The day my life changed (help)

All my life I've been told that I'm weak and feeble, and my only claim to fame is that I'm related by blood to Arthur. However, that all changed one New Year's Day.

It started off as a normal Christmastime party, ya know, one of those short-lasting parties, the ones that only last fifteen days. We ate never-ending good food, got some crazy expensive gifts from my cousin Arthur, and marveled at how amazing his court is, and how it must truly be the best court in the entire world. The queen was even seen partying all night, but soon enough, the time once again came for us to eat food. Strangely, Arthur has been going through this weird phase, where he refuses to eat until he hears something adventurous or miraculous. Fortunately for him, he didn't have to wait much longer.

This knight burst through through the front door, and before we knew it, he was right in front of us. Everything about him was green, even his skin color! He also had this gorgeous mantle (wink wink nudge nudge) on him, and there was enough gold on him that even one piece could afford a year's worth of Arthur's expensive gifts! He then asked to see Arthur, and this is when things got hairy.

The guy literally said he wants one of us to attack him with his battleaxe, and if he lives, we'll have to allow him to attack US with his ax one year from now. No thanks, I like my head! I said nothing, and when I saw Arthur get embarrassed over our silence, I immediately knew what to do. This was my chance!

I quickly stood up and said, "Arthur, let me do this instead!" I then rambled on some nonsense about how amazing he is to get his approval, and I then started self-defeating myself in order to seal the deal. It worked! Arthur handed me the ax, and the green knight gave me a good opening to the flesh on his neck.

This is everything I've always wanted!

I gleefully swung the ax at his neck, and the knight's head came right off. I was so happy, and the party members nearby even began to play soccer with the fallen head! Just my luck though, the headless green knight walked over, picked up his head, and told me to meet him at his house a year from today.

Help.

Infant Grown Man

On pg. 328 when Merlin's mother was weeping to him about how she was doomed to die was very powerful and I felt truly saddened by her ordeal... until Merlin, WHO IS ONLY 9 MONTHS OLD, had this to say to reassure his mother. "Dear mother, do not be afraid; you will never die on my account." 

Merlin's mom reaction: 

Josie's on a vacation far away!

On page 234, Karadin's beloved called out to her, "You sweet beloved, if you have gone astray in any way, then don't ever go near the mantle. I love you so profoundly that I certainly don't want to lose your love," (Kalinke 234). This made me think of "Your Love" by the Outfield.

Dear Diary...you're not gonna believe this!

via A. Lynn at Nerdy Feminist

I have to make this short, because I'm due back at the court soon. But I just had to write this down. (All true, by the way. It's too crazy to make up.)

So this incredibly handsome guy came to King Arthur's court today, and he had this gorgeous mantle with him. Seriously. The prettiest thing I've ever seen. All of the ladies of the court, myself included, were dying to get our hands on it. But we had to try it on to see who it would fit.

The queen, being the queen, went first. This is where it gets weird. No joke, it didn't fit! Poor thing turned bright red the second she realized, but this is where it gets even weirder. Another lady tried it on, and it didn't fit her either! That's when the truth came out. This gorgeous mantle, the one every one wanted at first, was actually a test. It would fit you (or not) based on faithful you'd been to your love.

Boy, the queen was mad...but get this. Now she's making all of us try it on! I mean, really, Your Majesty, I get that you're bitter, but geez. Not our fault you've been fooling around behind the King's back. Now I've gotta try this thing on. Yeah, me. And we all know how that's gonna go. My knight's gonna flip when it's my turn.

They're calling my name now! What am I gonna do? Ugh...this sucks.

Special Kay

As I was reading the story here was a quote that stood out to me:

"In desperation King Arthur went to his queen and asked, "My lady, have you no idea what the seneschal wants from me? He has asked for leave and says that he will quit my court. I don't know why. But what he wouldn't do for me, he'll do at once if you beg him. Go to him, my dear lady; though he deign not stay for my sake, pray him to stay for yours and fall at his feet if necessary, for I would never again be happy if I were to lose his company"" (115).


I found this quote to be very interesting because Arthur is practically telling his wife to plead to Kay to stay with his court and do anything he asks in order for him to stay. What I could gather from this is that Kay must've been a very important piece to Arthur's court for him to go to all these measures to ensure that he doesn't leave. But what I don't understand is that when Kay requests to leave with the queen to go after the knight in the forest, Arthur becomes salty even though he set himself up for something like this. Also for him to say he would never be happy again if Kay was to leave is very significant, their relationship must be very strong or they have built a strong bond throughout the years.

Kibler, William W. "Chretien de Troyes, Lancelot, Or The Knight Of The Cart." The Romance of Arthur, edited by Norris J. Lacy and James J. Wilhelm, Routledge, 2013, pp. 112-180.

