We've seen in discussion so far an interest in the duel that determines Ganelon's fate. It's not only the reader s who are interested. There are crowds at the duel, witnesses to God's decision on the truth of worldly matters. What's interesting to me about the duel is that this has a familiar ring outside of Christianity. I have heard stories of pagan myths, and I've been looking for a source but as yet have not found one, of circles in which two combatants are placed to fight in order to determine the truth of a crime. The one who wins is judged to have been right. In any case, the idea is not simply confined to Christianity. You see it mostly all cultures that have a religion with a higher power, and when one believes their higher power is better, well, that's the short of how wars start.
In fact, the duel between Pinabel and Thierry is not even the only place in which this "duel for the truth" occurs. Charlemagne carries on his own duel with the Emir during the final battle. They both fall to the ground and begin to duke it out, mano a mano, to see who has the right of it: "Nothing at all can ever end their strife/Till one confess he's wrong, the other right" (259). And really when they say "confess" they mean get skewered. So they're both fighting to determine who is correct in their choice of god, and the one to survive simply proves that they are correct. And of course in the story an angel helps him when he is being overwhelmed, God will not let the righteous one lose.
And so in the duel over Ganelon's treachery we can only expect a similar miracle of God's hand. But in this case it is no longer God's servant against a Pagan foe, which is a much easier call for the big man, but a simple dispute between Christians. I can't help but wonder if by bringing God down for the deliberation this duel hasn't forced him to say more than just who's right in their argument, but who is actually no longer Christian. I realize that we've talked about how Ganelon can not lose his status as a Christian, but I have to say I disagree. He doesn't fall as low a Pagan, but he becomes a fallen Christian really since God has decided against him. Even if God didn't have a hand in the duel, by royal decree the outcome strips Ganelon of his religion and of course that of his family. This is the opposite side of the Christians "converting" pagans into the faith. In the end its the men with power discerning the fate of other men.
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It almost seems that the ideas here are linked with the ones in the previous post about hubris. The deity of one's choice affects how they choose to live their lives, and when one seems to feel they are fighting on the side of what is divinely correct, or more correct than the other guy, they are bestowed with a sense of power which which it is difficult to argue. Who are we to say if someone saw an angel or a vivid, stress-induced hallucination? Our only decision to believe or not, to follow or switch sides, is the result of our own personal hubris. The question becomes, does death and failure in battle prove without a doubt that they were wrong, or does it prove that they failed, and may be judged as they had hoped, by a higher court?
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