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Since the work of Geertz, Huizinga, Bakhtin and Caillois, among others, the intersection of play and violence has been a focal point for historians, anthropologists, literary scholars, even psychologists. This seminar traces the twin themes of violence and play as instantiated by the fighting classes in the High Middle Ages, beginning with the emergence of the tournament and the crusading movement in the eleventh century. By examining sources in Old French and Latin, we will contextualize music, dances, comedies, and contests that accompanied the violent rituals around which French aristocratic life revolved. Course may not meet weekly.