Gender Roles In King Arthur's Knights Of The Round Table

What All Humans Share Unconsciously

All humans from anywhere in the world and from any period of time share the same unconscious ideas; called collective unconscious which is a theory developed by Carl Jung. In the book of King Arthur we have tales, stories and characters that all represent a certain archetypal lesson, and these lessons are the collective unconscious. The story of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table fits the model as a universal story of mankind because the story explores ideas shared by all humankind.

First, love is explored as a universal theme. Throughout the book, love is mentioned and it’s viewed to be a universal theme because every human being views the idea of love the same way. King Arthur sees Guinevere

Although the book is predominantly focused on males, both genders play an important role in the book. Gender roles are viewed as a universal theme because humans view each gender differently, despite the gender equality. When a little boy falls and cries, his parents scold him into acting more tough, like a man. However, it differs for girls for they are meant to be sensitive. Humans do not know why they think such way even after knowing that women are sometimes tougher than man, but they still give that kind of archetype. Men are expected to act more chivalrous, following the code of ethics. Even King Arthur secured chivalry within the people that follow him by “...bade[ing] all his knights [to] try, each in turn, to” (pg. 118) renew their vows. Whereas, women are fought for because men are expected to be more strong. Geraint wants to “ride and speak with [the dwarf himself]” (pg 193) just to fight for the damsel for she is viewed weak and she “[sobbed] bitterly” (pg 193). In that sequence, this book illustrates a lot of collective unconscious about gender

Any human being who thinks about a hero, they immediately have the same mental images of what a hero is. The mental image of a hero is someone who is strong, and who fights for the good; King Arthur portrays that perfectly. King Arthur is “the best of all knights”, “the greatest king this land shall ever know” (page 12). Due to all that, he falls directly into the heroism category which makes every human being who reads about him, think the same thing unconsciously. When people read about Sir Launcelot, at first they believe him to be a noble knight which makes him a hero. Sir Launcelot is a “worthy” (page 116), and king Arthur “trust[s] the high honour of…” Launcelot (page 260). Therefore, Launcelot portrays trust and being worthy, like any other hero. Humankind think of a hero as a person who is tough, trustworthy compassionate and cares for their people. King Arthur book clearly explores that theme, throughout the