The Emperor Charlemagne in La Chanson de Roland essays

The Emperor Charlemagne in La Chanson de Roland essays La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) is an Old French epic poem that belongs to the genre of the chanson de geste. Literally translated as song of deeds, they can be considered the foundation and beginning of French literature. Emperor Charlemagne is one of the main protagonists in the poem who is based on a historical figure but takes on epic proportions in the context of the chanson. It is evident from the text that, while Charlemagnes character is at its highest point of nobility in La Chanson de Roland, his character is simultaneously undermined. The ways in which Charlemagnes character is constructed in the chanson reflects changes in both the literary and historical worlds that occurred contemporaneous with the creation of the poem. This depiction of Charlemagnes character is a watershed in the evolution of the genre and of French Literature. A reader must always remember that the foremost theme of this poem is the triumph and superiority of Christianity over foreign religions and foreign civilizations (i.e. the Saracens). The Song of Roland evolves around the image of an old king whose mission is the establishment and constant defense of an empire beloved of God (Uitti, 65). Therefore Charlemagne, as the Holy Roman Emperor and leader of the religiously devoted Franks, is represented in the poem as the incarnation of Christianity on earth. The memory of the imperial power of the historical Charlemagne contributes potently to the original mystery of the epic king of France. But it was Charles the warrior, the right arm of the Church, the valiant defender of Christendom against pagan and Infidel invasion that comes most prominently into view (Comfort, 285). Charlemagne, with the help of his knights, has been divinely elected to carry out the all-important mission of spreading Christianity across Western Europe. They are engaging in what they interpret as God&apo...

How to Title a Book in 4 Simple Steps (With Free Checklist!)

How to Title a Book in 4 Simple Steps (With Free Checklist!) How to Title a Book: What Do Good Book Titles Have In Common? So you’ve (finally) finished your book, only to find one last question standing between you and the bestsellers list: how to title your book. Maybe you don’t like the working title you’ve been using these past few months. Perhaps you’ve come up with a title you love - but everyone else says that it might hurt your market potential.So what makes for a truly good book title? Luckily, there’s a short, simple, 4-point checklist that will help you choose a book title that’s guaranteed to catch a reader’s roving eye. Only joking! Although that would be nice, wouldn’t it? While there’s no sure-fire method for formulating the perfect title, this post will give you ideas for devising a title that enhances your book and gives it the best chance of success. Why do book titles matter?Remember to test your book title with target readers: this is who will read your bookHere are some ways you can check if your title floats in the real world and in the heads of your audience who, after all, are the most important people in this process. It’s vital to remember that book titles are ultimately for readers.Start localBegin with your family and friends, but remember that if you just poll inside your immediate circle for feedback, chances are it will be biased towards the positive and not totally objective. While this may be great for the ego, at this stage in the game you need some genuinely constructive criticism. Distinguish who your target audience is (they might not be your friends), and try to get some feedback from these people.Facebook groupsLike many things, there is a Facebook group for this exact purpose. Just searching for ‘book title review’ or ‘test book title’ will yield some preliminary results. All it takes is to put up a post asking people to choose between two or three, and some real-life (probably literary-headed) people will give their honest opinions. If you're looking for a group to help you out, why not check out The Street Team, a book marketing group moderated by Reedsy?SurveyMonkeyIn a similar vein, gain the opinion of people slightly further out of your inner circle by making a survey on SurveyMonkey and share the link with as many people as you can. Obviously, this will start amongst friends and family, but if you encourage them to share it the ripple effect should kick in and you’ll be getting some valued feedback from all sorts of participants in no time. Nothing beats genuine, honest opinions, and it’s even better the wider you can cast your feedback - people are less likely to be clouded by personal bias if they don’t know you.Run an Adwords campaignDepending on your technological capabilities (although it sounds more complex than it is i n practice) you can A/B test your title, provided you have a final two, via an Adwords campaign. This way, success is measured by clicks, and you have in-depth analysis to work off. This will require a bit more work than the others, maybe involving creating ads that have people sign up to for a free sample or free chapter of your book. But, like most things that take more effort, the results will be worth it.Unbiased surveysWe were recently introduced to Pickfu - a testing service that allows authors to ask strangers their opinion. Their tagline is ‘optimize without an audience,’ shouting loud and clear how they’re going to help you test your book title, even if you don’t have hundreds of willing participants that you know personally. Getting the opinions of strangers is just as (if not more) useful than polling those you know personally - they are sometimes going to be more like your target audience than those closest to you.Now it’s your turnYou r book title is the foundation that your book will stand on once it’s published, and will be a key part of convincing readers (or publishers!) to take a chance on your book. Hopefully, all this will get the ball rolling on your book title, and we’d love to hear the results!How have you created the titles for your own books? If you have any particular methods, share them with us in the comments below.