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"Si La Logique Du Récit Du Conte Du Graal Est Étrange, C'Est Que Chrétien L'A Certainement Voulu Ainsi". Discuss

"Si la logique du récit du Conte du Graal est étrange, c'est que Chrétien l'a certainement voulu ainsi".   Discuss

"Chrétien portrays [Perceval] with sympathy and undimmed judgement…His main technique in this portrayal is incongruity, ranging from irony to broad comedy"   and it is exactly this deliberate style that leads the story of the Conte du Graal to be so peculiar. Chrétien composed his tale in order to puzzle the intended audience, endeavouring in one sense, to cause a feeling of ‘wanting more' and this effect is further emphasised with the unfinished ending – whether intentional or not as it is transformed into a ‘cliff-hanger', which still fascinates readers today. "Contrairement aux récits mythiques, les romans de Chrétien de Troyes ne proposent plus de solutions, de réponses, mais suscitent des questions"   and these ‘questions' are made a theme of, further contributing to the inevitable outcome of curiosity about the text and its peculiarity. As will be discussed, there are a number of aspects in the text, that prove to be odd, especially to a twelfth century audience and although not ‘the norm' for literature of that age, it will be seen that this strangeness was quite consciously implemented by Chrétien.

The title of the conte itself is ambiguous as it would have presented no reference to an audience of the time, however, as a first point of discussion the very nature of the protagonist Perceval is atypical. The very fact that Chrétien chose to employ a hero, who is not only welsh but reliant on his mother and lacking a name is extraordinary, Lines 462-468 demonstrate Chrétien drawing attention to Perceval's lack of social appropriation through his style of dress, also implying that his welsh origin implies a lack of refinement and sophistication – could this really be our hero? He has no recognition of social values and therefore knightly ones and one of his many ‘identities' throughout the first half of the romance is "beau fils" – all in place...