Fin amors, or refined love, is a staple in medieval literature. Showcasing the romantic relationships of nobles, Fin Amors expresses the fights and games that take place between a man and a woman during courtship. Similar to unrequited love, Fin Amors focuses on women who hold the power in a relationship and therefore stay away from a man's advances. This behavior of the woman forces the man to put her on a pedestal, idealizing her and desiring her even more. Within Guillaume De Machaut's Fountain of Love and Geoffrey Chaucer's The Book of the Duchess, the concept of fin amors takes center stage and drives the poem's argument. Together, both poems consist of unsuspecting sleepless narrators witnessing another man mourn their respected romantic relationships. None of the narrators have a love interest of their own, but rather they tell the stories of the men they meet and their misfortunes in love. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Although The Fountain of Love and The Book of the Duchess have their differences, they both share the common theme of fin amors, and more specifically the topic of women holding all the power within the relationship, lovers who complain and women idealized and placed on a pedestal. One of the key elements of Fin Amors is to overly idealize your lover. Within the Book of the Duchess and the Fountain of Love, both Jean, the Duke of Berry and the man in the black suit flatter their women. Berry claims that his wife is a "sweet and lovely woman" (Machaut 287), a woman "in whom all good dwells" (288), which seems to be more qualities of her character and virtue, rather than her physical beauty . This is important in the context of the poem, because Berry does not want his wife to be unfaithful to him while he is abroad. However, in Fountain of Love, the Man in Black is also concerned about Lady White's virtue, but seems to focus more on her flawless appearance. The man in black states that Lady White has an exceptionally beautiful neck with a: Whyte, smooth, straight and pure flat Without hole or canel-boon As if by seed, she had had noon (Chaucer 942-944) Here, the man in black is literally saying that Lady White is so flawless and her chest is so beautiful and full that it doesn't even look like she has collarbones, which is just a ridiculous accusation and a perfect example of idealization of a woman. In fact, most women have collarbones, but not Lady White, because she is the perfect example of a human woman, who is absolutely crazy and also illustrates the narrator's delusion when it comes to her. After providing an in-depth head-to-toe description of Lady White and all of her aesthetically pleasing, flawless proportions, the Man in Black finally speaks of her virtue, claiming that he "loved his name so much." (1018) - ultimately means that she had a pleasant reputation and did not devote herself to whatever man she liked. The fact that Lady White is protective of her virtue and demanding of her potential suitors fits perfectly with the concept of fin amors. For Machaut's The Fountain of Love follows the lament of Jean, the Duke of Berry who is forced to leave his beloved wife because he is about to become a prisoner of war. Berry worries sick about the possibilities of what will happen to his wife if and when he leaves, claiming, "If your pure heart were in love with another, I should be so mortally wounded that sooner or later I should die or go crazy." for this reason." (Machaut 287). Because Berry is so concerned about infidelity and preserving..