The Song of Roland | The Epic

Below, Duggan provides an historical overview of the beginnings of French literature in the chansons de geste, or "songs of great deeds," the great epic poems of which The Song of Roland is the "acknowledged masterpiece of the genre." He notes the origins of this form in oral, or recited, poetry, and notes that these works were often based on actual events and individuals. Duggan discusses the way that epic poems were used propagandistically, to glorify national heroes, to find historical precedence for current events, and to popularize specific social, political, or religious points of view. Duggan comments that The Song contributed to the mindset that led to the Crusades and served as a ''foundation myth'' about the beginnings of French nationalism.

When Pope Urban II preached the First Crusade to the Orient in 1095 at Clermont, the vernacular literature of France consisted of epic poems (chansons de geste), saints' lives, and lyric poetry. Most of these works were still being passed on orally rather than being written down. The immensely popular chansons de geste include several of the finest works in medieval French literature: the Chanson de Roland (ca. 1100; Song of Roland), Raoul de Cambrai, Garin le Lorrain, the Chanson de Guillaume, Girart de Roussillon, and Huon de...

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