Although set in a different time period, the same rules and ideas about love first presented in The Lais of Marie de France still remain in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The lais bring up the ideas of pain, consent, and moderation all incorporated into love, and all of these ideas have remained as aspects of love even in modern day relationships. In The Hunchback of Notre Dame there were many relationships, all presenting very different characters and different states of love, but all of them weave in the rules for love given 300 years earlier. Many of the relationships in Hunchback show a reverse of what was desired and accepted love at the time, and from this one can see that the ideas apply both for more courtly love, as well as for less respectable relationships.The Lais of Marie de France present a strong thesis on love, which was first conceived in the court of Henry II in the 12th century. One of the most predominant ideas was that of having pain in love. In the story of Equitian it goes so far as to say that he will give into the love because of the pain it causes him. Because of this lady I have seen my heart has been overwhelmed by a pain so great that my whole body trembles. I think I have no option but to love her. The theme of pain in love was incorporated into all of the Lais in various forms. Pain in love could go to the extent of physical pain, the emotional pain from loss of love, the pain from lack of consent in love, or sometimes the pain suffered just because being in love caused so much trouble. In the lai Les Deus Amans two lovers suffer from the moderation they must use because of their social positions. They often spoke together and loved each other loyally, concealing their love as best they could so no one would notice them. This suffering caused them much grief, but the young man considered it better to suffer these misfortunes than to make too much haste and thus fail. Love was a great affliction to him.Pain...
