble imply bravery and courage in combat x.
Moreover, it is the opinion of Ganelon' s men that Roland should not have designated his stepfather for the mission for the same reasons that I have previously stated. They unanimously agree on the fact that whatever is going to happen to Roland he certainly deserved it and not even Charlemagne can do anything about it.
This indeed is an assurance that Ganelon will carry out his sinister designs. Showing a sheer sense of loyalty to their lord, they ask Ganelon to take them along with him, but he replies,. What to say of this answer? Certainly a coward would have taken advantage of this unexpected opportunity to go to Marsile with some hope, however slim and unrealizable, but nevertheless the only one, to save his Ufe in case anything had gone wrong during the mission.
But Ganelon is not a coward! In his answer to his men he reveals a sense of sacrifice 2 which is later on paral-. In relation to the concept of sacrifice Le Gentil asserts, « Il a perdu l'esprit de sacrifice. In view of Ganelon's reply to his entourage we have to disagree with Le Gentil since it is clear that Ganelon shows his sense of sacrifice and of unselfishness. To sum up, Ganelon is therefore, on the human aspect, wise, moral, loyal at least up to this point , good and capable of sacrifice ; on the social aspect, he is esteemed by everybody, he is of noble birth and he is one of the elites at the court of the Emperor ; on the military aspect, he is strong, brave and courageous.
As any normal human being, however, he is subject to feelings, impulses, resentments and emotions. We have seen how humiliation, shame, anger and hate have induced Ganelon to harden his tendre coer and to fall pray to evil fate. How is Ganelon going to get his revenge?
And in the process of getting his revenge, how is he going to be confused between his right to avenge himself and his duty of service toward the Emperor? And in view of this confusion, how is he going to become a criminal and, as such, how is he going to be tried and punished? The remaining part of this study will deal exactly with these questions. During the voyage to Saragossa, Ganelon makes his move by approaching the Saracen messengers and by engaging in a conversation with Blancandrin.
The latter one is anxious to know what are the sentiments of the Emperor and of the Franks in regard to their Spanish expedition and, very cleverly, he tries to find out who is in favor of prolonging the war,.
Ganelon will not let this opportunity escape him. Blancandrin's cleverness is paralleled by Ganelon's cleverness. In fact, indirectly, he lets the Saracen know of his hostility for Roland. Seit ki l'ociet, tute pais puis avriumes. Well chosen and revealing words! First of all, he hints at the fact that some day Roland en avrat hunte for his influencing the Empe-.
With this, Ganelon accuses Roland of being the only one that stands between the settlement or the prolongation of the war and certainly he is going to pay for it. Then, quite explicitely, Ganelon shows his desire to see Roland killed sett ki I'ociet.
The reason? Certainly he is not going to tell Blancandrin the true reason for wishing Roland's death : his revenge to save his honor and to repair at the humiliation suffered at Charlemagne's council. This will be a one-sided interest and it may not work. The reason therefore has to be one of interest to both parties and one that transcends what may be considered by the Saracens a petty thing, namely a personal quarrel between stepson and stepfather. Peace is the reason tute pais puis avriumes.
Blancandrin understands this hostility of Ganelon for Roland and immediately he condemns Roland : Mult est pesmes Rollant, v. Both Ganelon and Blancandrin have at this point revealed a sentiment of hostility toward Roland and therefore they can now promise each other that they will find a way how to get rid of Roland. I do not think that we can accept this or any other similar conclusion.
Certainly it is going too far to change the idea of revenge with the idea of treason simply because the agreement of Ganelon with Blancandrin was made in spite of the real essence of the war. Moreover, I do not believe that it is questionable to agree with Jones when he states, « It is abundantly evident that honor and shame are stronger sanctions than religious duty and that Roland and his men [the Franks in general] accept Christian dogma without Christian ethics.
They believe. Pierre Le Gentil, op. This clearly contradicts Le Gentil's statement. Ganelon has not yet committed any act of treason. Finally, Ganelon is in front of the Saracen King and he relates Charlemagne's message : that Marsile embrace the Christian Faith and he will be allowed to hold half of Spain ; if he does not agree on this, he will be captured, brought to Aix and to die a shameful and vile death. To this proposal feeling threatened, loses his temper and is about to strike Ganelon with his javelin, but his men stop him.
In this incident, Ganelon, as a brave knight, shows his courage by being prompt to draw his sword and to fight, if need be. After Marsile is calmed down by his men, Ganelon steps forward and states his duty to accomplish the mission,.
In a gesture of defiance he then throws his cloak to Blancandrin and repeats Charlemagne's message to Marsile.
