Ivanhoe Essay, Research Paper

In the book Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott, a knight named Ivanhoe devotes his life to keeping to the codes of chivalry. The general setting is in England, where the way of life is medieval. Respect and loyalty are two of the character traits that Ivanhoe has. These are two very important traits because without them, what kind of person would he be?

For example, in the beginning of the book Ivanhoe is known as the Disinherited Knight because his father, Cedric of Saxon, disinherits him; however, even though he is abandoned, he still respects his father and is loyal to him. His respect is shown in the book when the castle burns and his father is very disrespectful toward his son. But Ivanhoe does not get upset.

Ivanhoe is not only loyal to his real father but to King Richard the Lion Heart as well. When his father disowns Ivanhoe, King Richard steps in and adopts him. Ivanhoe attaches himself to the King and follows him into battle for the Crusades. When the King is captured, Ivanhoe has loyalty and sets his eye on freeing him.

Glory is also something that Ivanhoe uses to lead him on. Austrians imprisoned his stepfather, King Richard the Lion Heart, on his way back from the crusades. Ivanhoe put his effort towards freeing him and glorifying his country of England. He courageously goes to battle to fight for England in the Crusades. Because of his bravery England is saved.

Besides glory, bravery is used throughout the novel also. An example of this is when Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert dies for Rebecca. Ivanhoe demonstrates bravery when he fights Brian to repay Rebecca for her care when he is hurt. He is also very brave when he fights for his Saxon image.

Glory and Bravery are not the only things Ivanhoe is demonstrating by fighting for England. He is also showing a fear of disgrace. If his home country of England were to lose the battles, he and his country would be disgraced. His fear of disgrace helps lead him on. During a battle, Brian de Bois-Guilbert takes Rebecca to Temple stone, the home of the Templars. Here Rebecca is tried for witchcraft, but Ivanhoe comes and saves her by defeating Brian de Bois-Guilbert. Rebecca is a friend of Ivanhoe s.

I did not enjoy this book. I thought it was very confusing. I never understood who was who or who was in love with whom. I also got very confused because a lot of the characters had two names. This book sounds much better than it actually was. The author put a short story into a novel and used way too many words. Well, that s my opinion anyway.