In “Courtly Love,” Zizek examines the way knight-lady romance was widely ritualized in Europe’s Middle Ages (Zizek 1). The text explores the “courtly love” notion and claims that people began grasping libidinal aspects of courtly love during a period when masochistic couples and masochism emerged. Helen of Troy is a story inspired by Greek mythology and it suggests that Helen was the most beautiful woman of her time. The Trojan War was triggered when Paris abducted her from King Menelaus. She was portrayed as the daughter of Leda and god Zeus.
In Zazek’s “Courtly Love,” the woman is largely presented as a universal ideal, but not as a sublime object (Zizek 1). The Lady in courtly love is a representation of Lacanian “real” that is capable of resisting symbolization and tends to return to its place. The Lady does not have substance, but purely reflects the knight’s narcissistic ideal. The Lady is presented as a human partner and not a spiritual being capable of sadistic and monstrous tendencies.
Some stories suggest that Helen was seduced by the charms of Paris and went with him willingly while others suggest that she was kidnapped. She was the cause of Trojan War that led to the deaths of numerous people. The power relationship between the Lady and the Knight is asymmetrical and is comparable to the relationship between Paris and Helen.
The primary objective of Courtly Love is to transform a woman into a symbol of beauty or a goddess, and this is widely manifested in the portrayal of Helen of Troy’s remarkable beauty. It is difficult for the knight to have a goddess for a soul mate. In Greek mythology, Zeus is regarded as a god and Helen of Troy is his daughter who is also considered the most beautiful woman. In the end, Paris died in the Trojan War.
Work Cited
Zizek ,Slavoj. Slavoj Zizek's Courtly Love, or, Woman as Thing .Prezi. May 2011. Web. March 21, 2016
