| Title | : | The Song of Roland |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0140440755 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780140440751 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 208 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 1115 |
The Song of Roland Reviews
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It's not surprising that this work's greatest descendants are satires. It's often difficult to take the simplistic pro-crusade sentiment seriously. Each time one of the Knights yelled to some dead Muslim "We're right, you're wrong!" I laughed. When you're debate opponent is already slain, I guess you don't need to say anything else.
Ariosto drew on this tradition for his
Orlando Furioso, but each time a knight yells at Muslims in that book, the Muslims yell the same thing back. Though the Furioso is decidedly on the side of the crusaders (they win, after all), it reads like a Mad Magazine parody of 'The Song of Roland'. Ariosto clearly has a sense that both sides are fighting for the same reasons (not that he's unhappy to be on the winning side).
Cervantes likewise made a parody of this work with his 'Don Quixote', by simply asking 'what if a man comported himself like a knight while making his way through the real world'. Consequently, Quixote spends the book yelling at people he thinks are wrong and trying to kill them. Apparently, its only a comedy if you don't succeed. The unspoken critique throughout the book is that if Quixote is behaving inappropriately for real life, then the knights of Roland are only appropriate for a pretend world.
The Muslims have all the motivation of a Disney villain, desiring only to be treacherous and mean. The philosophical complexity is a long fall from Homer or Virgil. The work provides us with the clear sense that neither the author nor his culture have any real understanding of their foes, presenting the Muslims as worshiping Mohammad, Apollo, and popularizing the figure of 'Termagant'--long after referenced as the primary god of the Muslims.
I found
an interesting article which translated some of the terms in the book to Arabic, including 'olyphant' and the names of several horses and swords. According the the article, 'Apollo' and 'Termagant' are mis-translations of important religious figures; namely, Mohammad's uncle and son. They are no more gods than Moses, Solomon, or the Pope.
I had to find another article to explain the meaning of one passage describing a knights impressive physical traits and ending with "he had a large crotch". Apparently this is meant to signify the length of his thighs, and not anything particularly sexual. I guess long thighs just made you a bad dude back then (which does make sense if the primary war skill is equestrianism).
The bumbling, mustache-twirling Muslims set a standard for unsophisticated villains to come, appealing to the lowest common denominator. This is hardly surprising, since the work was performed for the public by singing jongleurs. Like the Passion Plays, the work was half entertainment, half political propaganda meant to stir up discontent in the illiterate, uneducated man.
In fact, the original battle described, in which Roland made his final stand, did not involve any Muslims at all--it was between Charlemagne's Christian French and Spanish Basques whose lands they were invading, who were also Christians. The whole anti-Muslim angle was tacked on later, just to rile people up.
There are some passages where Muslims are described as mighty, attractive, and clever, but these passages do not exactly typify their portrayal in the work.
Between the maniacal villains and the high death counts, this book clearly makes up a prototype for action movies to come, complete with the pithy lines delivered by the heroes to fresh corpses. In that sense, it's not hard to imagine the popularity of Roland, who was the John McClane of his time.
Despite historical and cultural significance and a few moving descriptions, the work is overall rather childish, falling long after the height of the Roman authors, yet still remote from the coming Renaissance. European culture at the time was light on philosophy, but had a multitude of enemies and wars.
Ironically, it was the Muslims who were currently at a philosophical and intellectual peak, translating and maintaining the Greek tradition. The Muslims had developed 'zero' three hundred years before, and in another three hundred, Ibn Khaldun would invent the social sciences in one fell swoop. It was only during the Crusades that Europeans began to learn things like mathematics and Greek philosophy from the Muslims, bringing these ideas back home and sparking off the Renaissance.
The Song is certainly useful for any follower of the epic tradition or for historians, and is quite short, but overall it is merely a placeholder between great works of earlier and later periods.
I read the Glyn Burgess translation, which is passable and has thoughtful footnotes. -
This was an easy read; the book is slim and the chapter are very short.
Things I got from this book:
It's a fast-moving, dramatic French epic based on a true event during Charlemagne’s somewhat unsuccesful campaign of 778 in northern Moorish Spain, a 'minor' ambush of the rear guard as he returned home - at the Pyrenees (not by muslims as the story claims though); and a true man, Hruodland (Roland), Charlemagne's Breton warden, who perished in this battle (how noble and brave he actually was is not known, of course).
Written in late 11th century to inspire the Crusades and the people taking part/supporting them, well-known by 1096... perhaps first appearing in a not-written-down form, and when written down, appearing in various forms.
That the Christians of this writing era (late 11th centry) didn't know much about Islam, even less than the bigots of our time: they thought Muslims worshipped three gods (Apollin the main god, Termagant the female god and Mahomet the prophet-god) and had images made of them.
Muslims are definitely pictured here as the 'bad side', (much of the book's thinking is black and white), but they do dress well and have good horses. If one can get over the pagan/devil's own part that the 'bad side' gets - typical of the era, the story itself is good.