Completing 40 tasks for a lazy giant sure does sound realistic

While reading this story, I think that overall, it was pretty realistic and definitely could have happened in a much less exaggerated sense. Despite giants not existing, a couple of the tasks that Vsbaddaden gave to Culhwch seemed like random errands that he did not feel like doing himself. I felt it was very plausible that when Culhwch went to the giant and demanded his daughter's hand in marriage, Vsbaddaden could have just decided to shift his work to the man since he was too lazy to do it himself. For being "impossible tasks," it sure didn't seem that difficult to do when Vsbaddaden told Culhwch to burn a bush, plant a garden, plow the fields, and collect kitchen utensils for the feast. Also, despite the giant telling Culhwch not to worry about the food and clothing for the wedding, a lot the tasks specifically dealt with preparing the food and clothing.



I also think that it was realistic that Arthur would want to help Culhwch out with the tasks, considering that he was Culhwch's first cousin. Rescuing a man from prison, stealing a sword, and killing a boar, all seem like things that would have happened in Britain back then, with exaggerations later having been added to the story to make it seem more thrilling.

What is the difference?

The question that I find to be most important when reading through this section is, do the Britons only feel disdain and anger towards foreign enemies? Geoffrey of Monmouth describes the final battle between Arthur and his army and the Army of Modred. Prior to the battle Arthur gives a pre-battle speech in which he urges his men to devastate the army of Modred since they are foreigners, “mongrels and barbarians from many kingdoms,”(Pg. 86) This motivates Arthur’s army to a victory, although they would suffer heavy casualties in the process. Some of the casualties listed by Monmouth came from foreign kingdoms who had pledged support to Arthur, Kingdoms such as Norway and Denmark. What is the difference between these foreigners fighting along side Arthur and his army and those who fought for Modred? The only plausible difference I can find is that the foreigners fighting alongside of Mordred were fighting to, in Arthur’s words, take the lands and fortunes held by members of Arthur’s army. Were the foreigners in Arthur’s army not fighting for similar reasons? Did they not want lands or fortunes as well?

Too Good to be True

King Arthur, in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s tale, seems to be realistic until assessing the text further and rereading the introduction. Arthur's realness or falseness is something that this class debates. Following the reading, I am now confirmed to think and believe Arthur is fake after not knowing prior to this course. The evidence lies in Geoffrey of Monmouth, and his work, History of the Kings of Britain, on the great king. It seems as though Geoffrey has created this text for a sole purpose of giving the Normans justification for invading Britain and taking over the Saxons. Also, Arthur fought valiantly against the Saxons; whereas now, the Normans are “fighting” for the native Britons as Arthur did before. Another point that Geoffrey puts in his work is when Arthur fights the giant and wins. It seems unlikely that Arthur could have single-handedly killed a giant, due to the fact that giants are not real. It hints that he has dramatized his work, and even other historians of Geoffrey’s time have dismissed his tale of Arthur (Loomis 58). Finally, Geoffrey makes Arthur too good at everything. Arthur, throughout the text, is presented as the ideal, true leader of Britain. He wins every battle with the exception of his final battle. Geoffrey also has created Arthur with the valor and command to be the best king possible at the ripe-old age of fifteen. Overall, I think the text does not tell the full truth of King Arthur, if there is one.

The Truth is in the Hair

The following quote is from Giraldus Cambrensis who wrote On the Instruction of Princes (De instructione principum), writen in the 1190s. He is describing Arthur's tomb.

A golden handful of woman's hair was found there, retaining its fresh wholeness and radiance, but when a certain monk greedily reached out and grabbed it the hair dissolved into dust.

I picked this quote because there was some truth to it. It is true that delicate things, like hair, can hold its shape and not turn to dust if properly preserved, but the slightest disturbance, like an air current or breath, can cause the object to fall apart, instantly turning into dust. Even if the story was fiction, those writing about it and passing it on wanted it to be believable. As with any good lie, or story, it's in the details.

1962. 'Arthur's grave'. Radford and Peter Poyntz-Wright, from the south. Copyright: Peter Poyntz-Wright 

Lacy, Norris J., and James J. Wilhelm. The Romance of Arthur: an Anthology of Medieval Texts in Translation. Routledge, 2013. pp. 6

Legend as History

The following quote is from Giraldus Cambrensis's On the Instruction of Princes (De instructione principum):

The burial place is now known as Glastonbury, and in ancient times it was called the Island of Avalon. It is indeed almost an island, being surrounded by marshes; and so in the British language it was called Inis Avallon or Apple Island, since apples grow there in abundance. Then too Morgan, the noble matron and lady-ruler of those parts, who was closely related by blood to King Arthur, transported Arthur after the Battle of Kemelen [Camlan] to this island, now called Glaston, to heal his wounds. In the British language it was once called Inis Gutrin (that is, Glass Island), and for that reason the Saxons dubbed it Glastonbury since Glas means "glass" in their tongue, and bury is "city" or "camp."

This quotation stands out to me due to the way it blends history and legend. Giraldus writes as if it is a given that Arthur and Morgan lived and died as in the stories, and focuses on changes in place names over time. The way he explains Avalon's different names and where they come from is similar to how someone else might explain the different names of New York City or Istanbul. I think it shows that it is important to keep in mind as we read whether the author of a text considered Arthur to have existed, for that will affect how the author presents the material.

Wilhelm, James J. "Arthur in the Latin Chronicles." The Romance of Arthur, edited by Norris J. Lacy and James J. Wilhelm, Routledge, 2013, pp. 1-7.