SOURCE: Curtis, Renée L. “The Abatement of the Magic in Beroul's Tristan.” In TristanStudies, pp. 28-35. München, Germany: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, 1969.

In the essay below, Curtis discusses Béroul's handling of the love potion in Tristran, asserting that the author does not use it merely as a stock device to advance the story, but rather carefully develops characterization and theme in order to incorporate the potion into the narrative.

The most immediately striking fact about Béroul's use of the philtre is no doubt the limited duration of its potency in his version of the legend. I am not concerned here with the origin of this idea, whether it should be attributed to the primitive romance or merely to the common source of Béroul and Eilhart, but rather with Béroul's reason, artistic and otherwise, for including it in his story.

The fact that...