"The Medieval Romance Tales of King Arthur and his Brave Knights"
The tales of King Arthur are undoubtedly some of the best-known romances of the Middle Ages. A romance is a long, medieval narrative in prose or verse telling of the adventures of chivalric heroes. By definition, the 2004 King Arthur film classifies as a romance. King Arthur demonstrates all the key elements essential to a romance by telling of a hero 's adventures along with all the trials and self-knowledge that comes with them. According to the definition of a romance, each medieval narrative must have a hero. In this story, the hero is King Arthur. During his role, he illustrates many noble characteristics such as: loyalty, compassion, and wisdom. For instance, he demonstrates his loyalty to Rome by continuously defending them in battle, even after his promised term of duty has surpassed. Furthermore, he exhibits his compassion by praying for his men as they are sent on a final mission by Germanus. In this prayer he offers his own life to spare theirs. Lastly, he shows his wisdom through his ingenious battle strategies. For example, he attacks the Saxons on the sides so they fall in on the ice ending in their doom. In addition to a romance needing a hero, each hero must also
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Similarly, as a hero has a quest, they more than often have someone to face. In a romance, this brings the topic good versus evil into play. In the film, our hero King Arthur faces several evil people. The first being Germanus. Germanus promised Arthur and his knights freedom and then sent them on another mission while holding their freedom papers hostage. The most prominent example of good versus evil, however, is the Saxons versus King Arthur and his knights. The Saxons are the most savage, unmerciful people of this time. They want to take the Roman Empire for themselves and the only thing that stands in their way is Arthur. This, of course, leads to their epic battle, which ends in their own