It’s everywhere. It surrounds me and tracks me down like an unyielding shadow. I often ponder about this magical illusion that I am enveloped in, and find myself dumbfounded with the outcome. What is it? How can I rid of this “thing'; that tugs on my sleeve and has me tied down relentlessly? There’s no explanation, it’s just there. Itlingers mysteriously above my head as if a lonely moon hung high in the midnight sky,illuminating a faint glimmer of mist above the surface of the dark pool water. I feel it now, and I felt it then after reading The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White. An enchanting novel, it engulfed the reader in a powerful trance. Young Arthur went through a dramatic change in his life after coming upon Merlin, his future mentor and closest companion. He began to transform into a mature and respectable man; a work involved with more than magic; a work created through a strong basis of trust and love.
“The love business is a powerful thing. I must say it is probably the greatest force on Earth.'; (p110) Merlin said this line with such assurance and confidence that young Arthur, formerly known as the Wart, only longed to believe that this statement was true. He was unaccustomed to such “petty'; things as love, in which he was blind to, so in the beginning, he was hesitant on Merlin’s teachings on the topic of love and trust.
In his earlier years of his life, growing up for Arthur consisted of constant difficult hardships and inexplicable hate solely targeted at him by family members. He couldn’t understand the reason why he received less attention and acclaim by his father, Sir Ector. Kay, his older brother was rude and annoyingly impatient with the Wart and often attended to him with foul language. He acted in such hateful manners towards him because he was actually jealous of his younger brother: “The Wart loved hay-making, and was good at it. Kay, who was two years older, generally stood on the edge of the bundle of hay which he was trying to pick up, with the result that he worked twice as hard as the Wart for only half the result. But he hated to be beaten by anybody at anything and used to fight away with the wretched hay - which he loathed like poison - until he was sick.
The Hobbit This hobbit was a hobbit, and his name was Baggins. Baggins had lived in the neighborhood of ”The Hill” some time, and people considered them very respectable, not only because most or them were rich, but also because they never had any adventures or did anything unexpected. You could tell what a Baggins would say on any question without the bother of asking him. This is a story of how a Baggins had an adventure, and found himself doing and saying things altogether unexpected. He may have lost the neighbors’ respect, but he gained- well, you will see what he gained in the end.
The destroyers of the naval armada prepared for the Normandy landings played a pivotal role in the battles on the beaches. Furthermore, without the support of the destroyers, specifically on Omaha Beach, the infantry landings on D-Day would have failed and the Allies would have been defeated.
' He became a good friend, a good master, and as good a man, as the
When the Wart pulled the sword from the stone and became king, he is now known as King Arthur. During his many transformations he learns many lessons that will benefit him and the people he will rule. He learns that absolute power is not good. He can be understanding and open-minded. The power of being king should not control you so much that you forget that you have a responsibility. You have freedoms that should help him to make ethical, wise decisions as a king. His responsibility as a king is not to overpower the people but to lead them successfully.
The love triangle of Arthur, Lancelot, and Guenever is a constant theme throughout every account of the Arthurian legend. Geoffrey Ashe's The Arthurian Handbook states that "We may say that these knights are expected to serve their King..."(81). The revelation of the affair finally comes when Sir Agravaine shouts, "'Traitor Knight! Sir Lancelot, now art thou taken'"(White 569). Lancelot was summoned to Queen Guenever's bedroom, and Sir Agravaine is finally exposing the affair and gaining revenge on Lancelot for unhorsing him many times in the past. The two people that Arthur trusts most are Guenever and Lancelot. Arthur is well aware of the affair between the two, but chooses to pretend that nothing is going on. Due to this naivety, Arthur earns the disrespect (and even hatred) of Agravaine and Mordred, who eventual...
C.S Lewis is the author of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Warrdrobe. Lewis was born on November 29, 1898, in Belfast, Ireland. He was born Clive Staples Lewis to Flora August Hamilton Lewis and Albert J. Lewis. Lewis’s mother passed away when he was on ten years old. After his mother died he went on to get his pre-college education at boarding schools and he also received help from a tutor. Lewis served in World War I with the English Army, but unfortunately was sent home when he was wounded. Lewis was a graduate of Oxford University with a focus on classic philosophy and literature. As a child, he was disappointed with the Christian faith, but when he became older he found himself embracing Christianity. During World War II, he gave popular radio broadcasts on Christianity and they won many converts. Lewis’ speeches were collected in Mere Christianity. In the year of 1954, C.S. Lewis joined the staff of Cambridge University as a literature professor. He met an English teacher by the name of Joy Gresham and in 1956 they married each other and became a happily married family. The two were joyful during their marriage; unfortunately in 1960, the wife became ill with cancer died. Lewis began publishing his works in the mid- 1920s. Lewis started to publish The Chronicles of Narnia during the 1950s. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was the first in the seven book series to be released. This was the story of four siblings who discovered a wardrobe with a magical land in the back of it (“Clives…”). In The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lewis describes Aslan, Edmund, and Lucy.
The world of Arthurian literature is filled with magic and adventure that enchants readers of all ages. T.H. White has done a fantastic job of turning the childhood adventures of Arthur by turning his narrative into spellbinding, cartoon like interpretation of the sword in the stone legend. Moral values are apparent from the beginning of White’s novel. White has cleverly connected all the educational adventures of Arthur, along with the people and animals encountered to the pulling the sword out of the stone. This marvelous amalgamation of key elements not only ties the loose ends of Arthur’s adventures together, they also solidify the reasoning behind Arthurs’ predetermined path to becoming the king of England.
