The story, The Once and Future King, takes place in England during the medieval times. In the book I, Arthur, also known as “Wart”, the adopted son of Sir Ector and brother of Kay. Merlyn, a wizard, is hired by Sir Ector to tutor Wart. In his lessons Wart learns how to lead and govern. During the next six years, Kay is knighted and Wart becomes his squire. When Uther Pendragon, the king of England, dies, a prophecy is proclaimed; The next rightful king will be whoever can pull a mysterious sword
for their future. The Once and Future King, by T.H. White, tells the story of how the main character, Arthur, reaches his full potential of protecting and supporting his country. All of the knowledge Arthur learns in his youth is key in developing his skills and intellect. In the story Arthur has several unique learning experiences presented by his magical tutor, Merlyn. Learning from Merlyn’s lessons allows Arthur to lose the innocence of childhood and evolve into a wise and powerful king. Because
T. H. White's The Once and Future King is one of the most complete and unique portrayals of the immortal legend of King Arthur. Though it has been in print for less than half a century, it has already been declared a classic by many, and is often referred to as the "bible" of Arthurian legend. White recreates the epic saga of King Arthur, from his childhood education and experiences until his very death, in a truly insightful and new way. This is not, however, the first complete novel of Arthur's
Literature by Miranda Moll November 29, 2015 “Things are not always as they seem; the first appearance deceives many.” - Phaedrus. This quote applies to the character Merlyn in The Once and Future King by T.H White. Merlyn is a major character who is a bit absent minded and has already lived the future. While Merlyn is perceived as someone who helps Arthur throughout his reign, he is actually hindering the protagonist. Some examples are the education Merlyn gave Arthur. While they did their
The Once and Future King Leadership In The Once and Future King T.H. White conveys his personal thoughts on leadership through the help of Merlin, and Wart's transformations. Through each transformation Wart experiences different forms of power, each being a part of a whole idea on how a leader should act. He must piece together these ideas for the definitive way he should rule as king. In order to teach Wart, Merlin transforms him into several different forms, a fish, hawk, ant, goose
Throughout history, the story of King Arthur and the Round Table is one of the most read and written about stories. One of the reasons the story captivates so many people is the different interpretation of the characters by different authors. Mordred, the villain in the story, is represented differently in each retelling of the story. In the early stories, he is evil for the sake of being evil. In more modern versions, authors choose to add a backstory to make his hatred seem reasonable to readers
The Once and Future King Description of Guenever Guenever is one whose personality and appearance fluctuates often during the course of her life. The facts that she fell in love with someone other than her husband and that she never bore a child contributes greatly to these abrupt and drastic changes. The description of Guenever as a young wife is one with deep, clear blue eyes, which almost beheld a sort of fearlessness which was startling, as was her black hair. Although Gwen was quite fond of
In the novel The Once and Future King, by T.H. White, the character, Queen Guenever, is depicted as a confused and lost woman in an arranged marriage. She had an internal struggle with a shameful secret, an affair with the ugly knight, Lancelot. In the time of King Arthur, women were limited to what they could do, and what decisions they were able to make. She ultimately made some wrong choices in her life, which led to the disapproval from those around her. She was in her marriage by force and had
While some themes of The Once and Future King include maturity and knighthood, another prominent theme in the novel is gender roles, specifically female roles. Curiously, in many biographies of T.H. White’s life, it is stated that he did not have the “capacity for love,” and never married. This means that while gender inequality is prominent in White’s novel, he never had a close relationship with a female in his personal life. In the novel, The Once and Future King, many female figures are written
is not complete nor acceptable without a visible theme. Themes give novels an opportunity to teach the reader a moral. In T.H. White’s fantasy literature novel The Once And Future King, the reader will discover multiple morals within its four-part plot. The novel takes place in twelfth-century England where the viewer meet a young King Arthur and his life and trials living through the Middle Ages. Much of this book consists of Arthurian Legends and does a wonderful job conveying its themes. White’s
