I finally finished reading Chivalry and Violence in Medieval Europe by Richard Kaeuper just yesterday. It's a fascinating read, as Kaeuper attempts to unweave the complicated truth that Chivalry was a paradoxical ideal that both caused violence (as it encouraged knights to respond violently to slights on their honor) and yet also sometimes attempted to restrain and redirect violence.

The book both analyzes chivalric romances and also the biographies of real knights such as William Marshal and Geoffroi de Charny. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in the culture of the Middle Ages.