Ire, Peor and their Somatic Correlates in Chrétien’s Chevalier de la Charrette

Late advances in neuroscience are piling up evidence supporting the idea that the understanding of emotionally-related language is based on an embodied knowledge which makes it possible to recognize the described emotionally-related events. Accordingly, the study of emotion words in medieval arthurian novels should provide meaningful clues on the role of associated emotions in narrative descriptions and their expected appreciation among readers and audiences. The present study will focus on emotion words such as ire and peor in Chrétien’s Chevalier de la Charrette so as to show that emotions described in medieval verse novels: 1) affect specific characters; 2) entail frequent reference to somatic correlates; 3) typically follow perceptual events; 4) underlay decision-making processes leading to purposeful intentional actions. Moreover, provided evidence will support the idea that the perspectivism of the medieval novel, which certainly affects character-specific perceptual angles and point of view on narrated events, also applies to emotionally-competent descriptions. Indeed, descriptions of emotional states differ on the basis of gender, age, rank and are consistent with the role the affected characters play in the social context. Finally, it will be shown that Chrétien tends to cluster emotion words and locutions in consistent textual segments which describe emotionally-relevant circumstances and events, so that co-occurrence makes it possible to appraise the emergent emotional system that underlies the thematic plan of the novel.