The Code of Chivalry in The Once and Future King T.H. White's novel The Once and Future King presents a code of chivalry that outlines the expected knightly behavior of the time. This particular code stresses loyalty to one's liege, love and respect toward women, and absolute devotion to justice. At the height of Arthur's kingdom, this code was widely accepted by all. However, as Arthur's kingdom begins to decline, the code of chivalry begins to hold less importance among the people. The
warriors, brave soldiers going off to battle to protect the Queen and banding together as one unit. This admired trait appears in popular culture, from kids movies such as A Bug’s Life to, more recently, Marvel’s Ant Man. However, T.H. White’s The Once and Future King illustrates an entirely different view of the ant culture. In this, these tiny soldiers are enslaved under their commander the Queen and lose their ability to produce an original thought. While Wart learns an important lesson among the ants
Life's Lessons in The Once and Future King "The best thing for being sad," replied Merlyn, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honor trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then -- to learn
thinking by an eccentric necromancer with a weakness for humanity. Justice had been his last attempt-to do nothing which was not just. But it had ended in failure" (White, OAFK 634). The "he" in this passage refers to King Arthur, the main character in T.H. White's The Once and Future King and Book of Merlyn, who failed in his attempt to unite England due to the mistakes made by him and those close to him. Arthur, betrayed by those close to him, not properly educated on the greedy, selfish, and violent
Anonymous Perhaps one of the reasons loyalty is such a rare quality these days, is that loyalty is so easy to misplaced in the ones we take as dare. Lancelot is infamous for his skills and for being King Arthur's best knight. Although, T.H. White depicts Lancelot from his accomplished book, The Once and Future King, as more of a darker character with wicked betrayals and adultery acts. Throughout the book he is unable to fight his uncontrollable feelings and only acts for his own selfish needs. Needless
Once And Future King: Analytical Paper Sir Lancelot's intense desire to perform heroic deeds was brought on by his lack of confidence and insecurity. His childhood was spent in seclusion, training for a job desired only to escape the hellish life that his hideous face would otherwise hold in store for him. Lancelot's adulthood was spent trying to overcompensate for this ugliness by performing Herculean feats and good deeds. And the twilight years of his life were spent in remorse for the bad things
In T.H. White’s The Once and Future King, Arthur attempt to use the philosophy of might does not make right to guide himself and others in a world where the people around him believe that might does make right. Almost every chance Arthur gets to put his philosophy into practice is faced by a direct opposition. Even in the very beginning of The Sword in The Stone, the might of the people around Arthur, who is referred to as the Wart, stops him from using his own strategy. For example, in the first
Shaping the Future king In The Once and Future King, Experience is Everything. T.H. White shows that education depends on ones owns personal experiences. Wart’s tutor, Merlyn, uses this exact learning method on Wart. Merlyn uses magic to transform Wart into various animals to show him important life lessons. The Wart is transformed into a fish, goose, and a badger in order to experience different forms of power each being a part of how he should rule as king. Wart learns from Mr. P that mind power
The legendary figure of King Arthur, the Once and Future King, started his rise to literary prominence through Geoffrey of Monmouth and his work, The History of the Kings of Britain. Monmouth introduced readers to a heroic and noble king who defeated the Saxons and reclaimed Britain, creating a period which set the stage for the Arthurian era and the glories of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Over time additional authors added their voice to the telling of the Arthurian legend; adding
lovers within Arthur’s kingdom. Lancelot and Guinevere’s affair leads to the destruction of friendship, illustrated by the tragedies faced between friends within Arthur’s kingdom. In The Once and Future King, the greatest knight in the world, Lancelot, has great affection for his King Arthur’s wife, Guinevere. King Arthur, whom is Lancelot’s lord, admires Lancelot’s relentless fighting style and claims Lancelot his friend and partner. Yet, after holding his feelings for Guinevere back, Lancelot decides