RIVALITÉ MIMÉTIQUE DANS LE ROMAN DE TRISTAN EN PROSE : CONSIDÉRATIONS SUR KAHEDIN
MIMETIC RIVALRY IN THE PROSE TRISTAN: REFLECTIONS ON KAHEDIN

Summary/Abstract: Mimetic rivalry in the prose Tristan: reflections on Kahedin. This textual giant that combines the Tristan legend, the Grail legend and the Arthurian world, is also one of the first novels of its time to manifest a literary self-awareness unknown to previous Arthurian texts. Self-awareness is acquired by means of a critical perspective regarding the chivalrous ideals traditionally praised by the Arthurian texts. This article focuses on a particularly strange and complex character, Kahedin. One of the few characters in medieval literature to commit suicide, he is contaminated by mimetic rivalry. Kahedin is not only a victim of his own desire, but also the barer of an innovative auto-referential discourse.

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