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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 January 2024
At the end of Hartmann von Aue's Iwein (c. 1200), a German adaptation of Chrétien de Troyes's Yvain (c. 1180), the formerly haughty and powerful lady Laudine is forced to reconcile with her estranged husband Iwein. Her recognition of defeat in her attempts to banish Iwein from her life is accompanied in the oldest surviving manuscript with a dramatic gesture. Laudine falls to her knees and begs for forgiveness:
her Îwein, lieber herre mîn,
tuot genædeclîche an mir.
grôzen kumber habt ir
von mînen schulden erliten:
des wil ich iuch durch got biten
daz ir ruochet mir vergeben,
wander mich, unz ich hân daz leben,
von herzen iemer riuwen muoz. (Iwein 8121–29)
(Sir Iwein, my dear lord, treat me with mercy. You have suffered greatly because of me; for that reason, I ask you by God to vouchsafe to forgive me, for I shall regret it in my heart for as long as I shall live.)Laudine's prostration at Iwein's feet echoes and reverses Iwein's own prostration before Laudine only a few lines earlier. It represents a dramatic reversal of their relationship as it has been portrayed in the romance up until this point. Whereas Iwein had earlier appeared to be the subordinate partner in the marriage, now Laudine admits that he is in fact the superior partner, with the right to punish her. Whereas previously, Laudine's role resembled that of the lady in the poetry of the troubadours or minnesinger,3 now she admits that her actions are punishable in her role as wife. Iwein, however, bids her to rise, saying:
irn habt deheine schulde:
wan ich het iuwer hulde
niuwan durch mînen muot verlorn. (Iwein 8133–35)
(It isn't your fault, for I lost your good grace through my own pride [muot].)Iwein has the power to punish Laudine, but he chooses not to do so.
This chapter examines the ethical and legal aspects of Iwein's refusal to punish Laudine, as well as those surrounding the whole of their marriage. Hartmann's romance advocates for a more equal concept of marriage that stresses the husband's ethical obligations to his wife, while at the same time holding him to be legally the superior of the two spouses.
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