You'd seen Rollant aswoon there in his seat,/ And Oliver, who unto death doth bleed

[timeripple]

I am reading The Song of Roland for my Mirrors of Princes class. I have to admit it is kind of silly. The hero spends more time talking to his sword than he does to his best friend. And he faints a lot.

Also, everybody in this poem names their swords.

Comments

[olivia-cochrane.livejournal.com]

everybody in this poem names their swords

Oh, everyone cool throughout history used to do that. Excalibur, for example. It meant you were somebody if you could say, "Excalibur slew thee!"
Unless of course, you mean that they all stand around naming their swords when they should have done it BEFORE the battle :D

Yeah, I remember not liking that poem much. Every verse gets repeated at least once, and people spend all their time hacking bits off other people, letting blood fountain up like a geyser, etc. Which is fine when there's a plot besides gore for gore's sake. But there really isn't, except Christians are great and dying, and Saracens are evil and dying.

[timeripple.livejournal.com]

As Melanie pointed out, there's a difference between getting a sword with a name and glorious history (not particularly silly) and naming your own when it comes back brand new and shiny from the swordsmith (in this case, kind of silly because they all have ridiculously pretentious names).

Although the part where it explains how one of the Saracens named his sword is one of the funniest bits in the entire thing.

[bertie-girl.livejournal.com]

Guys still name their ... swords. And it's still just as ridiculous :-P

All I really remember from the poem are repeated lines about someone's "hoary beard" and people getting slashed through their hauberks. (Everyone seems to have the exact same sword fighting methods.) So memorable.

[penguin-beta.livejournal.com]

It would, of course, be infinitely sillier if they named their swords something unpretentions and unthreatening... like "Bob".

"I am Woldemar the Fierce, Prince of Asgeloth, Wielder of Bob. Tremble before the great and mighty slayer of men, and Bob."

[timeripple.livejournal.com]

*grin* If I ever get the urge to name my bat'leth, I'll call it Bob. Or something.