Hable con Ella Blog

The director, Almodovar, really plays off the fairytale aspect with the relationship between Benigno an Alicia. Alicia is very much like Sleeping beauty, and Benigno is like her attentive prince who has come to her rescue to save her.  Benigno takes care of Alicia for four years, and it is not until Benigno is intimate with Alicia that she is finally saved just like how the prince saved Sleeping beauty with his kiss.  I think that Almodovar does this to show the falseness of the relationship.  Real relationships are not based on obsessions.  Besides, Benigno and Alicia's relationship is not based on a true connection because even when Alicia was not in a coma, she felt uncomfortable around Benigno.  Benigno in Spanish does mean benign, and Benigno does make it a point to tell Alicia that he is harmless when she is not  in a coma.  However, I think Benigno's feelings for Alicia are quite vapid and unrealistic.  Benigno does not know anything about Alicia rather than she is a very attractive woman.  In all honesty, I find Benigno to be rather pathetic.  He wastes four years of his life to attend to a woman who never had any interest in him to begin with.  For Benigno to honestly think that Alicia would want to marry him, not only takes away Alicia's right to choose for herself, but it also shows just how delusional Benigno truly is about this relationship.  Alicia could have woken up naturally, and not have wanted anything to do with Benigno.  And then what would he have done?  Therefore, Almodovar uses this relationship to show how real relationships are not fairytales.

Lola Blog

To be honest, I previously watched this movie years ago in my high school German class.  The first time I had watched this movie, I did not like it.  I found the movie to become a bit tedious and repetitive.  As in, how many times do I really have to watch Lola run through Berlin?  Since the movie became very dreary, I took the plot line for face value, and I did not dig deeper into the hidden meanings of the relationship between Lola and Manni.  But now after having watched this movie for a second time, I can see that not only does this movie convey much about gender roles, it also can clearly relate to Erec and Enide.  The relationship between Manni and Lola is quite tumultuous and a bit confusing.  The movie clearly shows the stereotypical gender roles of society through the use of Manni and Lola.  Manni portrays how men stereotypically expect their female partners to help them in times of need.  Whereas, Lola perpetuates the stereotype that females have the need to want to save their male partners.  This can relate back to Erec and Enide.  Erec puts Enide through any various trials just like Manni does with Lola to prove that Enide truly cares about him.  While it might appear that both men are the heroes, it is in actuality both of the women who are.  Both women prove that their wits are far superior to that of their partners.  Just like Enide, Lola proves her intelligent over Manni by being able to keep her secrets to herself without Manni's suspicion (i.e. at the end of the movie when Manni asks what is in the bag).  While I still find the movie to be a bit repetitive, watching it again has allowed me to be able to relate the themes of the movie back to Erec ad Enide.              

Yvain Blog #3

A certain aspect that I would like to touch upon is the character Lunette.  To be honest, I was a bit disappointed with Lunette in the end of the second part of the romance and the beginning of the third part of the romance.  When Lunette was first introduced in the romance, she was a strong female character, an in a sense she became the hero in the story and not Yvain because she helped his escape persecution.  However towards the beginning of the third section of the novel, Lunette transformed into a weak damsel in distress.  Originally she had appeared to be very clever, yet she was not able to use her wits to eschew death.  Therefore, she begged and pleaded for Yvain to save her life.  However, I was very happy to see Lunette's true character rise again when she suggested to Laudine to meet up with the King with the Lion (who is actually Yvain).  Lunette in my opinion is the only genuinely complex character.  All the other characters throughout the romance live up to his/her stereotypical roles, but Lunette does not.  Therefore, it was almost relieving in a way when Lunette tricked Laudine.  Chretien clearly put Lunette in the novel for specific reasons.  Most importantly, to show the irony of how the people who are supposed to be intelligent are actually quite blind to trickery.  Whereas, someone who is presumed to be uneducated and therefore dumb is the only person who truly has the intelligence and wits.   

