The Effects of Sir Thomas Malory’s Life and Culture on the Arthurian Legends
In many cases, authors write books in order to comment on the culture they live in. In addition, the personal life experiences of the author are also expressed in the work. In the case of the Arthurian Legends, the major contributor was Sir Thomas Malory, who lived from 1405 to 1471 (Abrams, 420). The first section of this paper will examine why Sir Thomas Malory should be considered the greatest contributor to the Arthurian Legends. The second section of this paper will examine many themes expressed in Malory’s work, Morte Darthur, such as courtly love, brotherly love, chivalry, magic, and resolution, showing how the culture and personal life of Sir Thomas Malory helped shape his commitment to translating and writing the legends of King Arthur. The final section of this paper will show how, even in the last century, writers have used personal life experiences and elements of the culture around them to create their works.
One of the most taxing aspects of dealing with the Arthurian Legends is identifying the major contributors. Arthurian legends were in existence long before the lifetime of Sir Thomas Malory most notably Geoffry of Monmouth’s Historia Regina Britannia, which was written between 1136-1139. The fact that Arthurian legends were in existence several hundred years before Malory’s life makes it essential to show why the study of his life and culture are important. The major reason why the study of the life
and culture of Sir Thomas Malory should be considered important is due to the fact that his work (Morte Darthur) was the first complete version of Arthurian legends ever produced in English. Another reason it is important t...
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... that surrounded him. The final section of the paper deals with the idea that, even in our culture, writers are able to take their personal experiences and extend them to represent the culture as a whole. All of these sections are essential for understanding Morte Darthur, Sir Thomas Malory, and the elements he used from his personal experience and the culture around him to translate and write many Arthurian legends.
Works Cited
Abrams, M.H. Gen. Ed., Greenblatt, Stephen. Ass. Gen. Ed. The
Norton Anthology of English Literature 7th Ed. Vol. 1.
New York: W. W. Norton and Co., 2000.
Ackerman, Robert W. “Sir Thomas Malory”. World Book Encyclopedia
Vol. 13. Chicago: World Book Inc., 1989.
Mckay, John P. Ed., Hill, Bennett D. Ed., Buckler, John Ed., A
History of Western Society Since 1300, 6th Edition.
New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999.
Malory, Thomas. King Arthur and His Knights: Selected Tales by Sir Thomas Malory, ed. Eugene Vinaver (London: Oxford UP, 1975) 124-25.
The Arthurian cycle shows a sporadic awareness of the impossibility of mere humans fulfilling all the ideals that Arthur and his court represent. The story of Lancelot and Guenevere, Merlin's imprisonment by Nimu‘, and numerous other instances testify to the recognition of this tension between the real and the unrealistic.
In “Malory’s Ideal of Fellowship”, Archibald writes about the bond between the Arthurian knights. She specifically focuses on the changes Thomas Malory made from his sources to bring attention to the strong connection between the knights and the importiance of that connection.
Marie De France’s Lanval is a remarkable short narrative that engages the reader into a world filled with unrealistic elements, but enhances on the true meaning of romance, chivalry and nature during the years that King Arthur reigned. “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight” unfortunately does not have an author that can be recognized but this epic poem demonstrates the ghastly adventure of a knight who decides to defend the honor of young King Arthur against a supernatural being in this malicious game of cat and mouse. Both of these pieces of literature have enchanting characteristics that define them as a masterpiece of their era and that’s why they both are easily compared and contrasted. In addition, both Lanval and “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight” can be classified as similar through their themes, style and plots, although they are different through their language and diction. Even though both of these literatures can be viewed as similar as well as contrasting, in the end, each of these tales have illuminated the realm of fantasy throughout the court of King Arthur.
Terence Hanbury White was born on May 29, 1906, in Bombay, India. He attended Cheltenham College and Queen’s College, Cambridge. At Queen’s College, White was tutored by L.J. Potts. He also wrote a thesis on Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur without reading it and graduated with a first-class degree in English. He later taught at Stowe School in Buckinghamshire. He wrote an autobiography entitled England Have My Bones, which was a narrative of his country life. White retired from Stowe School after four years of teaching. He focused on writing and on research about the Arthurian legends, which was later used to supply material for his books. White spent his time hunting, fishing, and looking after his numerous pets. White died while on a cruise in Greece on January 17, 1964 (“TH White Biography, Books, Interviews and Reviews on Fantasy Book Review”). White led a productive life and his contributions to literature won’t be forgotten.
King Arthur’s Britain, a vastly different Britain than we know today, is revealed through many timeless classics in literature. Two of these pieces of literature are Thomas Malory’s seriously toned Le Morte D’Arthur and Mark Twain’s satirical A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. These works show distinctly different visions of the Arthurian legend. King Arthur’s Britain in Twains A Connecticut Yankee and Malory’s Morte D’Arthur may be compared through the unique portrayal of living conditions, chivalry, knightly adventures and the role of magic and mystery.
