An Analyis of the Conventions of Courtly Love Within The Miller's Tale and Morte Darthur While both “Morte Darthur” and “The Miller's Tale” display some characteristics of a satirical approach in which human vices are attacked in a whimsical manner through irony, comedy, and folly, they are actually quite different in their literary genre and style. “Morte Darthur”, an adventurous tale with an imaginary setting that perfectly idealizes the chivalrous knight-hero and his noble deeds done for the love of his lady, is a classic example of a tragic medieval romance. A fabliau, of which “The Miller's Tale” is an example, takes a comical approach with the typically large cast of colorful characters: the blissfully ignorant husband, the…show more content… “He suffers from love sickness... cannot eat or sleep and his health begins to fail. Smitten through the eyes, the beloved’s image is imprinted in his heart/brain” (McDonald).This was how Lancelot felt after his beloved Guinevere's death, whereupon he “never after ate but little meat, nor drank, till he was dead, for then he sickened more and more and dried and dwined away” (Malory 454). Since “The Miller's Tale” is an older, satirical portrayal of the courtly love concept, his approach to Nicholas' emotional commitment is a much less serious one. Nicholas “still in his chamber lay, and eet, and sleep, or dide what him leste” (Chaucer 246). It therefore makes sense that the statement true “love can deny nothing to love” (Capellano) is not an instruction but an observation only applicable when the love in question is pure and the emotional involvement in the relationship is strong. Along with a strong emotional attachment, the treatment of the lover are addressed heavily within the conventions. The conventions explicitly set forth that object of affection is to be held in the highest of regards, esteeemed in the utmost possible way, her desires always respected. The interpretation