There are certainly plenty of example of geographical ignorances of the area (distances for example) and exaggerated numbers (like, when Charlemagne expresses his grief over Roland's death, "a hundred thousand Franks faint on the ground") that are amusing.
Besides the religious oppositions and historical value, this is also an example of what the knights' values were supposed to be at the time: keeping one's word, bravery, strong religious faith. So much was gained, in my opinion, for reading this book, and thus it was well worth a read. -
Bloodthirsty.
Historical clash between Charlemagne's rear guard and rapacious Basques transformed into a medieval epic of betrayal, loyalty and duty against a backdrop of warfare between Muslim Spain and Christian France. Hugely influential - causing the name Ganelon, here associated with the blackest treachery, to drop out of documented usage as a given name! Demonstrating that the power of literature to change society was already nascent evn at the dawn of the Middle Ages. -
I am Oliver.
I'm a big fan of heroic literature, but The Song of Roland is not my favorite. Honestly, this is very much 'For the Glory of God', a crusader's epic poem. Not a great fit for me thematically, but I really wanted to have this piece of the puzzle slotted in for my understanding of heroic poetry. This is so different than The Illiad, The Odyssey, Táin Bó Cúailnge, Y Gododdin, Mabinogion, Beowulf, and Gilgamesh.
Roland desired goal of martyrdom requires the sacrifice of tens of thousands of his men for NO REASON. I test as Field Marshall or Architect on the Myers-Briggs, to give some perspective of where I'm coming from reading this. Hence, I'm Oliver. Dutiful, yet pragmatic. It's not that I don't understand dying for a cause. If you don't know what you're willing to die for, then you don't have any idea how to live; it's stumbling around in the dark. That said, while I know why I'm willing to die, and even that which I would condemn others to death who have sworn like goals, this is moronic. Roland didn't need to be martyred to achieve victory; therefore, it was a phenomenal amount of resources squandered. Forget Roland. What about all the other men who followed him? To what purpose?
Even if you say death and awaiting paradise is far better than here and now, an early exit is the easy way out and not heroic.
Heck, I understand Tierris, Charlemagne's proxy against Pinabel to avenge Roland's death and condemn Guenes for his treachery. All that aside, this was very repetitive with never-ending descriptions of the next warrior to fall, golden hauberks and helms galore. Add on that Roland dies about 50% of the way through and then we get to go through round two made it a bit slow. Think Charge of the Light Brigade at 1/50 speed.
I think I had a very outdated version so forgive the oddities in spellings.
Rollant est proz e Oliver est sage / Roland’s a hero, and Oliver is wise
It did inspire a haiku review, so there's that.
Cry 'Monjoie', gallantly
Broken hauberk, gold helm falls
Red poppies, Roland -
[2.5]
Update: dostałem pizde -
The oldest surviving major work of French literature, and an entertaining medieval classic. This epic poem presents a stylized version of the Battle of Roncevaux Pass (in 778), when Charlemagne's Christian forces fought the Spanish Muslims. If you enjoy epic poetry or medieval literature, this is not to be missed. 5 stars, highly recommended!
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"La batalla tendremos como nunca se ha visto.
Mis señores franceses, ¡Dios nos quiera valer!
¡Mantened bien el campo, que no seamos vencidos!
Los franceses responden: ¡Maldito sea el que huya!
Ni en peligro de muerte nadie os ha de fallar."
Hasta hoy sólo lo conocía de oídas como uno de los Cantares de gesta medievales junto con el del Cid español, que por lo recuerdo tiene más cuerpo y alma que este cantar. Siempre me había llamado la atención pues mi segundo nombre es Rolando. Sin embargo el haber leído previamente "Orlando enamorado" y "Orlando furioso" me ha hecho tener más ganas de poder leer este cantar y terminarlo rápido.
La historia cuenta desde luego el desastre de Roncesvalles donde todo empieza por la traición de Ganelón pariente de Roldán, quien por intervención de este mismo es elegido por Carlomagno para ir de embajada donde el moro Marsil que controla gran parte de España, la idea es una tregua de paz. Sin embargo ser elegido de embajador es algo que Ganelón considera un insulto y una exposición muy artera pues se cree morir por lo que odiará por siempre a Roldán. Entra en tratos con Marsil para engañar a los franceses y posteriormente emboscar a Roldán.
Esta obra es una épica más simple, más guerrera por decirlo así que los libros italianos que leí, desde luego porque es un poema más rústico, antiguo, con lenguaje no muy bien depurado, lleno de anáforas por momentos y parlamentos tópicos repetitivos como los gritos de guerra o las escenas bélicas. No encontramos casi rastro de magia o amoríos como sí los hay abundantes en la épica renacentista.
Roldán desde luego es el principal de todo el poema por mucho y es un guerrero bastante fiero pero también orgulloso y hasta petulante, al lado vemos a Oliveros su gran amigo que casi no lo conocía de los poemas anteriores pero que aquí destaca por su valentía y habilidad para el combate. Con ellos forman los 12 pares que son como los caballeros de la mesa redonda de la leyenda artúrica. Carlomagno por otra parte también muy buen guerrero es el bendecido por Dios y recibe el auxilio permanente de los ángeles y está rodeado de una aureola de santidad y seriedad al mismo tiempo.
