In this thesis, the medieval Breton lays of ''Lanval'' by Marie de France and ''Sir Launfal'' by Thomas Chestre are compared on three major themes: courtly love, feminism and the description of the...Show moreIn this thesis, the medieval Breton lays of ''Lanval'' by Marie de France and ''Sir Launfal'' by Thomas Chestre are compared on three major themes: courtly love, feminism and the description of the nobility. This analysis is supported by a description of the sociolinguistic situation of England during the High Middle Ages in order to research the world view of the authors and their audiences in relation to the language of expression that the authors used to compose their lays. The structure of the stories in the ''Lanval'' corpus lends itself to criticising the nobility and their values. The comparison between the noble old French ''Lanval'' and the more popular middle English ''Sir Launfal'', supported by a sociolinguistic description of the society they both are a product of, has proven to be fruitful. While both Bretons lays are an expression of criticism, the manner of delivering this criticism and the aim of doing so differ between the noble French retelling of a Celtic story and the popular English adaption of the French story.Show less
