Bellesa, valor, and
honor
Direct speech strategies in Curial and
Guelfa
This paper focuses on the instances of direct
speech in the anonymous chivalric romance Curial and
Guelfa. More specifically, it analyzes, on the one
hand, the encomia of the young hero Curial pronounced by the
characters in their speeches, and, on the other hand, the formal and
structural characteristics of two types of direct speech: speech
dealing with love themes, and speech addressed by a challenger to
his rival in the context of duels. Furthermore, the study examines
the occurrences of the term honor in direct
speeches as an expression of the author’s concept of chivalry.
