Life can be a chore, especially if you're a servant and becoming a squire is your lucky break. Because let's be real, a squire is a glorified servant. So it goes for Edmund in The Book of the Lion, though.
Before you start feeling too badly for Edmund and his lifetime of duty, though, consider this: Everybody has to serve somebody in medieval times. Edmund serves Nigel, but Nigel serves the king. And the king has the arguably the toughest boss around since he supposedly serves God.
What can we say? In medieval England, it's all duty, all the time.
Questions About Duty
- How do Hubert and Edmund relate to their duties as squires? What does this reveal about their characters? How much do you think their backgrounds contribute to this?
- Is dutifully fulfilling your duty a virtue in this book? Why or why not? Remember to turn to the text for support.
- Does Edmund's relationship to duty change over the course of the book? If so, how? If not, why do you think this is and what does it reveal about his character? About duty as a theme?
Chew on This
Ultimately, Edmund's strongest sense of duty is to himself. As an orphan, he has no one to rely on but himself.
Duty is what defines a Crusader—they are bound not only to their king but to God as well.