Me gustó así mismo conocer a nuevos personajes como Baligán, el emir que ayudó a Marsil, a los doce pares, al duque de Naimón, la "Preciosa", a "Munjoie" y sobre todo el final de esta gran historia así como algunas variantes que figuraban como Anexos.
Un rato infausto acompañar a Roldán en sus últimos momentos. -
Poetry is not my favorite genre but this is a superb translation by Dorothy Sayers, the writer of Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries.
Before the poem, she devotes several pages to a thorough and interesting history of knights, lords, lieges, etc.. and their relationships with each other. I think this helps the reader to better understand the characters in the poem and also the Moorish invasion during Charlemagne's reign. -
Charlemagne's Rear Guard
17 September 2013
In her introduction Dorothy Sayers compared the Song of Roland with
Homer but in my opinion that is like comparing a graffiti artist with Pablo Picasso. Yeah, they're both painters, but they simply exist on two completely different levels. Granted, the Song of Roland is an epic poem in the traditional sense in that it chronicles events that occurred four hundred years before the poem appeared in its final form and was no doubt handed down by word of mouth for at least a bit of that time, but the structure and complexity of the Homeric epics simply leaves this rather scrappy piece of work for dead.
The Song of Roland is set during the reign of Charlemagne, and while Charlemagne was off beating up the pagan non-Christian barbarians up north, Spain was being invaded by the Muslims (who, in this poem, are pagan non-Christians). In response, Charlemagne crosses the Pyranees and launches an attack against the Muslim invaders and has the upper hand, so the Muslim king proposes a truce. Charlegmaine then returns back across the Pyranees to continue to beat up on the Pagan non-Christians to the north. However, the Muslims hatch a plot to weaken Charlegmaine's army and as his rear guard is crossing the Pyranees, the Basque ambush them and slaughter them to the man. In response, Charlegmaine returns and enacts vengeance on the Muslims, and kills the instigator of the ambush by tying him to four horses and then whipping them so they all run off in four different directions.
The poem itself is good, and it is an enjoyable read, but as I said it is nowhere near as structured as Homer. The poem was originally written in a very old form of French which was actually closer to Latin than the French we know today. In fact the French of this period still declined its nouns (meaning that the noun would change based on the position that it took in the sentence, something which it doesn't do these days – German still does it, but only with the articles).
What is interesting is that the Basque were still very independent back in those days. In the poem it sounds as if the Muslims encouraged them to attack Charlemagne's rear-guard, however it is suggested that they actually didn't really need all that much encouragement. What I noticed though is that the civil war that the Basques are raging against the Spanish government today is not anything new – it has been going on for over a thousand years (and possibly even longer).
The other interesting thing that I noticed is pretty much how little Medieval Christianity knew about Islam. We are told here that the Muslims were pagans that worshipped idols and had multiple gods (and that is ignoring that fact that the writer blatantly says that the Muslims worship Satan). In fact they are referred to throughout the poem as Paynims (which is medieval for pagan). These days we know that that is nowhere near the truth. They do notice that they have their own book, but it is suggested that the reason they say this is because the writer is trying to portray them as being the antithesis of Christianity. Maybe they suggest this because the Muslims conquered Spain so quickly (which was a bit of an embarrassment – especially since the counter-attack took four hundred years).
However, it is unlikely that the writer, or many of the people in Christendom at the time, would have done all that much to try to understand Islam. Simply put, they were not Christian therefore in the eyes of the writers, and the audience, they were bad. However it is also suggested that it worked both ways – the Muslims pretty much saw Christianity in the same light, and I am told the misunderstanding of what Christianity is about is evident in Muslim literature of the time such as the
Tales of the Arabian Knights.
Once again, nothing much has really changed in all that time. Fundamentalist Muslims see Christians as a debauchuous lot that run around in bikinis looking at porn and living hedonistic lifestyles, while fundamentalist Christians simply see Muslims as being a violent lot that run around blowing up people that do not believe their strict doctrine. While I tend to be very traditional in my faith, that does not give me the excuse not to befriend Muslims or try to understand where they are coming from, and it certainly does not give me the right to make baseless assumptions about what Muslims are like (I have some very good Islamic friends) or make inflammatory statements about their faith that only exist to inflame tempers (even though, like most religions, there are some really bad apples). -
"Pagans are wrong: Christians are right indeed."
Wow, thanks for that stunning piece of religious thinking, Roland!
If you like sophisticated metaphysical analysis such as that, as well as lavish descriptions of bowels and brains spilling out onto the ground, then boy howdy, is this the book for you! Man. Okay, some works are classics because they're really amazingly good—beautifully written, incisive, profound. Others are classics because they're super old. The Song of Roland, the oldest surviving piece of French literature, is definitely the latter and solely the latter. It is so bad. So bad it's at times deeply hilarious: the MST3K crew would have a field day with this thing. I'm almost tempted to rent the 1978 French film to see if it can attain the same level of ridiculousness, but Klaus Kinski and Co. probably actually tried to make it good. Mistake!
