Cantares de geste: main characteristics

In this lesson from a TEACHER we are going to know the Main characteristics of the Counters de geste. In this case, we are talking about a literary genre that had its peak and popularity during the centuries XI and XII, in the middle of the Middle Ages, by various European countries, among which Spain and France.

Do not forget that the term feat comes from Latin, the language in which it meant done or feat. So this genre has been baptized in this way, since its poems tell the stories of great characters especially known for their courage, their exemplary nature, and the many feats they were able to accomplish in lifetime. Usually they were narrations in verse passed from generation to generation without a specific written text, and recited by minstrels to entertain the public and earn money.

But, before entering fully into the main characteristics of the chants of deed, it is important first of all to know exactly what does this medieval literary genre consist of. We have already offered some keys in the introduction, such as its content and origin, but there is more to go into.

The exact definition will lead us to say that a chant of deed is an epic or epic tale recounting the adventures and misadventures of a hero which, generally, is a representation of the culture and virtues of a people.

However, depending on their country of origin, these adventures may have a rather mythological and fantastic component, as happened mainly in France, England or Germany. Even so, in countries like Spain, the narratives were much more realistic.

These songs were born from the oral tradition of the peoples, transmitted from generation to generation, and sung by minstrels. But, towards the end of their heyday, at the end of the 12th century, they were transferred to written formats, of which some examples have reached us today, as we will see later.

In this other lesson we will discover what are the Spanish deed songs more important.

Thus, many of these songs of deed became very popular in their day, and their fame has reached us today. If we should highlight the most important in each country where they had enormous repercussion, we could name these:

• El Mío Cid, in Spain
• The Song of Roldán, in France
• The Beowulf, in England
• The Song of the Nibelungs, in Germany