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Knighthood in the Morte DArthur
A lucid and rich analysis eminently suited to students at undergraduate and graduate levels.' CHOICEBeverley Kennedy puts Malory's concern with knighthood at the very heart of the Morte Darthur. She identifies three types of knight: the Heroic (Gawain), the Worshipful (Tristram and Arthur), and the True (Lancelot, Gareth and the Grail Knights), and argues that this knightly typology creates the thematic unity of the Morte Darthur. It also allows Malory to develop two quite different contexts, one pragmatic and political, the other religious and providential, within which the reader may judge why Arthur's reign ended in catastrophe.BEVERLEY KENNEDY is Professor of English at Marianopolis College, Canada.
- GenresArthurianNonfiction
416 pages, Hardcover
First published October 15, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 7, 2012
If Malory seems like a blur of tournament-fest to you, this helps. It's about his ideas of knightly behaviour, in a bad world.
It argues that Malory has three types of knight, and often sends them out on triple quests so you can inspect them against each other. Types, or grades perhaps. The bottom rung is the Heroic, and Gawain's your candidate here. You find him swiping heads off women: not a lot of ethics to his knighthood. The next step up she calls the Worshipful, an adjective Malory uses with this type. That includes Arthur, and Tristram. They're not bad people - obviously - but they are worldly; their ambitions, and their standards, are of this world (worship: glory, honour in a worldly sense).
Top of the ladder, the True Knights. The true knights - and they are few - strive for perfect behaviour and have God in their hearts. Their mark is that they do not kill. You'll notice - at least after you've read Beverly Kennedy - a true knight defeats but he doesn't kill. Not until he slips and is true no more.
I've seen the book criticised as too schematic. But it made sense to me, made sense of Malory, even if she overstates the case to get it across.
Now, our Lancelot, of course, is a True Knight at heart, but fails to live up to that, to his torment. And he, Malory's dearest knight, his identification figure (she'll tell you, as T.H. White tells you) - along with other of his knights who cut across his types - proves the story is more human than schematic. When Lancelot lapses from a True to a worldly knight, that's when he starts to slaughter stupidly at tournaments with the rest of the idiots; God has ceased to watch him, and that means, not that he gets hurt, but that he hurts others. Which T.H. White well understood.
I thought this was a fantastic book, years ago, that explained Malory to me. I've written this from memory, until I have the sense to read it again.
It argues that Malory has three types of knight, and often sends them out on triple quests so you can inspect them against each other. Types, or grades perhaps. The bottom rung is the Heroic, and Gawain's your candidate here. You find him swiping heads off women: not a lot of ethics to his knighthood. The next step up she calls the Worshipful, an adjective Malory uses with this type. That includes Arthur, and Tristram. They're not bad people - obviously - but they are worldly; their ambitions, and their standards, are of this world (worship: glory, honour in a worldly sense).
Top of the ladder, the True Knights. The true knights - and they are few - strive for perfect behaviour and have God in their hearts. Their mark is that they do not kill. You'll notice - at least after you've read Beverly Kennedy - a true knight defeats but he doesn't kill. Not until he slips and is true no more.
I've seen the book criticised as too schematic. But it made sense to me, made sense of Malory, even if she overstates the case to get it across.
Now, our Lancelot, of course, is a True Knight at heart, but fails to live up to that, to his torment. And he, Malory's dearest knight, his identification figure (she'll tell you, as T.H. White tells you) - along with other of his knights who cut across his types - proves the story is more human than schematic. When Lancelot lapses from a True to a worldly knight, that's when he starts to slaughter stupidly at tournaments with the rest of the idiots; God has ceased to watch him, and that means, not that he gets hurt, but that he hurts others. Which T.H. White well understood.
I thought this was a fantastic book, years ago, that explained Malory to me. I've written this from memory, until I have the sense to read it again.
January 21, 2016
Found this book in a nice secondhand English book store in Gotanda, Tokyo. The owner was so nice: my total purchase was actually XXX4 yen. He asked me whether I had 4 yen and I said no, I only had 1 yen. He smiled, "That's good enough," and took my 1 yen and added it to 3 yen coins he fished out from his pocket.
ANYWAY. I really enjoy reading this book, which finally shed light on me on why knights in Morte Darthur behaved differently.
There are three knight types in Malory's book:
The Heroic - represented by Gawain
The Worshipful - represented by Tristram, Pellinore, Gallahad, Lamorak and King Arthur himself
The True - represented by Lancelot (my least favourite)
At the end of Morte Darthur though, there were only two types left: the Heroic and the True - no Worshipful knight was left, they've all been killed.
And it is of interest that the maker of Winchester Round Table put Arthur flanked by Mordred and Gallahad.
This is a very interesting read for an Arthurian enthusiast!
ANYWAY. I really enjoy reading this book, which finally shed light on me on why knights in Morte Darthur behaved differently.
There are three knight types in Malory's book:
The Heroic - represented by Gawain
The Worshipful - represented by Tristram, Pellinore, Gallahad, Lamorak and King Arthur himself
The True - represented by Lancelot (my least favourite)
At the end of Morte Darthur though, there were only two types left: the Heroic and the True - no Worshipful knight was left, they've all been killed.
And it is of interest that the maker of Winchester Round Table put Arthur flanked by Mordred and Gallahad.
This is a very interesting read for an Arthurian enthusiast!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews