Essays and travelogues about Medieval France and Italy, focusing on the legends of Charlemagne as well as an occasional post on anything else that strikes my fancy.
Joseph Campbell
famously described the commonalities of myths and stories told throughout the
world as “the hero with a thousand faces” meaning that regardless of the name
of the particular hero or the locale in which a monster was fought - there was
an underlying mythos capturing our imaginations. That is why heroic stories
persist throughout the ages and continue to be propagated for new generations.
One method that allows readers or audiences to recognize the significance of
what role each character plays in the story whether they are hero, ally or
adversary is by using stock figures or archetypes. I use the term archetype differently
than what was described by Carl Jung, so I am not limited to his set of twelve
archetypes. My use is more in line with recognizing stock figures that become
icons in literature and drama.
From the Ariosto Room in the Il Casino Giustiani Massimo al Laterano in Rome, Italy. Picture credit to Marco Ferrara.
Bradamante is the
niece of Charlemagne and a respected warrior maiden. Ariosto praises her beauty
as well as declaring her to be equal in “courage, might and expertise” to that
of her famous brother Rinaldo, (Orlando furioso, Canto II, verse 31).
Archetypically, I feel that Bradamante’s character had
two major influences. The first was the Greek Goddess Athena.
From the Louvre Museum in Paris.
She was the
goddess of wisdom and victory and known for her cool-headed strategic planning.
No man ever captured Athena’s heart.
The second influence was of the historical figure of
Joan of Arc or Jeanne d’Arc. I find that comparison more compelling and I feel
that it was not incidental, but instead a deliberate attempt by Ariosto to
invoke the parallels between the literary heroine and the real life French martyr.
Jeanne d’Arc who was burned at the stake in 1431 at the age of 19. She had been
known for riding a white horse, carrying a banner made of white fabric, was
called “the Maid,” had cropped hair and dressed in men’s clothing.
Jeanne d'Arc, St. Étienne Cathedrale in Cahors, France
Bradamante was a young woman, most likely a teenager, and is described as
having a white shield with a white plume (Orlando furioso, Canto I, verse 60) and is often referred to as
“the Maid.” The color white is known for the symbolic virtues of purity and
innocence. Bradamante also had cropped hair, due to a blow to the
back of her head by an enemy warrior near the end of Boiardo’s poem Orlando innamorato(Book III Canto v, verse 46) and a
hermit cut her hair to tend to the wound. (Book III, Canto ix, verse 61)
Ariosto neglected to
mention the length of Bradamante’s hair until finally in Canto 25 when her twin
brother Ricciardetto relates a tale to Ruggiero of how people commonly confuse
him and his sister Bradamante since they have such great resemblance to each
other. The confusion about her sex was compounded when she lost her tresses due to the head injury. (Orlando furioso, Canto XXV, verses 22-24)
Bradamante also disguised herself as a man when she approached
the thief Brunello at an inn and sought to have him serve as her guide to find
where Ruggiero was being held captive.
“Name, sex, race, family and place of birth
She hides, watching his hands for all she’s worth.” (Orlando furioso, Canto III, verse 76)
The greatest differences between Bradamante and Jeanne d’Arc
is that the literary heroine is revered by her king, never accused of
heresy, has a love life, and a much better fate than the historical figure.
Here are more artistic renderings of Bradamante.
Illustration by Gustave Doré based on Orlando furioso, Canto III, verse 9. (Doré was inspired to begin his drawings before reading the entire poem to discover in Canto XXV that Bradamante's tresses were cut to make her resemble a boy.)
Plate 20 by Jean Honoré Fragonard of Bradamant fighting Atlante on the hippogriff.
I happen to have purchased that image when a facsimile of it was sold on eBay. The scan is from my copy.
Of all the characters in Orlando innamorato and Orlando furioso, my favorite is Bradamante. She is a strong heroine who rarely loses her temper. Twice she gave into seeking revenge. Once was going after Martisino and the second was Pinabel. Both times she suffered due to her lust for vengeance. In Fate of the Saracen Knight, Bradamante hears rumors of Ruggiero being romantically involved with another warrior maiden. Will she suffer if she sets out on another quest for vengeance?
I had a rollicking good time talking with Professor Richard Scott Nokes over Skype on December 8th, 2018.
After finishing the interview, I realized that I had forgotten to bring up a few things I wanted to mention. I gave a lot of advice on the writing process and thought hyperlinks might be helpful for those interested in following up on them.
One aspect of the interview that makes this a little out of the ordinary was the time spent getting the tech stuff working. We spent over half an hour trying to get the Skype application to record. After several failed attempts, Professor Nokes got it working. He started to record, but I didn't see the banner at the top indicating it was recording. I didn't want us to begin talking in earnest and have to start all over again.
I mention this because that mistake on my part is the first half minute of the video. After we stopped talking Professor Nokes spent about an hour editing the raw footage and uploaded the unedited raw footage. D'oh!
What you really missed was the cool introductory musical theme song that precedes his interviews. To get you in the proper mood, here is the music you should hear before his interviews:
And here is a re-posting of the interview with time stamps of my annotations.
At 2:04 I mention that my series is based on the legends of Charlemagne that were told and retold in the south of France and north of Italy for several centuries. For those interested in learning more, Fordham University has a website dedicated to those legends.
2:55 I mention one of the most famous contributions to the legends of Charlemagne, The Song of Roland or La Chanson de Roland. Here is a link to Fordham University's online translation and a link to Amazon.com's trade paperback version.
3:50 I show my copies of Barbara Reynolds' translations of Orlando furioso. Here are links to those copies on Amazon.com Part One and Part Two. Those books are my preferred version of this epic poem. They are in verse and there is a lot of white space, so I find it easier to read. Guido Waldman has a one volume version, and it is written in prose. I find it difficult to read because the font is so small, and there is little white space. Here is a link to his version on Amazon.com
A free online version by Project Gutenberg can be found at this link. A fair bit of warning though. This is the William Stewart Rose translation. I started reading this epic poem by printing out a few cantos of this version and found it utterly confusing. Later, once I read the versions by both Reynolds and Waldman, I went back and checked a few choice passages. Rose refused to translate some of the bawdier ones. Bummer.
(As a side note: I do not recommend the latest translation of Orlando furioso by David R. Slavitt. That is because his publisher heavily abridged his work and deleted numerous cantos that cover the Bradamante and Ruggiero story. I disagree with the editorial decision to cut my favorite storyline from the poem, and so I cannot recommend that version. )
5:50 Professor Awesome asks me to define Saracen. Here is a link to one online definition from the Online Etymology Dictionary.
I use Saracen in my title as one of the magic terms that helps to conjure the genre, time period and meaning of the novel in as few words as possible. Fate is reminiscent of the Oracle of Delphi and those in Greek mythology trying to change their destinies. Saracen is a term that went out of use after the Medieval period. Knight is also a Medieval term used in regard to war and chivalry.
Together the three terms should help readers know this is an epic historic fantasy set in the Medieval period.
8:50 I show my copy of Orlando innamorato by Matteo Maria Boiardo, translated by Charles Stanley Ross. This is the full unabridged version by Parlor Press. Here is a link to Amazon.com's trade paperpack.
Warning: there is a previous edition by Ross that was abridged and did not include Book III of Boiardo's tale. Bradamante and Ruggiero meet in Book III, Canto iv. I was disappointed after finishing that abridged version to realize that it did not include the scene that I most wanted to read.
10:00 Discussion about fantasy elements in realistic settings. I realize in retrospect, I didn't really answer Professor Awesome's questions about this aspect of my story.
I agree that it is difficult to strike a balance between fantasy and realism. I am retelling a story about a war that never took place between the North African Muslim army and Charlemagne's Frankish army. My goal was to make the setting feel like Medieval Europe (and North Africa) that would include historically accurate details about Roman artifacts, cultural beliefs, religious restrictions, etc. And then, there is magic, but few have the ability to cast magical spells. They are: Atallah, Melissa, and Maugis. Aistulf was given a magical book which has allowed him to cast some spells, but he is not a wizard.
For the most part, the characters live in a realistic and non-magical world, but there are times when flights of fancy come into play. The flights of the hippogriff is the most notable.
Orlando furioso included iconic visits to the Underworld and the flight to the moon by Aistulf. I had to include them, but I wanted more realism in the storyline to at least help me to "buy the premise." I feel that if I can't buy it, I can't sell it.
22:15 I mentioned writing a Master's Thesis. For anyone interested in it, here's a link to Sonoma State University's library copy of The Cultural Evolution of the Cave Man.
And here is a link to the Fifth year Harry Potter Fic that I wrote back in 2003. It won the Readers' Choice Award for novel length story on the now defunct website Portkey.org
24:30 Question about how to begin becoming a writer.
And here is where my annotation, really takes off. There are many other aspects of the craft of writing that I learned over the years from belonging to my writers club. My branch has had workshops about various topic as well as talks at our monthly meetings or sessions in writers conferences. Each one of these topics is worthy of extensive blog posts or entire books.
***One thing that I meant to bring up in my discussion with Professor Awesome, but forgot are the sheets of paper affixed with blue painters tape to the wall behind me. Those are the months of June, July, August and September of the year 802. That was one way for me to determine when different plot events took place.
The calendar was found at www.timeanddate.com
This also includes the phases of the moon. I include that information
in my story. If there's a mention of a full moon, I'm not making it up.
And, if I have my characters do something outdoors at night and I don't
want a full moon's worth of light - I will make it rain or overcast or
foggy.
Using a calendar to structure your underlying
plot will give backbone to your story. I recommend all writers have a
beginning day and year in mind. Then establish your timeline of events
accordingly to that date. It will help you to avoid continuity errors.
I had a friend whose manuscript I read as a critique group partner. Her novel had the climax of her story being on the Thanksgiving holiday. The problem was that she had not been as careful in planning the events as she should have been and she had two Wednesdays worth of chapters. There was a line where she stated it was Wednesday, but I knew it wasn't. That's because I ground myself on the days of the week and other nitpicky details. I then gave suggestions as to how she could move certain events to still make her climactic events happen on the day she wanted.
The use of a calendar to determine the dates of plot points is something I recommend every writer use.
The calendars on my office wall are hard to see, but the events in the months of July and August
are written in pencil, because those already took place in Quest of the Warrior Maiden. Fate of the Saracen Knight takes place in the months of July and August. The different color Post-It notes represent different character POVs that are being represented in chapters or are background information for me to know who was where and doing what on that day. For example: blue is for Bradamante, dark orange is for Ruggiero, yellow is either Renaud or Aistulf, light orange is for Rodomont or Akramont.
I tend to write one action/adventure sequence before switching to a different character's action/adventure sequence. Later, to balance the work I will shuffle the chapters together. To achieve balance, I may have to switch the days of different plot points. Having those plot points on color coded Post-It notes helps me visually re-organize and balance my storyline.
Once I start working on Volume III, I will update those calendars and create new months. ***
Wattpad is another global forum for writers and readers.
So if you live in a rural area and/or cannot find any writers groups in your local area you can try one of those two online websites. Go schmooze, find like minded people and engage with them.
38:30 I recommended the book Audition: Everything an Actor Needs to Know to Get the Part by Michael Shurtleff. Oops. There are twelve guideposts for actors, I misspoke and said ten. Humor is Guidepost 4. Here is a small excerpt to demonstrate why I adore Shurtleff's book and his advice.
"Humor is not jokes. It is that attitude toward being alive without which you would long ago have jumped off the Fifty-ninth Street Bridge.
Humor is not being funny. It is the coin of exchange between human beings that makes it possible for us to get through the day. Humor exists even in the humorless.
There is humor in every scene, just as there is in every situation in life. There is humor in Chekhov (too seldom found) and even in Eugene O'Neill (virtually never found). When we say about a life situation, "And it's not funny, either," we are attempting to inject humor into a situation that lacks it. We try in life to put humor everywhere; if we didn't, we couldn't bear to live." - page 53
So yes, as writers, we need humor in our writing. Even if the only humor in a scene is gallows humor.
44:30 There was a mention of Medieval Conferences. I twice attended the International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan. I delivered papers about Carolingian legends and Ariosto. I will be delivering another paper in May 2019 in a session organized by the Société Rencesvals. My paper is titled "To Die For:
Duels by knights in Orlando innamorato and Orlando
furioso over swords, horses, heraldic symbols, and women."
( I should at some point finish writing citations of the two papers I delivered at Kalamazoo and upload them to Academia.edu. One of my papers, "Ludovico Ariosto’s Legacy: Inspiring Countless Artists, Playwrights, Novelists,
Filmmakers, and Puppet Theater" was filled with images and the challenge I have is finding good online sources for those images and then go through the cumbersome process of MLA citation. That shows my work ethic that I don't want to publish a paper online without my citations being in order. That will probably wait until some rainy day when I am procrastinating from doing other writing.)
I think that's all for now.
Here's a reminder that the both Quest of the Warrior Maidenand Fate of the Saracen Knightare discounted in the month of December. If you know someone who loves reading and would like to fill their physical or digital bookshelves, please send them the gift of reading. Or give yourself a gift and be transported back to the time of Charlemagne.
Statue of Ludovico Ariosto in the Piazza Ariostea, Ferrara, Italy
Ludovico Ariosto was born September 8, 1474
"Of ladies, cavaliers, of love and war,
Of courtesies and of brave deeds I sing..."
-Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando furioso
(translated by Barbara Reynolds)
Last year I
spent three weeks in Italy in research for my writing. The highlight of
my trip was spending an entire day in Ferrara. I walked miles that day
searching for sites associated with Ludovico Ariosto, Matteo Maria
Boiardo and the noble house of d'Este. Having spent years adapting
Ariosto's masterpiece into a series of novels for modern day audiences, I
wanted to surround myself in the beauty and charm of Ferrara and to
visit the places where Ariosto wrote. It was an inspirational trip and I
look forward to returning to Italy, hopefully in 2016 to help
commemorate the 500th anniversary of the original publication of Orlando furioso.
To help celebrate Ariosto's 540th birthday, my novel Quest of the Warrior Maiden
will have a special discount price during his birthday week. The
regular sale price is $4.99 for the ebook and $16.99 for the trade
paperback. For this week the e-book is only 99 cents at Amazon.com and the trade paperback at $12. The discounted price will be available until Sunday, September 14th.
Please share this information with your students, friends, colleagues, anyone who enjoys epic tales of chivalry.
I am also happy to share with you some good news about my book with the
following glowing review and mention of awards it has won.
"In Quest of the Warrior Maiden, author Linda McCabe
reveals an undeniable talent for creating a truly memorable and epic
fantasy saga incorporating memorable characters, cliff hanger suspense,
magic and Arthurian romance of the first order. Quest of the Warrior Maiden
is enthusiastically recommended reading and a first rate selection for
community library Science Fiction/Fantasy collections." - Julie Summers,
Reviewer - Midwest Book Review
AWARDS
• Winner - Best Historic Fantasy by the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association (BAIPA)
• Honorable Mention for Genre-Based fiction by the Hollywood Book Festival
For those wondering about the progress of the sequel, I am about a third
of the way through. I am currently writing about Aistulf (Astolfo)
chasing the Harpies into the Underworld.
My goal is to have the sequel finished in time for the 2016 Medieval
Congress and all of the celebrations marking the 500th anniversary
publication year of Orlando furioso.
In honor of Ludovico Ariosto's 539th birthday on September 8, 2013, I felt I should start blogging about my recent trip to the city of Ferrara, Italy. I visited there in June of this year.
I wanted to see as many sites associated with Ariosto, Matteo Maria Boiardo and their patrons - the noble house of d'Este - as was possible for the limited time I had available.
I had spent countless hours planning the sites to see, but alas, things do not always work out the way you hope.
I discovered there were apartments for rent in a building once owned by Ariosto. I reserved a room for three nights. My plan was to arrive in Ferrara after a day of sightseeing in Firenze, spend the next day exploring Ferrara, and the following day we would have a day trip to Ravenna.
I had wanted to sleep in a home that once belonged to Ariosto and hope I would become inspired by the experience.
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Historical marker for the current Cavallini-Sgarbi House
The Cavallini-Sgarbi House showing a covered walkway.
I was looking forward to that experience, but then Fate upended my plans.
Ferrara suffered from a large earthquake in 2012, and as luck would have it - the historical building I had reservations for wound up having maintenance scheduled to be performed during the time we were supposed to stay there.
These things happen. At least I learned about the conflict with adequate advance notice to secure a different place for us to stay. I am also grateful it was not a case of being At The Wrong Place At the Wrong Time and have something Truly Bad Happen, like the devastating earthquake that necessitated the seismic retrofitting. Instead, it was simply a disappointment and inconvenience for my family.
Here is an example of damage from the earthquake and the subsequent tremors has had in Ferrara. The picture is of a ceiling fresco in the Castello Estense.
I was surprised the first time I noticed tape on the ceiling, but then quickly understood why it was there. We asked a docent about the tape and our suspicions were confirmed as to its purpose. It is to prevent further cracking until restoration can be performed.
There was a lot of tape used throughout the castle on artwork. It serves as a sober reminder of how historical items are vulnerable to the power of Nature. They are not just pieces of art created centuries ago, but are precious items that need to be preserved for future generations.
We arrived in Ferrara on a Wednesday evening, but several hours later than we expected. Our connecting train in Bologna was late. Then again, most trains were late that day. One woman on the platform informed us that earlier in the day someone had thrown themselves upon a set of train tracks and it delayed all the trains in the region for at least an hour.
Once at the Ferrara train station, we had a taxi bring us to our B&B (bed and breakfast). It would have been a half hour walk, and dragging our luggage that far after being exhausted, and really hungry was not worth saving a few euros. Taking a taxi was a necessity and not a luxury at that point in time.
By the time we got to our room we were tired, our feet were sore from our sightseeing in Firenze and we were really hungry. The weather in Italy had been HOT for days and it added to our desire to find dinner, and go to sleep early in our air conditioned rooms.
My husband and son at that point in time were not all that interested in noticing the charms of Ferrara, but I came became revived once we left our baggage behind and started exploring the city. One aspect that I love about Ferrara is that it is a bicycle friendly city. There are cars and some Vespas, but bicycles seem to be the biggest method of transportation used by the people. They are not fine racing bikes, but instead generally old beat up bicycles with baskets on their front handle bars. They are utilitarian and get their riders from place to place over the cobblestone roads.
Rome has a frenetic energy about it which led me to the conclusion that traffic there is a blood sport. Crossing a busy street in Rome you must be wary. That sense of self-preservation extends to walking in the side streets as the drivers of cars and Vespas zoom past you with little regard to your safety. There were several occasions when I found myself hugging the walls in the back streets to avoid being hit by cars, scooters or motorcycles. Ferrara was a pleasant change of pace for me and I began to relax and appreciate the atmosphere of this historic city.
We walked past the Piazza Ariostea and I was enchanted by the sight of a statue of Ariosto and the moon.
Here is a close up of the inscription on the statue.
That night we ate at a local pizza joint. It was "okay, nothing special." At least we were served quickly and it was not expensive. Afterward, we walked back to our B&B and slept soundly.
The next day was my day to explore Ferrara. My teenaged son decided that he just wanted to relax, sleep in and not go exploring. That meant I was free to roam around the city.
My husband and I started the morning by walking down the Corso Porta Mare and passing the Piazza Ariostea again.
I enjoyed walking in the park and gathering spot for locals that was built dedicated in honor of my favorite poet. We continued on the Corso Porta Mare until we came to Corso Ercole I d'Este, named after the patron for both Boiardo and Ariosto.
On that street is the famous building Palazzo dei Diamante. There are thousands of diamond shaped marble bricks covering the outside of this building. The shadows cast by the diamonds change during the day due to angle of the sunlight making the building a large and complex sun dial. It is a spectacular sight, even if it seems a bit disorienting at first.
An up-close image of the Palazzo dei Diamante and the Renaissance street Corso Ercole I d'Este.
My husband and I walked down the Corso Ercole I d'Este until we came to the heart of the Renaissance city. I had to make a quick stop to see a Piazza named for another poet who also worked for the noble house of d'Este.
Alas, this piazza was nothing more than a parking lot.
The Piazza Torquato Tasso
We soon made it to one of the big destinations for me: seeing the castle where the Estes family lived.
It is an impressive sight.
I shall continue my travelogue about Ferrara in another post, lest this
become epic in size similar to the poems which inspire my writing.
For several years I have seen blog posts by Professor Richard Scott Nokes about all the fun he has had at the annual Medieval Congress held in Kalamazoo, Michigan on the campus of Western Michigan University.
This year I am going to join him.
Correction, this year I am going to be in a panel discussion where Professor Awesome will be our moderator.
This will be Session #402 out of 582 sessions.
"Carolingian Legends: Adapting Medieval and Renaissance Literature for Twenty-First Century Audiences" on Saturday, May 11th, 10-11:30 am in Room 2355 Schneider.
The panel will consist of Alexis E. Fajardo, author of the Kid Beowulf series,
I will be discussing adapting my novel Quest of the Warrior Maiden from the epic poems Orlando innamorato and Orlando furioso,
as well as Douglas Gallagher and Brandon Spars of Sonoma Academy who produced an incredible musical adaptation of Orlando furioso set to the soundtrack of Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon."
It should be a fun round table discussion. We hope to inspire medieval literature professors in their preparations to have a grand celebration of the five hundredth anniversary of the publication of Orlando furioso in 2016.
I would enjoy meeting up with other medievalist bloggers at the Congress. Please drop me a line here or attend my session. Lex and I will also be vendors, so you can try to find us there as well.
If anyone has any suggestions about these Congresses and what to expect, I would enjoy hearing about it. I have attended other conferences, but never one with so many sessions and an expected three thousand attendees.
The following is the text of the paper I gave at the Association for the Study of Women and Mythology Conference held in San Francisco on May 11th and 12th.
Like many conferences, it was difficult to choose which session to attend because there were many topics that sounded interesting. With that in mind, I wanted to share this online for those who were not able to hear my talk.
Deconstructing Carolingian legends to
discover feminine archetypes and symbolism
Before I start, I want to get a sense of the room. How many people here are familiar with
Arthurian legends? Now, how about Carolingian legends?
I want to first give an overview of Carolingian legends for
those unfamiliar with them. The
word Carolingian comes from the Latin Carolus
Magnus, meaning Karl the Great, better known to us as Charlemagne. The
legends of Charlemagne are just as luxurious of a source material as the legends
of Arthur, but without any debate as to whether or not Charlemagne was an
historical figure, he was, and the legends about him were stories created to
entertain and not considered as history.
I will touch on the most popular aspect of these legends in
art and drama so that you will be able have discussions with people who may
only be familiar with the legends of Roland (in French) or Orlando (in Italian).
The most famous of the legends of Charlemagne is the Chanson de Roland or the Song of Roland. Written in the eleventh century by a Frenchman, it was
loosely based on a real defeat of Charlemagne's army in 778 in the Roncevaux
Pass in the Pyrenees. The
historical events are rendered into mythology. There are other stories comprising the Matters of France,
not all were written by Frenchmen, but they all deal with legends of Medieval
France. Similarly, the Matters of Britain were not all written by British
writers, but they concern Medieval Britain.
Some of the largest sources of Carolingian legend, and what
I will be discussing today are two epic poems written by Italians. Orlando innamorato (Orlando in love) was
written by Matteo Maria Boiardo and the first version was published in 1483 and
another version with more cantos was published posthumously in 1495. He stopped
writing his story when the French army invaded Italy in 1494. He found it impossible to lionize the
heroic nature of fictional Frankish warriors when real French warriors were
attacking the various duchies on the Italian peninsula.
A decade or so later, Ludovico Ariosto was commissioned by
the same patrons to continue Boiardo's unfinished tale. Ariosto's Orlando furioso (Orlando enraged) became more famous than its
predecessor and was first published in 1516, so we will soon be celebrating its
five hundredth anniversary.
Those poems were pure fiction and written to entertain and
flatter the poets' patrons the noble house of Este in the northern Italian city
of Ferrara. The stories depict
wars that never took place between Christian and Muslim armies and were
undoubtedly influenced by the Crusades, which occurred centuries after
Charlemagne's death in 814.
The two poems follow the title character of Orlando, a
famous paladin of Charlemagne, and his unrequited love for Angelica the princess
of Cathay. Once Orlando discovers that Angelica has married another, he
goes insane. The story has
multiple interweaving plotlines and numerous disparate settings from Europe and
North Africa to Asia.
Boiardo's
epic featured an invasion of the Frankish Empire by the North African Muslim
army and the war was finally finished in Ariosto’s tale. There were brave
knights, scoundrels, bloody sieges, enchanted realms, sorceresses, wizards, a
flying hippogriff as well as the brave female warriors, Bradamante and Marfisa.
These stories inspired many artists such as Doré, Fragonard
and Ingres. There was a special exhibit in 2009 at the Louvre in Paris
featuring the art inspired by Orlando
furioso. There are also at least a dozen operas that cover portions of Ariosto's
masterpiece. Cervante's classic novel Don
Quixote includes mentions of the poem and William Shakespeare even borrowed
a dramatic set-up from the fourth canto of Orlando
furioso for a scene in his famous comedy "Much Ado about
Nothing."
Most people who
are somewhat familiar with these stories know of Orlando's love and madness,
but they are not as familiar with Bradamante's story which began as a subplot,
but wound up becoming front and center in the story at its conclusion. In Italian, her name is pronounced
Bradamanté, whereas the French pronunciation is Bradamante. Because she is a Frankish character, I
use the French variant, but both are correct.
I feel Bradamante should be as famous and as well examined a
character as Guinevere, Morgan le Fay and the Lady of the Lake.
The first time I read Orlando
furioso was nearly ten years ago and I was startled to discover such a
strong female character in literature. I had a hard time believing that this
feminist character was written centuries ago, by a man, and I wondered why I
had never heard of her before.
I see Bradamante as being a blend of two similar
archetypes: Joan of Arc and
Athena. Bradamante is depicted as
riding on a white horse, bearing a shield and plume of white, having cropped
hair and disguising herself as a man.
She also has the nickname "The Maid." Since Joan of Arc was killed in 1431,
it is reasonable to think that Boiardo and Ariosto were inspired by this real
life heroine as they were writing their fictional heroine.
The major difference between the Maid of Orléans and
Bradamante is that the fictional character was not persecuted for her military
prowess, but instead heralded and valued as a military commander. She was the niece of Charlemagne and
came from a distinguished military family. Her interest in warfare was not due
to hearing divine voices, but instead military duty was in her blood. Charlemagne had also been a powerful
monarch for many years before his niece was born, so unlike King Charles VII of
France, he was not threatened by this warrior maiden's influence with the
people.
Similar to Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and victory,
Bradamante is depicted at the beginning to have a heart unmoved by men. That is until Ruggiero, a Saracen
warrior, performed an uncommon act of chivalry on her behalf on the
battlefield. This led to their
talking to one another and experiencing Love at First Sight. Ruggiero was descended from Hector of
Troy and strove to live up to the image of his noble ancestor as the perfect
knight.
Dore's hippogriff
Bradamante and Ruggiero represent an impossible love as they
are warriors on opposite sides of a holy war. Symbolically this impossible love is represented in the
story by the hippogriff, a mythical creature that is part eagle and part horse,
and first described in Virgil's Ecclogues as being born of the mating of
natural enemies of griffins and mares. Griffins were fierce protectors of gold
and raiders rode horses in efforts to steal gold, leading to the animals'
enmity of each other. Ariosto was the first author to use the hippogriff as a
character in literature.
Bradamante and Ruggiero's bliss at finding one another does
not last and they are soon cruelly separated.
This love story of Bradamante and Ruggiero shows an inverse
on what we have come to expect with the hero cycle as described by Joseph
Campbell with his thesis the Hero With a Thousand Faces. Instead, Bradamante's story arc is more
in line with the Heroine's Journey as described by Valerie Estelle
Frankel. Bradamante, a fair
damsel, is given the Call to Adventure and is told she must rescue her beloved
who is being held captive by a wizard in an enchanted castle. After rescuing Ruggiero, her next task
is to persuade him to be baptized as a Christian and marry her. In so doing,
their union will bring forth generations of heroes who will, in time, lead to
the noble house d'Este of Ferrara.
This is far different from traditional quest stories with a
young man fighting evil in order to save his world from destruction. Instead, Bradamante is told that her
ultimate goal is marriage and motherhood.
There is a tragic element however, for it is also foretold that Ruggiero
will be betrayed and killed before the birth of their child.
This next part is not symbolism or archetypes, but I wanted
to share with you the qualitative difference in plot structure than what we
have become accustomed to. While Ruggiero is the orphaned youth raised in
obscurity, it differs from most stories in that there are two prophecies with
divergent fates for Ruggiero. Should
he remain a Muslim, he would bring about the defeat of Charlemagne devastating
Christendom. These stakes are compounded with dueling magical forces trying to
influence which fate will come to pass.
There are other feminine archetypes appearing in these poems
that are worth mentioning. The
character Angelica, the object of Orlando's romantic obsession, is described as
the most beautiful woman in the world and caused every man to fall violently in
love with her. She is the
archetype of Helen of Sparta (and later Troy) who was the catalyst for a war
with multiple suitors vying to possess her.
Dore's Alcina
There is also Alcina, a sorceress who uses her magical
powers to appear youthful. After
tiring of her lovers, she transforms them into trees and shrubs - retaining
them as souvenirs of her conquests.
This echoes the story of Circe from Greek mythology.
Another female character you should know about is the other
warrior maiden Marfisa. She was
abducted as a small girl, sold into slavery, and has a deep-rooted hatred of
men in general. She survived a
rape attempt by her king by killing him.
She then slaughtered the king's guards until she was declared Queen
Marfisa. That was the first of
many kingdoms she conquered.
Marfisa represents a destructive force of womanhood in that she conquers
but does not govern. I see her as the archetype of Nemesis, the goddess of
retribution.
Marfisa and Bradamante appear to be opposites at first. Marfisa is a Muslim while Bradamante is
a Christian, and they are both attracted to Ruggiero. Only when it is revealed
that Marfisa is not a romantic rival for Ruggiero's affections, do the two
women put aside their differences and become fast friends and allies.
These legends are also filled with symbolism. The richest
symbolic scene is when Bradamante is given the Call to Adventure in a cave,
recognized symbolically as the womb.
Melissa, an old enchantress, tells Bradamante of the two prophecies
surrounding Ruggiero and what is expected of her. Melissa represents the Crone. Bradamante is a warrior maid who is being asked to become a
wife and mother. The two women
together comprise the three aspects of the triple headed goddess: Maiden, Mother, Crone. Bradamante represents the Blade being
transformed into the Chalice by the Power of Love.
National ASWM Board Member Anne R. Key and Linda C. McCabe
Jeanne d'Arc in the church in Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val
Joan of Arc, or Jeanne d'Arc, was born on January 6, 1412. In honor of the recent six hundredth anniversary of her birth, I present my blog readers with pictures of Jeanne d'Arc I took while on my two research trips that I took in France.
She is revered for her courage in battle defending the nation of France against the English in the "Hundred Years War" and for her faith in God.
Jeanne d'Arc is one of the patron saints of France and is a source of nationalist pride. I saw images of Jeanne d'Arc almost everywhere in France. I have come to the belief that every French village or town will have at least one image of Jeanne d'Arc. This led me to going on my own private scavenger hunt as I entered all the various cathedrales and churches.
My mission was to find her.
Sometimes she was easy to spot while other times she hid in plain sight. Here she is above the doorway and under the rose window of the church in Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val. (The first photo at the top of this post shows the close up of her.)
Here she is in the most famous church of all of France.
Cathédrale Notre Dame in Paris
I had forgotten about the famous gold statue of Jeanne d'Arc in Paris near the Place des Pyramids, and did not get my own photo of this iconic statue. I chastised myself as I watched the last day of the Tour de France and watched the cyclists pass by her multiple times.
Thankfully there is a photo posted on Wikipedia with full privileges to be in the public domain, so here is a picture of that famous golden girl.
Another representation of Jeanne d'Arc I found in Paris was in Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois near the Louvre.
Saint-Germaine-l'Auxerrois
As I was going through my photos I discovered some duplications of statues. This same style appears in church in a small hilltop village in the Midi-Pyrenees.
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Église Saint Corneille in Puycelsi
And again, this time with a golden flag in Cahors. The names behind her are the men from Cahors who gave their lives in the great wars of the twentieth century.
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Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Cahors
Now with a slight twist, she is holding a stone flag.
Basilique des Saints Nazaire et Celse in Carcassonne
Here is a painted version that I rather like.
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Église Saint Martin de Caniac-du-Causse
I also found a stained glass representation. Here she is in Amboise at the small church where Leonardo di Vinci is buried.
small church near Chateau Amboise
Then we have a wooden statue of Jeanne d'Arc which is now in the cathedral treasury in Reims. It is probably my least favorite of all the representations of Joan. She looks oh so stiff and lifeless.
Cathedral treasury in Reims
Inside the cathedral itself are mentions of her historic visit to Reims when she escorted Charles VII for his coronation.
And then across from the cathedral is a statue with Jeanne d'Arc appearing to be in the midst of battle.
Cathédrale Notre Dame de Reims
Jeanne d'Arc inspired not only the French, but she also inspired the Italian poets Matteo Maria Boiardo and Ludovico Ariosto. They patterned their heroine Bradamante after her. Both women were given the nickname "The Maid," rode on a white horse and wound up cropping their hair.
Thankfully, Bradamante did not suffer Jeanne d'Arc's fate of being persecuted, arrested, and executed as a heretic. Another major difference was that Bradamante was respected by her king and was not looked at as a threat. It also helps that Charlemagne was coronated long before his warrior niece was born.
Part of my fascination with Jeanne d'Arc is her iconic representation of a woman warrior while still projecting her humanity as well as femininity.
I wish that I had found images of Bradamante as a French heroine throughout France, but instead had to settle for Jeanne d'Arc. In another post, I shall share with you the images of Athena I found throughout France showing more examples of the archetype of the warrior woman.
If you have any thoughts about Joan of Arc I would love to hear them. Even if you happen to believe, like those excellent dudes Bill and Ted, that she used to be Noah's wife.
