Analysis of “The Song of Roland”

Paper Info
Page count 1
Word count 391
Read time 2 min
Topic Literature
Type Essay
Language 🇺🇸 US

In his song, Roland depicts that man was no longer the measure of all things since God was now the Supreme Being. Therefore, this led to the values changing to a focus on God, soul, and church. For example, in the story, the scripture is quoted in the book of Mark 8:36,” what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his immortal soul?” this statement shows that primarily life’s goal is heaven. Additionally, the story shows that God created man and that man was expected to live according to God’s ways and not those of man, as he would be associated with the devil.

Although Roland exemplifies the Christian hero, he possesses similar characteristics to Achilles. For example, both heroes had: magnanimous births; both were capable of actions of immense strength and courage and were skilled warriors. Moreover, Roland also had similar characteristics to Aeneas. For instance, Roland is known for his dedication to his ruler, who is God, and so does Aeneas because he listened to the voice of the gods when he was told to leave his concubine and continue leading his people to Italy.

Moreover, lessons learnt from studying these protagonists include: despite being mighty warriors and even being considered half-human and half-gods, they each faced shortcomings that, even in some instances, made them stray from their goals. For example, Achilles was said to have feelings of anger, love and sometimes revenge in various circumstances. In fact, at the beginning of the war, he did not fight due to an incident that had angered him. Additionally, the heroes had to put the needs of the people in front of theirs at some point, despite it paining them, as illustrated when Aeneas had been instructed to leave his lover so that he could continue with his mission of leading his people to Italy.

Furthermore, the poems of the Iliad and the song of Roland teach us that a faithful companion can never let anybody die in vain as illustrated when Roland refused to sound the horn and call for reinforcements. That could have saved his life, and that of his cavaliers sealed his fate in that he had to keep fighting despite the terrible odds. In conclusion, all three heroes played major roles in giving hope and strength to their communities.

Cite this paper

Reference

NerdyBro. (2023, April 18). Analysis of "The Song of Roland". Retrieved from https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/

Reference

NerdyBro. (2023, April 18). Analysis of "The Song of Roland". https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/

Work Cited

"Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." NerdyBro, 18 Apr. 2023, nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.

References

NerdyBro. (2023) 'Analysis of "The Song of Roland"'. 18 April.

References

NerdyBro. 2023. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.

1. NerdyBro. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.


Bibliography


NerdyBro. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.

References

NerdyBro. 2023. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.

1. NerdyBro. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.


Bibliography


NerdyBro. "Analysis of "The Song of Roland"." April 18, 2023. https://nerdybro.com/analysis-of-the-song-of-roland/.