kingdoms from further subjection by killing Gur-
muns envoy, Morolt. During their judicial duel, one
of Tristan’s blows leaves a piece of his sword lodged
in Morolt’s skull. By his turn, Morolt has wounded
Tristan with his poisoned sword, informing him that
only his sister, Queen Isolde of Ireland, can cure him
of its fatal effect. Tristan sets off for Ireland disguised
as the minstrel/merchant “Tantris,” and gains access to
the queen by means of his sweetly compelling musical
performance. She cures him in exchange for tutoring
her daughter, the princess Isolde, whom he educates in
letters, music, and courteous manners. After his return to
Cornwall, intrigues brew against him by barons envious
of his position as Marke’s heir. To appease them, Marke
reluctantly agrees to marry Princess Isolde, hoping this
venture will fail because of the hostility between the two
countries. But Tristan, who heads the bridal quest, suc-
ceeds. First he kills the dragon who has been terrorizing
the Irish countryside, a prerequisite to winning Isolde’s
hand. The dragon’s tongue, however, which Tristan has
cut out as proof, is poisonous, and causes Tristan to sink,
unconscious, into a bog. Meanwhile, the cowardly Irish
steward, having found and appropriated the carcass of
the dragon, has claimed Isolde as his reward, much to
the dismay of the royal family. Through concerted ef-
forts, the queen and her daughter fi nd “Tantris,” and the
queen cures him anew.
A combination of events leads to Princess Isolde’s
discovery of Tristan’s identity, and she almost slays
him in revenge for Morolt. Spared, Tristan conveys
Marke’s offer of marriage and, after assisting the queen
in thwarting the steward with his testimony, Tristan
sails for Cornwall with Princess Isolde and Brangaene,
her maid, in tow. Brangaene is in possession of a love
potion given her by the queen, who wishes to ensure
her daughter’s happiness with her new husband, King
Marke. But Tristan and Isolde inadvertently drink the
potion together on their voyage, sealing their eternal
love for each other. Though they consummate their love
on the ship, loyalty forces Tristan to deliver Isolde to
Marke, whom she weds. On the wedding night, Bran-
gaene stands in for Isolde in order to conceal Isolde’s
loss of virginity. Fearing treason, Isolde attempts to have
Brangaene murdered, but Brangaene demonstrates her
discretion and trustworthiness, and continues to help
the lovers carry on their clandestine affair.
When the Cornish steward Marjodo chances to dis-
cover their adulterous relationship, he relates “rumors”
of it to Marke, who embarks on a series of attempts
designed to catch the lovers out. Finally, the growing
threat to the king’s reputation and authority by the ru-
mors induces Marke to force Isolde to undergo an ordeal
of the hot iron. In this famous episode, the king desires
the queen to destroy the rumors. She performs this feat
with such calculating ingenuity and winning courtesy
that the iron does not burn her when she carries it. Thus
she restores both her own and the king’s honor.
At court the lovers, unable to restrain their display of
mutual affection, provoke Marke to banish them. They
take refuge in a cave of lovers whose qualities bear men-
tion. Each of the architectural elements of the cave is
allegorically appropriate to a true lover’s environment:
the white, smooth wall means love’s integrity, the cave’s
width is love’s strength, its green fl oor love’s constancy,
and the crystal bed love’s purity. Moreover, the door to
the cave is constructed so as to admit only true lovers.
Miraculously, the lovers need not eat, but subsist solely
on love and love’s gazes. One day, Marke happens upon
the cave while hunting. Anticipating detection, Tristan
places a sword between Isolde and himself before they
fall asleep together. The sword’s position convinces
Marke of their innocence, and he has them fetched
back to court.
There Isolde plans a rendezvous with Tristan in the
garden in the face of increased surveillance by her hus-
band. Marke discovers them while they are sleeping,
but Tristan awakens in time to see him depart. Realizing
that they must part company, Tristan and Isolde say a
tender farewell, and Tristan fl ees Cornwall before Marke
returns with his councillors.
Tristan seeks combat in an attempt to divert himself
(albeit unsuccessfully) from the pain of separation from
Isolde. He travels to Arundel, a coastal duchy, where he
assists the inhabitants to a victory. On meeting its ruler’s
daughter, Isolde of the White Hands, Tristan spirals
into confusion; her beauty and her name remind him of
his Isolde. Isolde of the White Hands meanwhile falls
in love with Tristan. Their proximity to each other at
court causes Tristan to waver in his original love, and
the romance breaks off as he laments the unfairness of
his situation.
The dialectic and the nature of Gottfried’s concept
of love, his unorthodox relationship to Christianity, his
attitude toward courtliness, and the interplay between
narrator excursuses and narrative action are only some of
the many aspects of the romance that have served both to
stimulate and to vex scholarly attempts at interpretation.
And yet, despite the obstacles caused by the abundant
ambivalences and ironies and, quite simply, the alterity
(uniqueness) of the work, Gottfried continues to delight
and seduce his readership, leaving the impression of a
brilliant poet, an aesthete of aloof yet discerning eye,
and a superb master in absolute control of his art.
See also Hartmann von Aue;
Ulrich von LiechtensteinFurther Reading
Batts, Michael. Gottfried von Strassburg. New York: Twayne,
1971.GOTTFRIED VON STRASSBURG