It is essentially the same message that he related a few minutes earlier, but there is now a specification which was previously missing and which lacks any validity at no time the Emperor had made any to this : Roland, a very proud nobleman, will hold the other half of Spain.
Moreover, he now gives Marsile a sealed letter from Charlemagne. This letter stipulates as a primary condition for peace the delivering of Marsile's uncle as hostage.
The Saracens consider this an impossible condition to be met 2 and see a between Ganelon's oral message and Charlemagne's letter. Ganelon, being once again threatened with death, draws his sword and leans with his back to a tree, being thus ready to face anybody who could attack him. In regard to this entire episode there are some important to make. First, Ganelon is determined to accomplish his service toward the Emperor.
He relates the message to Marsile and he does so almost in an arrogant way, risking thus his life. After he has done sun servise and has put his conscience at ease, as far as his duty and loyalty to the Emperor were concerned, he can now move on to prepare the ground for an eventual agreement with Marsile to have Roland killed.
How does he accomplish this? Ganelon has to stimulate Marsile to look at Roland as a potential enemy even in time of peace. In fact, Roland, being very proud and might decide to break the peace and wage war on Marsile so that he could hold all of Spain. As Ganelon had to find a motive to induce Blancandrin to conspire against Roland, likewise now he has to use all his psychology to see that Marsile has also an interest to have Roland killed.
He was able to instil in the Saracens a motivation and a desire to dispose of the Emperor's nephew. What is now the implication of the unexpected letter from Charlemagne? Without the letter, and therefore without the stipulation that Marsile's uncle be delivered as hostage to Charlemagne, Marsile could have decided to go along with the resolution which was approved at the council to deceive Charlemagne by making him beheve that the Saracens were seriously thinking about peace so that the French would go back to their fatherland and leave Spain in Marsile's hands before Blancandrin was sent to the French camp Laisses III and IV.
It would have been less risky to Marsile to accept and to follow that resolution than to change his plans and to attack the rearguard at a time and place which would have allowed the Emperor and his army to go back and to be to destroy once and for all the Saracens.
However, the in the letter leaves no other choice to Marsile. He now needs Ganelon to cover up his refusal of delivering his uncle as hostage and to eliminate Roland, hoping that Charlemagne, once on his way to France, would not go back and that everything else would go smoothly.
If scholars have been puzzled by the need and signi-. Now, what about Ganelon's behavior at the Saracen court? At first, Ganelon's line of conduct may appear to be strange and contradictory and some conjectures have been made about it. However, if we look closely, I think that the poet had a good reason to make Ganelon behave the way he did and that Ganelon himself, as a character, was well aware of what he was going to say and to do in accordance with some principles and plans that he had set for himself.
Le Gentil is of the opinion that Ganelon, after having shown his trepidation when he was nominated for the mission, has now a need to prove to himself that he is not a coward.
Another opinion of his is that Ganelon takes some risks because, by achieving a lasting peace through the elimination of Roland, he is convinced that he is doing the interests of the Emperor. I leave the acceptance of these conjectures to each individual reader. However, I like to raise some questions about these Why does Ganelon have to prove to himself that he is not a coward?
What would he gain? What could he lose? Did he not prove already, not only to himself but also to Roland and to the Franks, that he was not a coward when he refused Roland's offer to take his place in order to carry out the mission and when he refused his men's request that they go along with him? If it is a matter of proving something to I beheve that it is the poet who wants to show that Ganelon is really ber. Of the entire poem this is the only scene in which the poet can show Ganelon in action so that the audience can witness Ganelon's courage and bravery in an actual situation and under very unfavorable circumstances.
Is Ganelon really convinced that, by achieving peace through the elimination of Roland, he is. Piene Le Gentil, op.
On the contrary, he is aware that Roland's death will hurt the military strength and therefore the prestige of the Emperor. In fact, while discussing the pact with Marsile, he says,. N'avrat talent que ja mais vus gueneit. Why does Ganelon want to be really close to death in order to justify his action against Roland?
And to whom? The Franks are not there to see how close to death Roland had put his stepfather. Is Gane- long going to awaken the warlike spirit of the Saracens by acting in an arrogant and insolent way? Would his insolence and not be detrimental to his own well-being? To be sure, Ganelon wants the Saracens to fight vehemently against Roland and the rearguard, but he accomplishes that, as I have previously stated, by teUing Marsile that he will have to share Spain with the ambitious Roland.
That condition and the letter from are good enough reasons for Marsile to wish to get rid of Roland. He has two interests in his mission, especially after his agreement with His first interest is to accomplish his duty toward the Emperor.