The basic plot of The Song of Roland is this: the Franks are fighting "the Pagans"—a motley crew whom the author(s) seems to think worship both Muhammad and Apollo. Accuracy! Anyway, Charlemagne—whose luxurious white beard is discussed to the point where one begins to fear that the author(s) wants to do something seriously inappropriate to it—leaves his nephew to guard a parcel of land in Spain that those pesky pagans have faux-surrendered. The pagans then attack Roland and his vastly outnumbered group of men. Roland refuses to blow his horn to call for reinforcements. Then a bunch of his dudes are beheaded and Roland's BFF Oliver is all, "Hey, maybe calling for those reinforcements would be a GOOD IDEA?" So Roland blows his horn. Of course, it's too late. We are told in detail how he and what feels like every other man in his army dies. Many of their deaths, such as Oliver's, cause Roland to swoon and pause the battle several pages in order to mourn, tear at his hair, etc.
When all of the Franks are dead, Charlemagne shows up and finds the body of his nephew. Up until this point, I thought Roland was a pretty good swooner. But it turns out he's no match for Charlemagne. When Charley swoons, "Five score thousand Franks swooned on the earth and fell." That is some champion swooning. No wonder he's king.
The rest of the book follows Charlemagne as he proves to the pagans that you wouldn't like him when he's angry. Then, in the last lines of the book, he rends his beard and sobs. Medieval French knights apparently cry more than Project Runway contestants. Who knew?
I almost gave this book a second star because it amused me so much. But no: it's total shit. Racist, intolerant, repetitive, and melodramatic enough to deserve its own Lifetime Original Movie. Uncle, May I Joust With Danger?: The Baron Roland Story. If another eleven-odd centuries pass and we somehow manage to lose this one, I won't be all that sorry. -
French epic poem about Charlemagne and his best general Roland.
Plot. Rating 4
The plot of the poem is quite simple and consists of the components necessary for such a genre: betrayal, revenge, valor, duty, and faith. All plot events develop consistently and logically, if you do not take into account the medieval exaggerations and naivety of this poem, as well as many other epic poems. However, I liked that the plot of the poem did not end with the events connected with Roland; it has a significant sequel with an interesting second battle and other events.
Characters. Rating 4
The heroes of the poem have their own individual personalities, despite the fact that the genre forces them to be more one-dimensional and formulaic. The protagonist Roland is not a completely positive character; he makes big mistakes, but his courage, sensitivity and sense of duty lead to empathy for him. More than the main character, I liked his faithful companions: Olivier and the archbishop.
As befits an epic, the poem contains a large number of characters despite its small volume. Many of them are memorable, such as the unexpected defender of the main traitor of the book.
Dialogues. Rating 3
The dialogues of the work are determined by the genre. They are poetic, archetypal, simple and filled with frequent repetitions. In some places, the dialogue approaches reality, for example, in the dispute between Roland and Olivier.
Writing style. Rating 5
The text is very easy to read, its rhythm and words create good poetic magic even for people as inexperienced in poetry as myself. In addition, the exclamation at the end of the couplets and the battle cry of the French gave the poem a special excellent style.
Worldbuilding. Rating 4
There are strange passages in the poem, medieval ignorance, unbridled fury towards the enemy, and epic exaggerations. Heroes periodically faint from grief or excess of feelings. The main monotonous combat technique is cutting the enemy in half, without fail, along with the saddle and the unfortunate war horse. Hundreds of thousands of warriors are fighting on both sides on the slopes of the Pyrenees.
Nevertheless, there are many interesting lines in the text showing the customs of medieval people, the customs of war and peace, as well as details of everyday life. I liked the representation of the military contingents before the battles.
Conclusion. Overall rating 4
This is a good example of an epic poem that is easy to read and conveys a medieval flavor. -
The Song of Roland is an epic poem based on the Battle of Roncevaux in 778, during the reign of Charlemagne.
The author is unknown, but could be Turold, as is mentioned in the last line: ‘Ici prend fin l’histoire que Turold raconte.’
It is among the oldest major works of French literature and was likely written in about 1080 to 1100.
The epic poem was a literary form that flourished between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries and celebrated deeds of legendary heroes.
It is, for the most part, the story of Charlemagne's heroic French Christian knights in battles
against the villain Muslim pagan soldiers of King Marsile of Saragossa in Spain.
The story is extremely well constructed, the language is simple and easy to read although quite repetitive throughout, but this was the style of an epic poem, then.
Compared to the underlying original minor historic event, the poem is hugely exaggerated in many ways.
The sad end of the heroic knight Roland after having been betrayed by one of his own peers is a heartbreak and there is not a single line of romance in the whole story to make up for it.
