Kinship and Marriage in Medieval Hispanic Chivalric Romance (Westfield Publications in Medieval and Renaissance Studies)

This monograph studies two interconnected and crucially important elements in medieval Spanish and Catalan chivalric romances: the influence on the characters and on the plots of both lineal and wider family relationships, and of marriage and the conflicting imperatives that shape it. It analyses social themes in four romances that were written during the century and a half before the unification of Spain under the Catholic Monarchs and their grandson, Carlos V: the Castilian Libro del caballero Zifar and Amadis de Gaula, and the Catalan Tirant lo Blanc and Curial e Guelfa. The heroes of these romances advance their fortunes by heroic deeds and by advantageous marriages. By rendering the social setting of the works more intelligible, Michael Harney makes possible a fresh and informed approach to the literary criticism of the works.M Harney is the author of 'Kinship and Marriage in Medieval Hispanic Chivalric Romance (Westfield Publications in Medieval and Renaissance Studies)', published 2001 under ISBN 9782503509105 and ISBN 250350910X.