He was entrusted by his lord with the mission of relating a message to Marsile, and this he does. Nothing, not even if it is offered him all the gold and silver of this world, could prevent him from absolving his duty. This is the reason, and the only reason, in my view, why he is ready to take some risks. When Ganelon is relating Charlemagne's message, he is talking to as to the enemy of the Emperor and consequently, because of the feudal bondage, as to his personal enemy.
Of course, he will intervene later when he can properly approach Marsile, who has to disentangle himself from a very complicated situation to implement his plans and at the same time to avoid sending his uncle as hostage , and when Ganelon has already accomplished his duty.
Ganelon's second interest is to stimulate Marsile to fight against Roland and, as previously illustrated, very cleverly he is able to implement his intentions. After Blancandrin has informed his King that Ganelon may be usefal to them, Marsile entertains himself with the French messenger. They agree on how to make Roland perish : Ganelon will designate his stepson for the rearguard and Marsile will attack him with all his army. The agreement being made, the Saracen King kisses Ganelon and then,.
Cunseill n'est proz dunt hume On the relics of his sword Murgleis Ganelon swears his to the agreement.
Not so. No doubt, for Marsile the pact with Ganelon is an act of treason. An Introduction to Narrative Structures Toronto, , p. Romania, But why? Is it because he realizes that he is committing an act of treason? Let us remember that neither Blancandrin nor Marsile has any knowledge of Ganelon's true reasons for wishing Roland's death and let us realize that Marsile does not know anything about the fact that Ganelon had defied Roland publicly.
Therefore, in the eyes of Marsile Ganelon is betraying his stepson. It is the poet who insists that Ganelon swore « the » on the relics oi his sword. The purpose of the poet is to bring Ganelon's characterization back to the first perspective that he presented of him when he introduced him at Charlemagne's council. For the same reason and for the reason of influencing the audience to think that Ganelon is a traitor, later Turold comments that Ganelon went to Saragossa to sell Charlemagne's maisnee v.
After the pact is concluded, Ganelon receives a large amount of gifts from the Saracens and he is ready to head back to the Emperor. Of those scholars who give an unfavorable criticism of Ganelon, Prof. Brault is the one who makes a very interesting point and, I would say, an almost very convincing point in correlating Ganelon's behavior at Marsile's court with Judas' betrayal of Jesus Christ. In fact, Prof. There are however, I think, some distinctions that should be made in regard to this parallelism between Ganelon and Judas.
First of all, I want to insist on the fact that Ganelon does not commit treason against Roland as we shall see, he commits treason against Charlemagne , whereas Judas clearly commits an act of outright betrayal toward Christ. Since Prof. Brault draws a parallelism between Roland. Gerard J. One is getting his revenge ; the other one is betraying. The kiss, that diabolic kiss that Judas gives to Jesus, seals the disciple's betrayal. The kisses that Marsile and other Saracens exchange with Ganelon should not be viewed in the same light.
The kiss, the embrace and the kneeling are the three gestures in the Song that are to be viewed as a form of for a service received. The Saracens kiss Ganelon because they feel grateful to him for the help that he is giving them in order to eliminate Roland. We shall see that Charlemagne will embrace Thierry v. Ganelon will humble himself at Pinabel's feet as a sign of gratitude and appreciation toward his relative who pleads Ganelon's cause at the trial v.
The final distinction that should be made is about Ganelon's « cupidity ». Whereas Judas betrayed for the sole reason of getting some money, Ganelon does not ask for riches when he is willing to plot with the Saracens against Roland. Marsile offers him gifts and Ganelon merely accepts them. At no time he showed any interest in riches in his deahng with and Marsile. Again, this offering of gifts should be viewed as a sign of gratitude for a service received or as a way of gaining someone's favor and allegiance.
This is precisely in accordance with the concept of generosity largesse of that period 3. Henry O. Taylor, The Mediaeval Mind, vol. According to the concept of largesse Charlemagne gives gifts to Ganelon for having, supposedly, accomplished successfully his mission v. Roland gives his men large amounts of gifts vv. Marsile sends gifts to Charlemagne vv. During the battle, Baligant and Charlemagne promise lands and riches to their respective men vv. Pinabel and Thierey give generously large offerings to the church in order to get God's favor on their side before they face each other in the judicial duel v.
According to his report, Marsile will follow Charlemagne to Aix and there he will convert to Christianity ; he will hold Spain as a vassal of the Emperor ; and, if his uncle is not accounted among the hostages, it is because, since he did not want to embrace the new religion, he drowned with all his followers while trying to flee by sea. The Emperor is satisfied with the report and the French army heads back to France.
