As we examine our two texts we find that although there are similar concerns, methods of mediation of theme, and the warrior's identity as a focal point, there are also many differences which exist due to cultural incongruencies. Although these differences, to some extent, may be of secondary significance to the greater underlying authorial motivations for the development of these texts, they do offer contexts which may explain other motivational elements that occur due to differences in culture, geography, and social structures. In and of themselves, the differences that we can readily see between the European knight and the Japanese warrior are also signifiers of underlying ideologies and world-views. The Japanese warrior fights to the bitter end, often resulting in one samurai taking the head of the other. European knights, in contrast, fight to subdue their enemy and are protected in cumbersome armor. The European knight is loyal to his temporal lord and master but also declares fidelity to his lover, an agent who may exist outside of the typical feudal relationships of duty we find in the Japanese medieval model. Japanese warriors often fight in units against a common enemy while the European knight, in the literature of romance, often acts alone, isolated from the camaraderie of his fellow warriors. The organization of fighting men, their training, texts and sources of information which teach young men how to become warriors, and customary practices of initiation of the knight or samurai into a company of soldiers differ due to cultural expressions particular to each society.

Copyright Notice