The Shadow of the Galilean by Gerd Theissen is a fictional narrative about a Jewish merchant, Andreas, searching for information about a group of people known as Essenes, John the Baptist, and Jesus of Nazareth. While traveling through Jerusalem Andreas was imprisoned by the Romans thinking he was a part of a demonstration against Polite when his mission was to find Jesus. Andreas writes, “I never met Jesus on my travels through Galilee. I just found traces of him everywhere: anecdotes and stories, traditions and rumors. But everything that I heard of him fits together.
The story Golden Goblet is written by Eloise Jarvis McGraw, and the novel took place in ancient Egypt. The story is based upon a boy named Ranofer who is an orphan whose parents have died and lives with his evil half brother Gebu. Ranofer wants to be a goldsmith just like his father, but Gebu wants Ranofer to work for him instead. First of all, The most important event occured when Ranofer finds the goblet in Gebu’s room because, he can tell the queen about the goblet and can catch Gebu, and Ranofer will be thanked and rewarded for turning Gebu in, Ranofer can spy on Gebu and make a plan to catch Gebu and get him in trouble, since Ranofer has found the goblet he can tell the queen and she will believe him, she will reward him and he can get what he wants because he can work with Zau and become a master goldsmith just like his father and get a donkey just like he had always wanted and also live a life without Gebu bossing him around since he will be in the dungeon locked up.
In J.M. Coetzee’s novel Waiting for the Barbarians, the Magistrate comes to discover the humanity of the barbarian through his interactions with the blind girl, which eventually leads him to learn about the nature of his own humanity. Although the Magistrate is more lenient on the Barbarians than Colonel Joll, he still unknowingly objectifies them, while placing himself above them. It is only when he is imprisoned that he comes to realize the fragility of his own humanity. Ultimately Coetzee uses the magistrate’s journey from empirical leader to broken and fearful prisoner to express that peace and stability between people can only be obtained when all humanity is valued.
In a relationship, Love is a feeling that humans share with a special person. Some bonds could be mutual, while others are dissociated. During the Medieval period, love affairs were dominated by one gender, men, and the women had little or no control over decisions. Before a gentleman married a lady, the gentleman first boasted about her beauty, championed the cause of the lady, and did whatever the lady requested. The era was influenced by knights, and dictated by honor and chivalry that each knight had to display to their king and queen. As a gentleman, a knight had to be just at all times, especially toward ladies. At this time, there was a king named Arthur. King Arthur had a flourishing kingdom that abruptly ended. Later on, many authors recounted the story of the reign of King Arthur. Sir Thomas Malory published Le Morte d’Arthur, and Geoffrey Chaucer published The Wife of Bath’s Tale. Although both of these books recount the reign of King Arthur, the stories are very diverse and unique in their own way. Both stories demonstrate for a relationship to be successful, both partners must be submissive, must be brave, and must be willing to learn from mistakes.
For Arthur, masculinity was linked to his title. A king is nothing without his title. Furthermore, Arthur’s authority on the battlefield is essential to his masculinity. During the battle, “King Arthur rode throughout the battle of Sir Mordred many times and did fully nobly, as a noble king should do, and at all times he fainted never” (Malory 187). His leadership is expected, and without it, he would hardly be King Arthur. Nevertheless, his undoing is his need to protect his masculinity by proving himself the true king of England. To do this, he challenges Mordred, and though Arthur manages to defeat him, a mortal wound causes his death. Had Arthur been more prudent and less preoccupied with a prompt demonstration of his authority, a more reasonable approach could have been pursued. Even so, the immediate desire to prove himself the master of his title caused Arthur to lose his
This fall from victory, from blamelessness can be seen in many instances through Tennyson’s Idylls. Merlin is a legendary wizard whose name resonates throughout Arthurian legends. Known for orchestrating Arthur’s magical birth, Merlin is regarded as one of the most powerful sages of his time. Regarding women, Merlin tried his best to find a balance between the idealism that surrounded the chivalric code and the realism of the times.
In E.B. White?s The Ring of Time, the author gives a narrative account of his trip to a circus rehearsal where he describes a fascinating scene of a young girl practicing a horse act for an upcoming show. As a writer, he feels it is his obligation to record the events he is witnessing, and convey this to his readers without leaving anything out. However difficult this may be, the beautiful and fleeting moment is something he wishes to ultimately capture. When he arrives on the scene, White senses something magical about the surroundings of this circus as it undergoes a rehearsal, but he is primarily fixed on a young woman who passes by him. The young ?cleverly proportioned, deeply browned by the sun, dusty, eager, and almost naked'; girl is the one thi...
Reality?" Merlin, the greatest magician of all time. He lived, if indeed he lived at all, in Wales and southern England during the dawn of Christianity in those lands, long before written historical records were kept. Yet, his name is universally recognized around the world as synonymous with magic, and his popular image is almost as well known as that of Santa Claus. The beginning and ends of all things are all within Merlin's sight. he keeps the prophecies of the future, he holds the memories of all that has passed. When you hear the name Merlin an immediate image springs into the mind of an old man with a flowing white beard and bushy white eyebrows, dressed in a midnight blue robe and a tall pointed hat covered with stars. He is the prototypical wizard. Merlin is best known as the teacher and advisor of Arthur Pendragon, king of all the Britons. The legends of these two mythical figures are linked, but there is no certain proof that either man existed. Supposedly on Merlin's advice the famous Round Table of Arthur's court was built and he helped select 50 of the knights who were to sit at the table. The popular myth of Merlin, as we know it today, has come down to us primarily from two sources; one, the historian Geoffrey of Monmouth and the other, a writer, Sir Thomas Malory. Both men collected bits and pieces from earlier sources. Most of Malory's work was based on the French Arthurian prose cycle, a group of French medieval romances centered around the court of King Arthur. Before Malory, both Merlin and Arthur were better known on the Continent than they were in England. Malory's work crystallized the Arthurian legend into the form we recognize today. We know Merlin as a mysterious fig...