Page:Tirant lo Blanch; a study of its authorship, principal sources and historical setting (IA cu31924026512263).pdf/147

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cut off his adversary's right arm, then his left, and finally his head. Let the reader note the following coincidences: Guy and Tirant both made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem; from there they came to Alexandria; the ransom of prisoners is mentioned in Guy of Warwick, and the ransom of captives is a fact in Tirant lo Blanch. Martorell did not reproduce this story, but he seems to have retained the words Jerusalem, Alexandria, and ransom of Christians, and from these he developed his own story. In the lines quoted above, Guy's fervent religious spirit is brought into prominence, and at the same time a struggle for supremacy between the Christian and the Mohammedan religions is suggested. In Tirant lo Blanch also, the hero is filled with religious zeal and fervor, and under his leadership Christianity triumphs in all Barbary.

We have pointed out above the more important points of resemblance in Guy of Warwick and Tirant lo Blanch. Let us now mention a few of the minor ones.

In the English romance, the following words are spoken of Felice:

She was therto curteys and free ywys,
And in the .vii. arts well learned withoute mys.
All the .vii. artis she kouthe well,
Noon better that euere man herde tell.[1]

In Tirant lo Blanch the empress confesses that she cannot argue as well as Carmesina, "per yo no hauer studiat les liberals arts com ma filla."[2]

When Guy made his confession of love to Felice, he said:

Bot thou haue mercy on me,
Myself y shall for sorwe slee.[3]

  1. Caius MS., p. 7.
  2. . . . because I have not studied the liberal arts as my daughter has. Tirant lo Blanch, chap. clxxxii, col. 2.
  3. Caius MS., p. 23.