A must read for anybody interested in good old chivalry literature. -
This is an exemplary piece of epic literature that I really enjoyed reading. It was interesting to really see how flawed the European view of the Saracens of the Middle East was during the crusades. It really shows how not only were the views of the Europeans skewed, but it also relates to the views of many people today. When you ask a person about their view of Christianity, their answer will vary depending on where the person is from. We as people are often forced to make the same assumptions as those Europeans, thinking that if something is different from you (the other), it is inherantly evil. I think the Song of Roland illustrates this fact and so much more, and I thouroughly enjoyed what it had to provide.
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There's not much to say about The Song of Roland. It's a great epic, of course. Dorothy L. Sayers' translation is a little more poetic than accurate. She also disconcertingly changes the spellings of character names for metrical reasons or else for assonance. That's confusing. The introduction is excellent, though. And, once you've got used to the name thing, the translation is very readable. I prefer Glyn S. Burgess' translation that has essentially replaced Sayers'. Perhaps it's not as literary (he doesn't try to reproduce the assonance of the original, for example), but it's also a very readable translation with an informative introduction.
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La Chanson de Roland. My first acquaintance with this epic poem was in Richard Barber’s tract on chivalry: The Knight and Chivalry, in which he analyzes the epic at length. Reading that book, I was unprepared for the emphasis he placed on chansons de geste and chivalric romances, and their importance in the development of and our understanding of Medieval chivalry and knighthood. A trip to library is certainly in store for me, because I am eager to read through his analysis of The Song of Roland again, now that I have read it myself, in translation.
Since that initial discovery, as is so often the case with fundamental texts, pieces of art, and ideas, I have encountered the epic in various guises and forms. The story of Roland is a common thread in medieval artwork—in manuscript illuminations and paintings, and in stained-glass windows. It is also a forerunner and inspiration to 16th century, Renaissance epic Orlando Furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. These associations inspired in me an interest and sense of curiosity concerning the poem. Ultimately, my decision to seek it out was sparked by Don Quixote, which I have recently embarked upon. In the opening pages and chapters of that novel, we are told about the knight’s passion for, his obsession with chivalric romances—including Orlando Furioso. I thought to myself, surely there is no better time to read the story of Roland than at the present moment.
So I went to the library and was fortunate to find a copy: the edition translated by Frederick Goldin and published by Norton in 1978 which, I gather, is less widespread than either of the versions published by Penguin. A word about the translation and this edition before I get to the poem itself. My impression of the translation is that Goldin sought to imitate the style and force and, most importantly, the meaning of the original language over everything else. He writes that:the translation is literal in the following sense: there is nothing in it that is not present, implicitly or explicitly, in the original. This gives the translator a loophole a mile wide. But to translate strictly according to the letter—to ignore what is there simply because it is not there in black and white—is to be guilty of a crime against the poem not unlike Ganelon’s against the state” (47).
Rendered into English by Goldin, this epic poem, this song, loses its lyrical, if not its poetic quality. From the extracts of the original included in the introduction, it appears that original had a consistent rhyming scheme. There is no rhyming whatever in this translation. The meter is awkward, too, and Goldin acknowledges this. I read it out loud, and what a far cry from the singing of the original by skilled and practiced bards it must have been to hear me (which, fortunately, no one had the dubious pleasure of). If it sounds like I have been overly critical in my assessment of this translation, that is not my intent. To my understanding, Goldin made the conscious decision to sacrifice the lyrical quality of the text in favor of presenting it so as to imitate as closely as possible its unique and distinctive style, and the forceful effect of the words. I would love to read another translation in the future, to compare and contrast.
Now to the poem itself. The text presented in translation here is dated to the late 11th century, though it stems from centuries of oral tradition. It weaves a tale from the days of Charlemagne, some three hundred years before the date of the manuscript. Roland, a relative and vassal of Charlemagne, is betrayed by Ganelon, another vassal, and commits himself and the entire rearguard of Charlemagne army to martyrdom in the passes of the Pyrenees. There is a speck of resemblance to a real historical event, but the poem is so obviously and so intentionally divorced from reality that it is idle to compare the two.
The Song of Roland is an emphatic statement of Christian belief and the rightness of a unified, Christian state, represented by Charlemagne and his empire. The theme is hardly subtle, but there are layers to it. One of the most striking aspects of the story is the symmetry between the protagonists and the antagonists. The same exact words and phrases that describe Roland and Oliver are used for their equivalents amongst the pagans. They have the same armor; the same helmets; they are all knights, and fight with lance, shield, and sword. Of course, in oral epics like this, standard phrases and formulas are common fare and an essential tool for the performers. But the need for formula does not adequately explain the symmetry between pagan and Christian. It is a narrative choice to emphasize that the only difference between them is their religion, otherwise they are equals. Roland’s faith is what elevates him to the status of a martyr and hero instead of being a reckless, selfish, glory-hound.
