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What are the courtier's character traits in "The Lady, or the Tiger?"
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The courtier in "The Lady, or the Tiger?" is a handsome, ambitious, and romantic young man of low social status who wins the king's daughter's affection. He is depicted as brave and trusting, relying on the princess to guide his choice in the arena. However, he is also naive, unaware of her jealousy. Meanwhile, the other courtier, a lady behind one door, is envied by the princess for her beauty and potential romantic interest in the young man.
The courtier refers to the handsome young man, who falls in love with the semi-barbaric king's daughter. The young courtier is referred to as being a fine, attractive man, who occupies a low station in life. Despite the courtier's lowly position and social status, he is depicted as being ambitious and romantic by winning the king's daughter's heart. The courtier is also referred to as being "brave to a degree unsurpassed in all this kingdom" before he is arrested and sentenced to enter the arena, where he must choose a door to determine his fate. The courtier's romantic personality is further revealed by his glances of admiration towards the fair lady, who is selected to stand behind one of the doors in the arena. The king's daughter had witnessed her lover return sentimental glances to the maiden and flirt with her throughout the court, which fills her with jealousy and...
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As the courtier enters the arena, he looks directly at the king's daughter to receive a sign regarding what door to choose. The fact that the courtier relies solely on the king's daughter for this significant information reveals that he is a trusting man, who is rather naive. He does not fully understand the king's daughter's semi-barbaric personality and is unaware that she is full of jealousy. He does not take into consideration that the king's daughter may influence him to choose the door with the tiger behind it and believes that she will surely save his life.
The courtier in "The Lady or the Tiger?" refers to the other lady, the one behind the second door in the arena. Nobody should have known her identity, but "gold, and the power of a woman's will" had brought the secret to the princess.
The princess completely hates this courtier, the intended prize for her handsome lover, should he choose the right door. Her character traits seem to be all that is good. The narrator notes that she was:
"one of the fairest and loveliest of the damsels of the court who had been selected as the reward of the accused youth."
The courtier's persona, however, is not without flaw. The narrator indicates that the primary reason for the princess's intense dislike was that she had caught this particular courtier "throwing glances of admiration upon the person of her lover, and sometimes she thought these glances were perceived, and even returned." This courtier has the character flaw of envy, desiring the attention, and perhaps even the affection, of the princess' beloved.
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