courtly love

Thân thiện

A knight composes a poem about his courtly love for a noble lady.

Definition

1. Noun: A highly conventionalized and idealized form of love, originating in the literature of the European Middle Ages. It typically involved a knight or nobleman expressing admiration, devotion, and service to a lady, often of higher social status and usually married, with the love being non-physical or unconsummated.

Usage

• Noun: The concept is used to describe a specific historical literary and social tradition of romantic expression.
  • The poet's verses were filled with themes of courtly love.
  • The concept of courtly love influenced the behavior of the aristocracy.

Advanced Usage

• As a cultural concept: Used to analyze medieval literature, art, and social customs.
  • Scholars debate the extent to which courtly love reflected actual social practices or was purely a literary convention.

Variants and Related Words

• Chivalric love: A near-synonym emphasizing the knightly aspect of the tradition.
• Amour courtois: The original French term for courtly love.

Synonyms

• Romantic devotion: A more general term for intense, idealized love.
• Idealized love: Love focused on the perfect qualities of the beloved.

Related Phrases

• To serve one's lady: A phrase derived from the ethos of courtly love, meaning to perform acts of devotion.
  • He vowed to serve his lady with unwavering loyalty.

Related Idioms

• A knight's devotion: An idiom alluding to the extreme loyalty and service characteristic of courtly love.
  • He showed a knight's devotion to the cause.

Học thuật

Noun

1. (Middle Ages) a highly conventionalized code of conduct for lovers