How we cite our quotes: (Stanza.Line)
Quote #1
"I understand he is more than two hundred years old." (42.552)
You'd think that war and sorrow and the anxieties of statecraft would have wrinkled this old man, but Charlemagne is still going strong at 200 years old. Could his godliness and close contact with the angels be the reason?
Quote #2
"I'd rather die than be disgraced." (86.1091)
If anyone else said this, it would be an example of fun exaggeration. But Roland, armed with Durendal and thirsty for pagan blood, really means it. For him, dying for the honor of France, Christianity, and his own good name is better than being alive.
Quote #3
"We must die well for our King:
Help sustain Christianity! […]
I will absolve you to save your souls.
If you die, you'll be holy martyrs,
You'll have seats in highest Paradise." (89.1128-29, 1133-35)
Fighting 100,000 Saracens is nobody's cup of tea. Archbishop Turpin keeps up the Franks' spirits by reminding them that honorable death is the same thing as honorable eternity. If they die as martyrs now, they will attain the best of heaven forever while extending the sway of Christianity for earthly mortals.