The Lady of Shalott

Tennyson tells a tragic tale of disappointment in The Lady of Shalott. This near-mythical woman is cursed to a very minimalist, monotonous life, but "she knows not what the curse may be" (42) should she leave. Tennyson shows through the poem that the Lady is waiting for true love, evidenced when he mentions that she "hath no loyal knight and true" (62), and again when she sees the newlywed lovers and proclaims "'I am half sick of shadows'" (71). So, did Lancelot inspire her to leave the island (and potentially ruin/lose her life), or was she just waiting for someone to give her that nudge? Lancelot says in Malory's text "God knows that I did not intentionally lead her to this....alas! she loved too much" (471), but I'm not sure if the same can be said for the Lady in Tennyson's poem.

Godly Galahad

"Sir Galahad, who is a virgin and without sin, overcame them all singlehanded, but without killing them, which his virtue forbids unless it is really necessary." (Malory 387)

Reading this, it becomes clear where the strong connection between the King Arthur mythos and Christianity comes from. Where religion had been mentioned in the past in other stories, Malory is the first example we've read where it's a main factor of the story. The nobleness and skill of Sir Galahad, the best knight on Arthur's court according to the magical sword, is tied to his virtue. The monk and the hermit both tell Gawain that he is wicked and therefore no equal to Galahad, who is blessed. The righteous get the glory and the rest get his leftovers. Malory seems to be making a distinction between Galahad and the other knights we have come to know in our previous readings, giving us a truly Christian protagonist. He doesn't kill or lie or sleep around. He has God on his side and that's what makes him powerful.

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

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.