In a feudal age when lords and
ladies lived in accordance with chivalric codes, society viewed the heroic
ideal not as an elusive paradigm, but as an essential component of a good man. The
paper shows that the ideal, stereotypical
hero in a romance is a strong, crafty, brave, courteous, charmingly handsome ladies' man of noble birth. As opposed to the epic hero who retains some degree of individuality as he strives for
high achievement, the romantic hero is a type of man who encounters unrelated
adventure after adventure while on his quest to accomplish a goal such as rescuing a lady in distress, obeying a
king's command, or seeking the Holy Grail. The paper discusses the image of a hero in "King Horn" and "Sir Orfeo", by anonymous authors, where he is a man of high standing who is exiled and then forced to rebuild his reputation in a foreign land.
More summaries about the The Heroic Ideal in "King Horn" and "Sir Orfeo"