The Christians lose many of their best men, including some among the twelve peers. Seeing the slaughter of his comrades, Roland no longer speaks in boasts and bluster; he is deeply dismayed. Near despair, he tells Olivier that he'll sound the oliphant; he hopes that it is not too late for Charlemagne to come to their aid. Olivier is angered. Olivier tells Roland that his vainglorious decision not to call for help has cost the lives of all the men of the guard: "Companion, you're to blame, for bravery in no sense is bravado, and prudence is worth more than recklessness.
Those French are dead because of your caprice" Turpin steps into the quarrel between the comrades; he advises them that sounding the horn cannot save them now, but that it is still best to blow it, for then Charlemagne will pursue their adversaries and avenge their deaths. In this section we see our first battle. The way in which the poet presents combat provides a striking example of the combination of vividness and ceremony which is so typical of this work and makes its figures and scenes into icons.
On one hand, there is the closeness of detail. The poet clearly relishes describing the fine points of horses, armor, weaponry, all the splendor of the pageantry of war—note, for instance, with what minute detail Turpin's horse is described in laisse But, despite such clearness of vision, we still seem to be at some distance from the action.
The repetitions of phrases, the slight variation from one laisse of combat to the next, the tidiness of the battle's partition into one-on-one fights, the choreographed balance of the actions of the two sides all make the battle feel something like a ceremony. This stylized quality, which coexists side-by-side with the colorful details, gives us a curiously mixed sense of distance and nearness to the action. He does not presume immediacy; to do so, when dealing with figures such as Charlemagne and Roland, would seem audaciously over-familiar.
Years later, Baligant finally arrives with an enormous army and sets out to give Charlemagne battle. Charlemagne and he are evenly matched as far as skill and strength go, but, because of a light touch of angelic intervention, Charlemagne is able to kill Baligant, thus avenging Roland and conquering Spain at a stroke.
Marsilla is the pagan king of Saragossa, the last Spanish city to hold out against the Frankish army. His vassal Blancandrin plans with Ganelon the ambush at Roncesvals and death of Roland. While Roland does die that day, he brings a handsome price beforehand, chopping off Marsilla's right hand. Badly weakened by this wound, Marsilla dies of grief when he hears of Baligant's defeat.
Marsilla's queen, Bramimonde, is later taken to Aix and converts to Christianity. Marsilla's queen Bramimonde falls into a deep despair and feels utterly disgraced after her husband's defeat by the Franks. She begins to curse the Saracen gods for not having helped Marsilla and his men on the battlefield and loses faith in Islam. When the Franks take Saragossa, Charlemagne decides to bring her back to Aix to convert her to Christianity, which she does by true conviction. She is baptized Juliana.
The shrewd pagan Blancandrin is one of Marsilla's most useful vassals. He suggests that they offer treasure, hostages, and a deceitful promise to Charlemagne that Marsilla will come to Aix and convert to Christianity to save their honor and lands from the great Frankish army.
Marsilla picks him to deliver the peace offer to the Franks. He and the Frank Ganelon then plot together the ambush at Roncesvals and death of Roland. Aelroth is Marsilla's fiery nephew and leads the Saracen ambush squad along with a dozen Muslim lords, paralleling the leadership of the Frankish rear guard by Charlemagne's nephew Roland and the twelve peers. Fittingly, he is killed by Roland at Roncesvals.
One of the twelve Saracen lords picked to battle the twelve Frankish peers at Roncesvals, Falsaron is Marsilla's brother. His forehead, we are told, is "a half-foot wide" He is soon killed by Olivier. King Corsablis from Barbary is an evil magician and one of the twelve Saracen lords picked to battle the twelve Frankish peers at Roncesvals.
He is soon killed by Turpin. The implication that this expert in black magic is the Islamic equivalent of the archbishop is typical of the way that Muslims are depicted in The Song of Roland. He is one of the twelve Saracen lords picked to battle the twelve Frankish peers at Roncesvals. There he gives Olivier a good blow, but God protects Olivier from being wounded by it.
Marsilla's only son, Jurfaleu the Blond, is killed at Roncesvals; his head is chopped off by Roland. SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Mini Essays Suggested Essay Topics. Charlemagne Historically, Charlemagne ? Olivier A gallant warrior, one of the twelve peers of France, and Roland's best friend, Olivier is the protagonist's foil, setting off Roland's daring with his own prudence: "Roland is bold, Olivier is wise, and both of them are marvelously brave" Turpin The archbishop Turpin, who fights and dies alongside Roland at Roncesvals, represents Christendom's turn towards militant activity at the time of the Crusades.
Ganelon Ganelon is a well-respected Frankish baron and Roland's stepfather.
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