'Preserve me, oh Lord, as the pupil of thine eye': Perception and cognition in Chretien de Troyes' 'Le Conte du Graal' and Geoffrey Chaucer's 'Troilus and Criseyde'

This study contributes to a growing literature on the impact of medieval perceptual theory upon contemporary cultural forms by examining the way perspectivist and related accounts of perception and cognition can illuminate the construction of the subject in late medieval literature, offering close readings of two romances, Chretien's Conte du Graal and Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde, as examples. More specifically, this study argues that Perceval, Gawain, Troilus, Pandarus and Criseyde embody various aspects of perception or developmental moments in late medieval thought concerning vision and knowledge, and that they do so particulary through their portrayal as perceivers or readers of the worlds of their respective demonstrates narratives. It also demonstrates the degree to which medieval perceptual theory can serve to cast light on two of the most controversial figures in medieval literature, Chretien's grail and Chaucer's Criseyde.