The real antagonist of the story is Ganelon, the traitor. The pagans (who, though ostensibly Islamic, are really just proxies for any and all non-Christians) are wrong only because they put their faith in the wrong deities, according to the narrator. Ganelon, on the other hand, is a Christian who betrays Roland and Charlemagne. At the very end of the poem, his error is proved by the judicial duel fought for his trial. When his champion is killed, it is a sign from God that he was in the wrong, that he is guilty.
While the themes are not to my liking (not even Roland’s martial martyrdom), I am happy I read The Song of Roland. I even enjoyed reading it as an important piece of literature and for its direct, uncompromising lines. The language is oddly phrased, often clumsy and awkward, but it has a confidence, an unshakeable conviction which lends the words a unique power. Certainly, there is no other work I know that can be compared to this epic.
Finally, the lengthy introduction that Goldin provides in this edition is superb. He provides good context to the origins of the work as well as a summary of much of the scholarship on it. He also writes persuasively on his interpretations of the poem, including a fascinating analogy between Roland and the infamous George Armstrong Custer. His critical introduction enhanced my reading of the work, for which I am grateful.
I have decided to rate this as three stars, even though I think it is meaningless to rank such a piece as this, or to compare it with pretty much anything else I have read. The rating is more a reflection of my satisfaction at having now read this once-significant work, and thus having the knowledge to see its influence on other works. -
"The Song of Roland" is the most unintentionally hilarious epic I have ever read. I kept trying to imagine how its original audience would have received it--possibly the way we respond to testosterone-driven action movies today. The main difference, aside from the medium, seems to be that in modern action movies, directors have to vary the way people are killed, or the audience gets bored. In Roland, people are usually stabbed through the chest or split in half (entirely or partially) from the crown of the head downward. The latter form of death happens so much that it's even depicted on the front cover. I don't know much about medieval warfare, but I'm relatively sure that few swordsmen, no matter how well trained, could easily split someone in that direction in the middle of a battle. And that isn't the only thing that didn't make sense. Also, the author seems to have repeatedly lost track of details (Olifant is being blown? wait, I thought Roland laid the broken pieces underneath him...). Then there is the massive misunderstanding of Islam--the author seems to have been under the impression that Muslims worship three gods, one of whom is Muhammed, and employ sorcerers. Maybe the epic reads better in French. In English, I spent of lot of time giggling.
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3.5? 4? 4.5?
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O nestemată a literaturii medievale de care franceza veche mă desparte și pe care sunt condamnată să o citesc într-o română rimată stângaci. Chiar și așa...e frumoasă de numa numa.
"Roland privește peste munți și văi
Îi vede pretutindeni morți pe-ai săi
Ș-i plînge ca un nobil cavaler:
,,Va răsplătească Domnul cel din cer!
Iar sufletele-n rai să vă primească
Si printre sfinte flori vă odihnească!
Vasali ca voi nici cînd n-au mai trăit.
Loiali de-a rândul bine m-ați slujit,
Regele-a-nvins cu voi țări și popoare
Dar v-a crescut spre marea-i întristare!
O dulce Franță, tu pămînt iubit,
Negru zăbranic astăzi te-a cernit!
Din vina mea baronii au pierit,
Să-i apăr, să-i ajut, n-am izbutit;
Pe Dumnezeul Sfânt Tatăl Ceresc,
Olivier, frate, nu te părăsesc,
Si de nu cad în luptă, mor de-amar.
Prieten drag, haide la luptă iar!”
" -
Reseña primera: Lo tuve que leer para la facultad. En cuanto tenga una visión más académica del libro, haré una reseña como Dios manda. Solo diré que me enganchó más que la Ilíada y que pensaba que ponerle nombre a las espadas era fetiche de las novelas de fantasía épica ----> PUES RESULTA QUE NO, la gente de la Edad Media adoraba meterle nombre a sus espadas. RELUCE DURANDARTE!!
Reseña real:
Ahora me siento un poco más capacitada para hablar de este libro.
Los que no saben de qué trata, El Cantar de Rolando (o Roldán, depende la traducción) es cantar de gesta típico de Francia (como decirles el Martín Fierro nuestro) que relata una versión de los hechos de lo acontecido en la Batalla de Roscenvalles allá a finales del 700 d.C. Para ponerlos un poco en situación, Carlomagno venía conquistando todo a su paso y con grandes victorias - a pesar de algunos altibajos (cof cof de llevarse el motín y destruir ciudades enteras en el nombre del cristianismo cof cof). La Iglesia estaba más rompepelota que nunca (sí, dije rompepelota): estábamos frente a la Iglesia marcial, la que se acuñaba la espada para adquirir adeptos. Al pagano, la espada en el vientre, decían los santos padres de esta época, y el pagano era todo aquel que no se inclinaba ante la cruz.
