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"Reading the Song of Roland" was written to encourage readers to recognize among the obscurities, the contradictions, and the improbable hyperboles of the "Song of Roland", a number of unmistakable triumphs which will make them eager ot come to grips with the poem and its feudal world. Aside from its capacity to entertain us or to serve as an ethnological prism, the "Song of Roland" raises fascinating critical and interpretive problems that are relevant to other heroic poems and to the study show more of poetry as an art. "Reading the Song of Roland" discusses the poem not only as a revelation of conflicting attitudes and beliefs in the unknown poet and his contemporaries in medieval France and also as a tragic utterance which is unique because of its peculiar mode of expression. Special sections at the end of the book include pertinent chronology, a sketch of the historical event upon which the poem is supposedly based, a synopsis of critical reactions to the legend of Roland, and suggestions for further reading for those who are eager to explore this fascinating epic in more depth. -- From publisher's description. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Eugene Vance has produced a very useful introduction to the epic French poem “The Song of Roland.” Vance lays out the background of the poem, places it in the context of medieval French epic poetry and the Crusades, and helps the reader who is new to “the Roland” gain some traction in understanding something separated from us by so many centuries.
This text was my introduction to Roland. After reading this text, I returned to the poem and reread it, then found other criticism which expanded on the groundwork laid by Vance. I highly recommend this work to readers who are new to this style of poetry.
This text was my introduction to Roland. After reading this text, I returned to the poem and reread it, then found other criticism which expanded on the groundwork laid by Vance. I highly recommend this work to readers who are new to this style of poetry.
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Author Information
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Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Reading the Song of Roland
- Original publication date
- 1970
- People/Characters
- Roland (The song of Roland); Charlemagne
- Important places
- Roncesvalles, Navarre, Spain; Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain
- Important events
- Crusades
- First words
- As we read the Song of Roland for the first time, we quickly discover that its anonymous poet has left us a tale "which holdeth children from play and old men from the chimney corner," to use Sir Philip Sidney's phrase about ... (show all)how we should be affected by good heroic poetry.
- Original language
- English
Classifications
- Genres
- Fiction and Literature, Literature Studies and Criticism, Poetry
- DDC/MDS
- 841.1 — Literature & rhetoric French & related literatures French poetry Early French 842–1400
- LCC
- PQ1522 .V35 — Language and Literature French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese literatures French literature Old French literature To 1350/1400
Statistics
- Members
- 3
- Popularity
- 4,733,456
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.00)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 2