Yvain Blog #2

3.) When Laudine's messenger comes to see Yvain, she tells Yvain along with the other knights how Yvain is a coward and unworthy of the queen's gracious love.  Yvain's reaction to this speech is very unsettling and distraught.  I think that he had this specific reaction because of shame.  Yvain clearly had a lot of shame for forgetting Laudine and the promise he had made to her.  Not only did he have shame because of Laudine, but he also had shame for the manner in which the messenger disclosed this information.  Laudine's messenger was not discrete with her words and she spoke very boldly not just in front of Yvain, but also King Arthur and his knights.  Therefore, Yvain also felt the shame of embarrassment in front of his peers.  The fact that Yvain was so distraught about breaking his promise to Laudine implies that a man's word is held to a very high standard.  Therefore if a man breaks his word, he should not only be guilt ridden, but he should also die.  In the wilderness, Yvain wanders around like a savage madman.  In a sense, Yvain truly looses his mind during this time.  He goes from being a proper knight to becoming a primal savage.  I think that Yvain needs to go back to basic living which is why Chretien added this part because he needs to be reminded that at its' basic core life is not about status or gossip; it's about survival.  Therefore, I interpret this part as a theraputic method for Yvain.  As for the 'cure', I think it merely acts as a placebo effect.  Yvain thinks that this lotion will cure the illness in his body, but his true sickness is only in his mind.    

Yvain Blog #1

1.)  In the prologue of Erec and Enide, Chretien writes that "one might find oneself holding in contempt something that is worth more than one believes."  As it turned out, this prologue eventually paralleled to both the writer himself and Erec.  For Chretien, he believed that his message throughout this romance was far more important than the reader could understand.  Therefore, it was necessary to write this romance because of it's worth.  On the other hand, Erec disregarded Enide's intelligence for the beginning of the romance.  It was not until later that Erec realized that what he was holding in contempt was Enide herself.  In fact, Enide ended p being an important factor to Erec: she warned Erec about the knights, and she was the catalyst for both of his awakenings.  In Yvain, there is no prologue.  This could mean numerous things.  For one, this romance may not be of as much worth to Chretien as Erec and Enide was.  Chretien made it a point to announce that he had a strong message in Erec and Enide, but he does not do this in Yvain.  Also in Erec and Enide, Chretien focuses a lot of the text on gender stereotypes and the stupidity of these knights.  However; Chretien does not do this in Yvain.  In fact, Yvain's marriage appears to be perfect.  Therefore; to Chretien this story has no deeper meaning for him.  The lack of prologue may also say that Yvain does not have anything of worth that is hidden.  Enide's intelligence was hidden to Erec, but she ended up helping Erec far more than he could have expected.  So far, the reader does not see the queen being any help to Yvain to help him develop as a character.  If anything, she acts like the perfect wife like that in which Erec had originally desired.  Thus; this lack of prologue may suggest that there is no deeper meaning throughout the romance for both Yvain and Chretien.  Chretien may be suggesting that the characters are superficial, and that this is yet another stereotypical tale from the medieval ages and nothing more.   

Erec and Enide Blog #3

One topic that personally stood out to me while reading the text was the theme of silence.  Chretien uses this throughout many scenes, but one in particular that stood out to me is when Enide believes that Erec is dead.  After Erec battled the Count, he was defeated and presumed to be dead.  While Enide grieved over her loss, she cried out the words, "A good silence never harmed anyone, but speaking often causes harm" (Chretien 94).  I find this quote to be very interesting, in fact, it actually made me laugh out loud.  It baffles me that this quote implies that lying is better than honesty.  As if, women are more helpful to their men if the always remain silent.  This quote also plays into gender stereotypes.  This scene depicts how a woman is expects to be silent, otherwise, it will only cause harm.  I, also, find it a bit humorous and ironic that because Enide did not obide by her expectation to be silent, she in return felt guilty for Erec's death.  In actuality, Erec's death was purely his own fault.  Another quote that uses the theme of silence is when Maboagrain recalls how he met his damsel to Erec.  Maboagrain goes on to say that, "[His damsel] asked a boon of [him] without first saying what it was," (Chretien 111).  When the damsel asked Maboagrain to make a promise to her, she remained utterly silent as to what he was actually agreeing to.  I find it a bit humorous that not once did he ever question her silence.  It seems to be a common theme throughout the entire story that men never question a woman's silence (even when they really should), and sometimes even encourage it.  I think that the theme of silence shows the stupidity of the men wanting women to be silent (as it seems that the women are much more clever than the men in the story). 