También rondaba por esta época un pensamiento (obviamente formulado por los padres de la Iglesia) que dividía a la sociedad en tres estratos: los oradores - los curas, que... sí, rezaban por el bienestar de todos; los guerreros - los que defendían a los otros dos estratos; y los laboratores - los trabajadores, la gente de clase baja, que debían sostener a los otros dos estratos. Cualquier similitud con lo que planteaba Marx o con la actualidad es pura coincidencia, eh. Traer a colación esta pirámide jerárquica no es en vano en relación a la obra: había que apaciguar a los trabajadores, cansados que laburar, que veían estas injusticias para con sus labores. ¿Y cómo apaciguábamos a esta gente? Con los cantares de gesta, en donde se narraban las hazañas de héroes (guerreros) que cumplían con su rol con honor y sabiduría. Y entonces los trabajadores dirían, genial, si Rolando murió peleando por el cristianismo como el buen soldado que era, ¡yo debo continuar haciendo mi trabajo lo mejor que puedo!
Es lógico pensar a El Cantar de Rolando como una propaganda de este sistema propuesto por los padres de la Iglesia de la época. En el poema, vemos a los tres estratos ocupando el sitio que les corresponde: los curas rezando - algunos de ellos peleando incluso, representando a la Iglesia marcial que mencioné antes; a los guerreros luchando hasta la última gota de alma que tienen en sus encallecidos cuerpos a lo Saint Seiya; y a los trabajadores, los sirvientes, y sí, las mujeres.
Ahora bien, ¿qué pasó en la Batalla de Roscenvalles?
Avanzaba el ejército de Carlomagno, luego de su ataque a los sarracenos, con el propósito de retornar. Rolando y su fiel sidekick Oliveros, así como todo un contingente de soldados, son apuntados para quedar en la retaguardia. Rolando tenía consigo un cuerno al que podría tañir en caso de emergencia, pero nadie se preocupaba por nada, ya que lo sarracenos habían sido derrotados y ya solo restaba volver a casa.
Lo and behold, parece que Rolando es yeta o algo, porque, en el pasaje de Roscenvalles, los emboscaron los sarracenos y la retaguardia se tuvo que quedar a luchar.
El honor es un fuerte tópico en esta obra: todos los hombres, excepto Ganelón (el traidor), son sumamente honrados, y si caen malheridos se lamentan un segundo por su Dulce Francia para volver a levantarse y seguir peleando. Todo lo hacen en pos de su rey, Carlomagno, que tan afanado deambula muy adelante de ellos, teniendo premoniciones de lo que iba a pasar con su retaguardia; y por su hermosa y Dulce Francia, el reino al que le deben la vida.
La felonía, la traición, es el peor delito que una persona puede cometer. Esto se desprende del ritual de vasallaje, tan en boga en esa época. El contrato entre el señor y su vasallo era de tal importancia que era preferible morir a traicionar. Este es el trato que se le dispensa a Ganelón, el traidor de la obra, que es quien vende la retaguardia a los sarracenos.
Hay, a lo largo de la obra, una notoria comparación entre Carlomagno, Rolando, Ganelón y los doce pares de soldados a la Biblia: Dios, Jesús, Judas y los Doce Apóstoles respectivamente. También hay una exacerbación de la monstruosidad y fealdad de los sarracenos, ya que lo bello era considerado bueno y ligado a Dios, mientras que lo feo sin duda tenía que estar teñido por Satán. Era tal el desprecio de los cristianos hacia los paganos que ni se interesaban en saber si creían en Alá, Mahoma o Apolo.
Así como hay un estereotipo de héroe (Rolando) y de traidor (Ganelón), también lo hay estereotipos de mujeres. Alda, la prometida de Rolando, es la mujer cristiana por excelencia. Aparece solo en unas pocas líneas tirando al final y su participación es nula. . En la vereda contraria tenemos a Bramimunda, la mujer sarracena, que increpa a los hombres, a su marido el rey, da su opinión y hasta los trata de tontos por no actuar de cierta manera. Bramimunda representa todo lo que estaba mal en una mujer en esa época. Ya sabemos de qué team somos acá.
Lo cierto es que al principio puse que El Cantar de Rolando relataba una "versión" de los hechos de lo ocurrido en la Batalla de Roscenvalles. La verdad es que esta versión es la que Carlomagno quería que se expandiera, debido a numerosos rumores de que él había sido derrotado en dicha batalla - que, dicho sea de paso, sí lo fue. Fue un fracaso. Pero como les recuerdo, vivíamos en este sistema de estratos en donde los laboratores tenían que mantenerse en el molde, apelando a su sensibilidad colectiva con la mención de un héroe que todos amaban y recordaban con cariño.
Es maravilloso lo rica que una obra puede volverse conociendo todos estos detalles que la rodean. En lo personal, encontré que se leía rápido y que me enganchó con facilidad, pero no deja de ser un poema como lo es el El Cantar del Mío Cid u otros parecidos, es decir: probablemente aburrido, con pomposidades y repeticiones. No sabría recomendarlo: solo si se quiere tener otra perspectiva de lo acontecido históricamente, esta obra es la correcta. Detrás de cada espadazo, se puede apreciar cómo la Iglesia promovía estas guerras para exterminar al Enemigo, al Otro. -
One of the best action stories that I have ever read. The entire poem is just invigorating. I love how the characters are established so quickly and so skillfully, and each of them are interesting in their own ways, from the valiant Roland, the zealous Archbishop and the treacherous Ganelon. In a lot of ways, this story is like a french Iliad - it involves a conflict between talented and honour-loving warriors and whenever a character dies there are long descriptions of how exactly their flesh is getting torn apart. I think the similarities to the Iliad are very deliberate, since it is an epic poem. Probably the anonymous author is trying to make a poem that will be for Christians in France what The Iliad was to Pagans in Greece back in their era.
