18th century and prior hero-gets-the-girl adventure stories.

I am wondering how far back the hero gets the girl stories go? I'm desperate to read some written in that time and before. I'm talking romantic adventure stories, written in the 18th century and back further in history. No harsh alpha male as the hero, more like the hero being a cheeky man yet a law unto himself who knows what he wants and possibly risks all to get it (the girl!). Swashbuckling (swinging from chandeliers in a daring escape is always good though not necessary), the man from a lower class getting the love of a lady, daring rescues of ladies by a brave man of equal or lower class so they can be together forever, ladies of the upper classes falling for a servant and plotting to escape with him etc. Definately seeking adventure type stories with these elements. Having a hard time finding any, though I thought of Robin hood yet I am unable to find a decent edition of it from that era that contains the kind of adventure I'm talking about.

Nothing past the 18th century please and nothing like Romeo and Juliet, it must have a happy ending! I realise I might be pushing it here, the stories I know and love from later periods of this type may be some of the first though I'm hoping not! I know there were short romantic adventure stories in these times but hard to find any and those I do find in dribs and drabs on the net don't quite fit what I'm after.

Anyone know of any?

Doing a tag search for 18th centory novel gives this list - http://www.librarything.com/tag/18c+novels

I think you're going too far back for that kind of sensibility. The end of the 19th century has tons of them. See



as a perfect example.

Our view is a bit distorted, because most of the real popular romance has been forgotten and (experts apart) we only know about the people who pushed the envelope a bit. Smollett, Defoe and Fielding are all in your general area, but they tend to mix the adventure with comic failure, so that the hero keeps on not-quite getting the girl until the very end of the book.

I think The adventures of Roderick Random might fit the bill quite well. Plenty of adventure and a fair bit of romance, but a lot of laughs as well.

The oldest is perhaps The Odyssey. The hero gets Penelope in the end after vanquishishing all the suitors. Lots of swashbuckling, and not really a macho hero, but a very fallible one.

The hero gets his...wife.

I don't recall too much about Gilgamesh but I'm sure the hero gets someone.

2: I think you're going too far back for that kind of sensibility.

I agree. Concerning the Chanson de Roland (late 11th century), C.S. Lewis writes in The Allegory of Love:

Roland does not think about Alde on the battlefield: he thinks of his praise in pleasant France. The figure of the betrothed is shadowy compared with that of the friend, Oliver. The deepest of worldly emotions in this period is the love of man for man, the mutual love of warriers who die together fighting against odds, and the affection between vassal and lord.

But adventure and romance do then flourish in the slightly later period that Lewis concerns himself with, as in Chretien de Troyes' Lancelot (late 12th century). Will that do?