Women seeking men

Dear King Arthur, 

I figured you will want to hear about this journey, so I am going to write as things go. 

This search for the Holy Grail has been nothing but a wild goose chase. On top of being terrified of this awful Waste Land kingdom, I’ve mistakenly challenged sir Galahad and now I am left with no horse, on foot, and alone...Great.. now I’m petrified and helpless. I’m not sure how else to go on.. 

Awkwardly I was awoken by a strange lady, offering to give me her horse if I swear to obey her. Weird request... but I couldn’t say no! The horse was a large, magnificent creature. But as I am traveling, I’m thinking this is too good to be true. The thing flies like the devil, so it must be evil. I immediately draw the cross on forehead, and the horse threw me off and ran into ocean waves screaming.... wtf? I think that lady must have been off her rocker... well back on foot (alone) I go....

So I’m on this isolated rocky island, walking along, minding my own business, when I see this huge serpent carrying a little lion in its jaws... Mama lion jumps out roaring after this lizard thing. Me, trying to be the hero, I slay the serpent to save the baby. That evening in my dreams, this lady told me I will face the most terrible champion in the world, and if I lose I will be shamed forever. THEN an older lady was yelling at me for killing her pet lizard. The part that gave me chills was she said “Do you not understand that when you pledge yourself to Lord Jesu Christ you pledge yourself to me. Therefore when I find you unprotected I shall take you for my own.” I have NO IDEA what either were referring too... But I’m starting to wish I had Galahad here... 

Almost like it was meant to happen, a random ship runs ashore and I went to meet it. This lovely lady was aboard, and demanded help, rambling on about how her lord banished her and needs a knight like me to recover her dominion. My focus wasn’t on her but the food and wine behind her. I agreed, since a Knight can’t turn down a lady in distress, and she gave me all the meat and wine I could want. I’m starting to think that this situation, again, seems too good to be true. THEN the wine kicked in...because when she walked in next, whooo she looked more enchanting than ever. I begged her to give me love, that was when she said, out of all the men in the world, she wanted me. ME! My excitement cannot handle this! We get naked and about to do the dirty, when suddenly I see a burning cross on my sword. I knew immediately this was a evil set up. I again drew the cross on my forehead and everything swirled away in a cloud of smoke. I’m back on the island and ship is going out to sea, the lady yelling at me about betrayal. Why are all the women on this island insane? 

The hermit holy man returned in his ship and I ran aboard to him and tell him about my experience. He goes to tell me that the lady was Lucifer... Lucifer himself trying to win me over. It all makes sense now, with the whole story of how she was kicked out of the kingdom. Lucifer must have been trying to win me over this whole time... Talk about overcoming a quest within a quest. This renounces my faith in Christ and allows me to trust him more since he delivered me from evil. But I’m ready to come back to Camelot.... and wondering where the wine went. 

Sincerely, Sir Percivale

Galahad Redeeming the Sins of the Father

The first section of the reading, pages 369-400, differs drastically from previous class readings in regard to religious views of the Knights of the Round Table. Previous readings, aside from The Sage of the Mantle, focus on the knights as possessing positive characteristics: honor, brotherhood, respect, modesty, etc. Yet, this reading continually condemns the Knights, including Sir Launcelot who has often been depicted as the greatest of all knights. The drastic switch in tone, upon first reflection seemed strange and I struggled to understand why Malory diverted from the traditional Arthurian tropes; however, I feel like some clarity is achieved when Sir Percivale’s aunt tells him “Merlin devised the Round Table as a symbol of the wholeness of virtue, and fellows, whether Christian or heathen, have always counted themselves blessed. So much so that many of them, like you, have deserted their families without feeling any sense of remorse” (392). Up until this point in the literature, Arthur and his Knights are represented as infallible no matter how devious they behave. Malory, in contrast, forces the knights to confront their sins and makes them into an example of what can happen when behaving in a less than virtuous manner. The quote specifically addresses Arthur’s knights using their status to make themselves untouchable. Galahad’s entrance into the Arthurian tale can be viewed as a second coming of Jesus, this is evidenced by Malory saying both of his parents are descendants of Jesus. His presence provides the opportunity for redemption of the knights.

King Arthur's knights aren't all they're cracked out to be

"So am I brought to shame!" he said to himself. "When I sought only worldly fame, none could gainsay, whether my quarrel was right or wrong; but now that I search for holy things, by my sins I am disqualified." ~ Lancelot speaking about himself on page 390.

In this paragraph, Lancelot highlights the main theme of practically every King Arthur story we have read so far. Whenever the focus knight of a story is on a quest, he can do practically whatever he wants, simply because people believe the knight to be honorable due to his social status. No matter how questionable the knight's actions, they are justified because of the perception that a knight is a good person and champion of the people who cannot defend themselves. However, when a knight faces holy-related problems, things no longer work out for them as they once did. Lancelot claims that although he is one of the most powerful knights, he is also the most "wretched of knights," all because of his secret affair with the queen. This can also extend to the rest of King Arthur's court, as "The Saga of the Mantle" story shows almost every man there engages in sinful relationships with other women. Overall, although King Arthur's knights are praised for their virtue and good will, the Holy Grail begs to differ.

Merlin is Jesus Christ

Merlin has many different disguises and seems that he can’t die from anything else but love, why not make a rumor so large that maybe he might be Jesus Christ. The Bible doesn’t speak of magic it only speaks of miracles. But yet in the tales of King Arthur magic is something that is so easily to come by. One quote that stood to me the most, and also yet so simple, was when Sir Balin and King Pellam were fighting with the spear that had pierced Jesus Christ on the cross and “Merlin appeared three days later and roused Sir Ballin from his trance.” (pg.36) 3 days being the key on most of the Bible stories but mostly in Jesus rising in 3 days, it can be assumed that Merlin knew this was going to happen but it just so happens that he comes three days later. Merlin states the tales of many prophecies and they all seem to come true aka Jesus Christ. I'm sure there are many other examples of Merlin being Jesus Christ but this quote stood out to me the most.

Excalibur and the Master Sword

There seems to be a parallel between the story of Arthur pulling out Excalibur from the rock and the Master Sword from the Legend of Zelda. The Master Sword from Zelda is also stuck in a rock for Link to pull out. The Master Sword is basically Link's Excalibur. It's a badass sword that Link must procure at the beginning of his adventures to use against every foe of the game.