“The Song of Roland” is one of the most striking works studied at school in the lessons of foreign literature. Many are impressed by the main character - the glorious knight Roland, who, like a vessel, has absorbed all the most positive qualities, always stands on the side of goodness, which means that victory in life battles will be his.
Roland's characterization should be considered deeply enough to be able to correctly perceive the whole meaning and main idea conveyed in the work.
Roland - a knight, the standard of all the best qualities
The basis of the “Song of Roland” is the actual occurrence of historical events. They were subject to literary reflection for the reader to perceive correctly.
Roland's characterization is commonplace enough for literary works of the time. The main character is a knight, in which, it seems, all the best ideas about the hero that he was seen in medieval France are embodied. Thanks to this essay, each reader gets a unique opportunity to go through Roland’s entire difficult path, while our hero’s companions will only be bravehearted people.
Personal qualities
Studying the “Song of Roland”, Roland’s characterization is almost perfect: he’s brave, a patriot to the core, and the main thing for him is to keep this word. Roland is faithful to his king and will never betray him, as he despises traitors. The Christian faith for him is a value that can be called more important than life itself, that’s why Roland’s characterization appears in such noble tones, he is the person who puts religion and the church at the top of personal values, only such people could be called medieval by heroes of France .
And do not take courage to him
Of course, the characterization of Roland as a hero of that time implies that he will be the most valiant and the most courageous. At the same time, the author adds another quality to him: he is as smart as he is daring, probably, it is the merger of these two factors that makes Roland almost invincible in any battle. The main goal in the life of our hero is also formulated quite clearly - the honor of France, the homeland, must be preserved at all costs.
Unequal battle
Even realizing that the last battle described is unequal, Roland accepts it. Of course, a man like him cannot give up, he will boldly fight to the end, even if the end will be a terrible death. It is also important that the hero devoted the last seconds of his life to thoughts about his beloved country - this is one of the most important moments in the work “Song of Roland”. Characteristics of heroes like Roland always follow the same scenario - for the love of the motherland and the church you will definitely deserve eternal life in ballads.
As you can see, Roland is a great example of the ideal knight, who was so often praised and presented in the literary works of that time.
The image of Charlemagne
The characteristics of Roland and Karl are similar in that both heroes are hyperbolic compared to their real prototypes. And if Roland is the bravest and most faithful knight, then Karl is the wisest, best king. It is interesting that, according to historical data, Karl was only thirty at the time of the start of the Spanish campaign, but our literary Karl is a bicentenary sage whose appearance is truly patriarchal. The author also exaggerated the extent of Karl’s possessions, since many of the countries named in the poem were by no means part of his empire during the period described here. Even the non-existent country of Normandy was also inscribed in his domain. A similar step in literature was often used during the Middle Ages, so that the reader admired his hero.
Today, Karl would be called a superhero, because only such as he, probably, can stop the sun in the sky. The power of the influence of Christianity on the literature of that time was emphasized here, since the sun in the sky froze so that our king could punish all infidels of the church, thereby setting the true path for other people who have not yet accepted faith as a single source of truth and enlightenment.
A religious thread runs through the whole poem; we can draw many parallels with biblical stories. Karl and Roland are almost perfect and like apostles. This still confirms that the literature of that period was fairly uniform and had a single goal - to turn people to the church.