It also includes a commentary that treats the poem's place in the eleventh (or early twelfth) century, its importance to the society that produced it, … … The 'Song of Roland' takes place during the time of Charles the Great's (Charlemagne) reign over Frankish territory. The Song of Roland lists the twelve paladins as Roland, Charlemagne's nephew and the chief hero among the paladins; Oliver, Roland's friend and strongest ally; and Gérin, Gérier (these two are killed in the same laisse [123] by the same Saracen, Grandonie), Bérengier, … La Chanson de Roland, English The Song of Roland, Old French epic poem that is probably the earliest (c. 1100) chanson de geste and is considered the masterpiece of the genre. The Song of Roland is a stirring of French medieval poem and classic of medieval literature. Book Description: This book offers a detailed interpretation of the Song of Roland, one of the best-known texts in all heroic literature. Song of Roland (French: La Chanson de Roland) is an epic poem/song, or a "chanson de geste", based on the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in the Pyrenees in 778, during the reign of Charlemagne. It exists in various different manuscript versions, which testify to its enormous and enduring popularity in the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. The Song of Roland is one of the earliest examples of the genre called the chanson de geste —narrative poems celebrating heroic deeds, which flourished especially in the 12th and 13th centuries and were sung or recited. https://www.amazon.com/Song-Roland-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140445323 His thinking lies around the notion that God can make a decision towards punishing or rewarding someone on the basis of how loyal one is. It is the most well-known chanson de geste (song of heroic deeds) and is an exhilarating and remarkable synthesis of the Frankish heroic and tribal tradition and Christianity. The Song of Roland (French: La Chanson de Roland) is the oldest major work of French literature. THE SONG OF ROLAND [Translated by C. K. [Charles Kenneth] Moncreiff] Anonymous Old French epic, dating perhaps as early as the middle 11th century. Who were the adversaries of the Franks in this poem? A. The Song of Roland, or, in French, La Chanson de Roland, is the best known of the Old French epics.It was possibly first composed some time in the 10th or 11th century, though the earliest extant version of the chanson, was found in the 12th century, in a manuscript designated as “Digby 23”, now kept at the Bodleian Library in Oxford. In the ‘Song of Roland’, Charlemagne’s eternal loyalty lies toward God, for whom Charlemagne is the vassal, and the others the vassals for Charlemagne. The poem’s probable author was a Norman poet, Turold, whose name is introduced in its last line.