This poem has the potential to stir up powerful emotions in anyone who loves Europe and who is concerned for her future as a result of mass immigration and other policies of the Left. As such it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for all body-and-soul Europeans. After all, the story is essentially about Charlemagne and his knights liberating a Muslim-occupied Spain. Anyone who enjoys medieval literature or even just epic poems in general is sure to enjoy this work and it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for them as well. -
The thing that this is, is perhaps not a very great sort of thing: after-dinner entertainment for people who--not unlike people of our own time--liked to hear how virtuous, right, and heroic their warriors were and how their enemies were devil-followers. (And also liked a hearty amount of gore, because let's be real, what's a superhero story without larger than life battles and deaths?) But as the thing that it was, it had some moments of high drama and pathos, and I enjoyed it.
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A third, I think, reread for me of this my first-ever medieval epic poem read when little and that sparked a love of True Knights™. It still like it as much as before even after all these decades.
Also, the name of California comes from a passage (". . . those of Califerne") in The Song of Roland. I'm dying on this hill! -
You know those Hollywood movies that say; “inspired by actual historical events,” that then go on to change and corrupt every detail of the history save for the general seed idea? Well, they are the heirs of The Song of Roland. The story is based on an actual event, yet is worthless as history, as nearly every detail of that event has been changed to suit heroic story telling and glorifying French and Christian propaganda.
But just as many of those grossly inaccurate historical action movies can be a lot of fun to watch, Song of Roland is fun to read. It was sung as entertainment by French troubadours, and its heroic action and over the top bravado is truly entertaining in its own right. And while not reliable history of the event it memorialized, it does give a window into the attitudes and ideas of the contemporary audiences those troubadours performed to. -
Cuando pueda le haré una reseña decente. Por lo pronto, puedo decir que no es mi libro favorito de esta época porque la historia que cuenta Turoldus (un misterio) se desvirtúa después de ciertos acontecimientos. Las últimas series son, sin embargo, bastante impresionantes.
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Am I allowed to enjoy such a problematic book? I really don’t know how to rate this work. But it was definitely a fun (and at times, touching) read. It is also historically significant, so people should read it.
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read for uni and, to be honest, really enjoyed it.
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geçen yılın sonlarına doğru aldığım karar yüzünden (bkz okuduğum kitapların notlarını tutma) birçok re-read yapılacak kitabım oldu. bu sebeple de aslında çok sevdiğim bu destanı da (aslen chanson) bu sürece dahil ettim. normalde kitabı bilingue edisyonundan okuyordum ama kitabın çevirisini de gördüğümde karşılaştırma yapmak ve çeviri hakkında da fikir edinmek istedim.
bu noktaya kadar her şey güzel aslında. sevdiğim eserleri farklı dillerden okumak çok da keyifli bir uğraş benim için, tekrar tekrar okumaktan sıkılmıyorum hele de Orta Çağ gibi bir döneme ait eserleri.
kitabın başında olayın tarihi arka planı ve birtakım unsurlar hakkında açıklayıcı yazıyı da beğeniyle okuyordum ki Charlemagne isminin analiz kısmına geldik. bu kısmı da takdir ettim çünkü gerçekten güzel ve sade biçimde açıklanmıştı.
(açıklama bana ait, yanlış izahat vermediğimi umuyorum)
ismin aslı Charles iken latince magnus sıfatının eril-tekil uyumuyla aldığı isim hali magnedir. yani Büyük Charles olarak Türkçe kullanılabilir illaki kalıplaşmış isim kullanılmak istenmiyorsa.
bunları açıkladıktan sonra Almanlar ile Fransızların ortak atası, Charlemagne’ın Almanlar tarafından Charles değil de Karl olarak isimlendirildiğinden ama bunun bir Fransız destanı olduğundan bahsediliyor. sonra usulca destana geçiyoruz ki o da ne!
Büyük Karl
kimse kusura bakmasın ama ben bu kullanımı kabul etmiyorum. çok güze bir çeviriydi diğer açılardan ama Fransız eseri diye çevirdiğiniz eseri nasıl Alman ismiyle tüm kitapta geçirirsiniz!
asabım bozuldu yine. -
1000 year old Christian/French propaganda. Not the best story of knights and chivalry but fun enough if that's your bag and you understand that the only thing people knew about being "woke" back then had to do with getting up in the morning and not with being super cool with people different from them. I mention this because I see a lot of people judging this story harshly because of its depiction of non-Christians, but that would be like judging a 1000 year old recipe for not giving you oven pre-heating temperatures.