The passage (130-202) of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight describes the appearance of a strange knight in King Arthur's court. The anonymous author of the epic describes the rider in great detail, emphasizing the importance of this character. The passage is intended to arouse readers' curiosity, and at the same time, to introduce the mighty danger that the main character, Sir Gawain, will have to face. Furthermore, the strange knight is shown to be a test or trial for King Arthur and his knights. Finally, the passage presents the actual dynamics of Arthur's court as incompatible with the poet's initial praising of nobility, justice and chivalric ideals.
Sir Gawain is, undoubtably, the most varied of the Arthurian characters: from his first minor appearance as Gwalchmei in the Welsh tales to his usually side-line participation in the modern retelling of the tales, no other character has gone from such exalted heights (being regarded as a paragon of virtue) to such dismal depths (being reduced to a borderline rapist, murderer, and uncouth bore), as he. This degree of metamorphosis in character, however, has allowed for a staggering number of different approaches and studies in Gawain.
important to establish who she is and what part she plays in the legend. Five different
In the Medieval Period, knights dedicated their lives to following the code of chivalry. In Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur, a number of characters performed chivalrous acts to achieve the status of an ideal knight. Their characteristics of respect for women and courtesy for all, helpfulness to the weak, honor, and skill in battle made the characters King Arthur, King Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette examples of a what knights strove to be like in Medieval society. Because of the examples ofchivalry, Le Morte d’Arthur showed what a knight desired to be, so he could improve theworld in which he lived.
Even though the Arthur legend is hundreds of years old, our culture today is still fascinated with the idea of the Round Table and the love triangle between Arthur, Lancelot, and Guinevere. There are movies and books galore to read about the different takes on the legend of Arthur. However, it makes one wonder if our culture really understands the Arthurian legend. Especially in the movies the central idea of a literary work can be lost. Compared to Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur have movies lost sight of what the Arthurian legend tries to teach?
What role did the great King Arthur play in the way English Literature is perceived? The Arthurian Legends reveal King Arthur as a chivalrous king and not as a historical figure but as a myth of mass amounts of achievements. From his search of the Holy Grail, to his perfect society in Camelot and his development of the Round Table, King Arthur’s legend displayed his heroic character. Through the many countless legends of the glorious King Arthur, England’s society underwent a drastic change in the outlook on life. With the influences of King Arthur came an extreme change in philosophies and lifestyles. Countless situations on how exactly the people of England altered their views on life were they became more cultivated and highly intellectual amongst themselves. The majority of the English society felt the need to escape the strenuous lifestyle that the Industrial Revolution brought upon. The Arthurian Legends was an effect of the Romantic Era and resulted in the abstract thinking, and the beautiful arts such as music, paintings, poems, and stories. The birth of the Arthurian Legends came from Celtic mythology and medieval romance and the existence of the presence of magic confirm the conception of artistic intellect. Whether or not King Arthur truly existed the ideas of him dramatically changed the English society and English Literature to its current form. The Arthurian Legend has proven to be extremely influential and benefited the people of England during the Romantic Era. Therefore, even if he is a fictional figure of English history King Arthur’s childhood, his countless glorious achievements as the king of Camelot, the final down fall of his strong empire King Arthur validated his importance to English literature. ...
The bullying and harassment that occurs between these students should not only be up to the parents to deal with, but also up to the school districts. Afterall, parents expect that the students are partially under the school’s protection and responsibility. When the bullying continues outside of school, and personal information is exposed for others to see on social media, it is still up to the district to set the consequences for its students. Because most cases of cyberbullying start at schools, it is nearly impossible for students to avoid the bullies’ torment throughout the day. As for the consequences, a school district’s Code of Conduct must also consider the former record of these bullies and anyone else who is involved. The severity of each student’s punishment shall be partially determined by his or her history of previous misbehavior or faulty actions. In a digital pile on for example, a student may only post a small comment in agreement with a previous post but will still receive the minimal of a written referral and a phone call home, letting the parents know why such measures had to be taken. If the reported bully continues to bother the victim, whether it is in person or through social media services, the consequences will be more harsh for each known violation until expulsion is the only answer. The current Code of Conduct does
The main purpose of this essay has been to discuss the facts that prove there was a "real" Arthur, as well as to discuss the legendary Arthur, to try to find an explanation why his deeds were portrayed in a way that made them larger than life. The
...r understanding of appropriate behavior, parents can create contracts for proper internet and cell phone use and schools already has a safety program. To enhance online security, parents can install filtering and blocking software. Teachers could create a formal contact regarding cyber bullying and contact the school’s attorney to find out what actions can be taken if cyber bullying issues arise. They can also encourage peer mentoring. Always document incidents. Keeping evidence of the incident is crucial, so recording dates, times and descriptions of the harassment would be most helpful. In addition, e-mails, text or posts in question should be saved or printed. If cyber bullying ever happen in school, it should be reported because it is often accompanied be traditional face-to-face bullying which may lead to an overall disruptive atmosphere at the victims school.