Yvain, the knight of the lion, is the main character of the eponymous romance written by French poet Chréien de Troyes.
In the narrative, Yvain seeks to avenge his cousin, Calogrenant, who had been defeated by an otherworldly knight Esclados beside a magical storm-making stone in the forest of Brocéliande. Yvain defeats Esclados and falls in love with his widow Laudine. With the aid of Laudine's servant Lunete, Yvain wins his lady and marries her, but Gawain convinces him to leave Laudine behind to embark on chivalric adventure. Laudine assents but demands he return after one year. Yvain becomes so enthralled in his knightly exploits that he forgets to return to his wife within the allotted time, so she rejects him. Yvain goes mad with grief, is cured by a noblewoman, and decides to rediscover himself and find a way to win back Laudine. A lion he rescues from a dragon proves to be a loyal companion and a symbol of knightly virtue, and helps him defeat both a mighty giant and three fierce knights. After Yvain rescues Lunete from being burned at the stake, she helps Yvain win back his wife, who allows him to return, along with his lion.
Yvain is a fierce warrior. He is unique among the Knights of the Round Table, because he is the only one who was based on a historical figure. His prototype was Owain mab Urien, a historical figure of kingdom of Rheged.
Yvain’s courtesy is unmatched. The knight is humble, respectful, and noble. The reader is immediately introduced to this quality through the eyes of his cousin Calogarant and Queen Guinevere, who praises his courtly and prudent behavior.
An important aspect of courtesy involves the proper treatment of women. In this regard, Yvain’s actions are legendary. With the exception of Laudine, whose ire serves as the central dramatic tension of the work, every woman who meets Yvain consistently praises him highly. Two occasions serve to highlight this characteristic. The first is his interaction with Lunete, and the second is the episode involving the Younger Sister.
With his faith in the divine, Yvain possesses a confidence that makes him likable by the medieval audience. He is aware of his own abilities and though he believes that though God may intervene directly, in all of his battles he acts on this own, humbly serving only as a conduit for divine justice. Throughout the work, this humility remains consistent, which allows Yvain to act with supreme degrees of confidence – after all, when an omnipotent being is supporting his actions, it is difficult not to be confident.
"May God, our true spiritual King, protect me, and restore you to honour and joy, if it be His will! Now I must go and see what welcome will be shown to me by those within."
It may be tempting to conclude that the lion he has is introduced as an agent of providence used to demonstrate the strength of God.
For Yvain his martial ability represents another side of courtesy, the desire for fame and glory, or, in his cousin Calogarant's word, "adventure." As the son of King Urien, Yvain is described as a prodome, or worthy knight, who is exceptionally brave.
Prior to meeting Laudine, Yvain is depicted as the perfect knight. After meeting Laudine, his status as a perfect knight has not changed – he is still Yvain. Nonetheless, there must be a balance in the knight between the adventurer and the lover. When Gawain comes to take Yvain to seek adventure, he offers two very persuasive reasons for him to come along. The first is that the husband who honors himself also honors his wife, and the second is that his love for the lady grows stronger if they are apart. Even so, it takes a week for Gawain to tempt him towards adventure, and he first goes to request permission to leave from his lady, as it is proper for him to do. Yvain is cautious because it is in his character, and it shows his reluctance to carry out a task with the slightest potential to hurt Laudine.
Yvain's character, strangely static in nature, evolves through the synchronization of the two values. If Laudine's rejection can be viewed as the midpoint in the story, then in the first half, he is already the perfect fighter – winning over Laudine's heart after completing an appropriate adventure by defeating the Fountain Knight. As a lover, though he makes an unintentional mistake, through the construction of a new identity as the Knight with the Lion in the second half, Yvain redeems himself in Laudine's eyes. As the Knight with the Lion, he earns praises from both Gawain, representative of chivalric ideals and Lunete, representative of courtliness and the lover. Gawain allows him to reach the pinnacle of knighthood by becoming equal with the best, and Lunete helps him to reconcile with the lady he loves. Ultimately, the tale concludes with Yvain becoming an ideal knight through the balance of love and chivalry.
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