Question: What do you think is the significance of Chretien's recurring use of the theme of silence throughout the story?

Erec an Enide Blog #2

2) The very first words that Enide says throughout the entire text is when she tells Erec that she feels ashamed for basically taking away his pride.  Before Erec met Enide, he was a world renown, chivalrous knight, but now he has lost his fame and people are beginning to doubt his strength.  I personally think that her speech is truly genuine.  I think that she does love Erec, so she feels bad for changing him.  However, this guilt could stem from hidden feelings of disappointment.  In the beginning of the text, Enide's parents tell Erec that they have dreamed for their daughter to marry a valiant knight.  Since Erec gave up on his fights, Enide can feel resentment towards him because he is losing his prestige.  Erec interprets Enide's speech as if she no longer loves him.  He thinks that she now doubts his abilities as a knight.  Erec's reaction is understandable for his character.  Erec is extremely egotistical.  Also, nobody has ever doubted him before.  Therefore, Enide's reaction really shocks him.

3) Erec's intentions for taking Enide on the journey is to ultimately prove to her that he is still a valiant, and chivalrous knight.  Since he loves Enide, he does not want her to loose her admiration for him.  This journey is partially a journey of renewal and of pride.  On one hand, Erec wants to prove to the townspeople that there still is no knight that can overtake him.  When Enide tells Erec that people have been blaming him for not being a good knight, Erec replies that "Those who blame [him] are also right"(69).  Therefore, Erec embarks on this journey to prove to everyone else that he is still able to fight in order to cease all rumors.  On the other hand, this journey is also about pride for Erec.  Every time that Enide tries to warn Erec of danger, he continuously remarks that "[Enide has] too little esteem for [him]" (72).  Ultimately, Erec needs to prove himself to Enide.  He wants her to always think highly of him.  Therefore, he takes her on the journey to show her that he can still defeat anyone.

Erec and Enide Blog #1

4.  What is at stake for both, Yder and Erec, is their pride.  When the reader first meets Yder in the forest, the reader is given a sense that he is extremely egotistical.  He does not dare to speak to anyone himself (thus, he has his dwarf do this).  In addition to, the text implies that Yder believes that he can never be beat by any other knight in the world.  On the other hand, pride is Erec's vice as well.  His main intent throughout the text has been to avenge himself from the shame of being hit by Yder's dwarf.  Therefore, for both of these men, this contest is crucial for them to maintain their pride and their ego.  This contest implies much about gender and masculinity.  As Yder and Erec fight in the field, the text describes both of their women as crying, and praying to the Gods for mercy.  This implies that women during this time were considered to be very fragile and sensitive.  They were also expected to be extremely religious and remain loyal to their lovers.  Masculinity plays a big factor in this scene.  The entire fight emphasizes that these men feel like they have to protect their pride.  Therefore, they must defeat their enemy in order to keep his manhood. 

5. When Queen Guenevere dresses up Enide, this implies that Enide is finally becoming a woman.  They dress her up in the finest robes which transitions her into becoming a queen.  Therefore, she finally comes into her own, and her new life is finally occurring.  The dress itself can represent many things.  For one, it shows how superficial the noblemen are.  It’s not until after she’s wearing a fine dress that they describe her as becoming even more beautiful.  Therefore, insinuating that they only care about beauty.  The dress can also represent Enide’s life.  Her old dress was once tattered which represented how she was living a poor, measly life. Now she has a new dress which is represents her new life and all her parents’ hopes and dreams for her to have a better life.  Erec only sees Enide purely for her beauty and nothing else.  On numerous occasions, Erec has been informed that Enide’s intellect is far superior to her beauty.  Yet, Erec hardly acknowledges this and will only rave about her beauty.  Therefore, Erec only sees Enide as an item rather than a person.