The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend

by Alan Lupack

The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend is both a critical history of the Arthurian tradition and a reference guide to Arthurian works, names, characters, symbols, and places. Seven essays offer a comprehensive survey of the legends in all of their manifestations, from their origins in medieval literature to their adaptation in modern literature, arts, film, and popular culture. It also demonstrates the tremendous continuity of the legends by examining the ways that they have been reinterpreted over the years. The indispensable reference on the subject, it also contains encyclopedic entries, bibliographies, and a comprehensive index. The extensive chapter-by-chapter bibliographies, which are subdivided by topic, augment the general bibliography of Arthurian resources.
Comprehensive in its analysis and hypertextual in its approach, the Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend is an essential reference book for Arthurian scholars, medievalists, and for those interested in cultural studies of myth and legend.

Genres: Arthurian, Reference, Nonfiction, History, Mythology, Medieval, Folklore

496 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2005

About the author

Alan Lupack is Emeritus Director of the Rossell Hope Robbins Library and the Koller-Collins Graduate English Center at the University of Rochester (Rochester, New York).

Reviews

[Nicky · Rating 5 out of 5]

More for reference than something to read right through. Very useful, pretty thorough listings of Arthuriana from the beginning to very recently, including historical fiction like Bernard Cornwell's trilogy. I checked it on a couple of things other books leave out, and it had them, so I'm pretty impressed.

Might be a good place to get recommendations, too. The contents is pretty thorough, should work to narrow it down, and it has a brief introduction to/discussion of pretty much everything it mentions.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book on all things Arthur. Can't imagine finding a better book on the topic.

But BE WARNED: THE PAPERBACK EDITION HAS VERY TINY 6 POINT TYPE.

Buy the hardcover edition if at all possible.

[Nabilah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Useful, comprehensive guide to Arthurian literature. I am new to this so I won't say I am a fan of Arthurian literature but this book I feel is perfect for people like me, who just want to know some stuffs beyond the usual children stories and that tv show but at the same time, do not want to be overwhelmed.

[Doug Hyden]

Very well written for academic stuff. Comprehensive. Anybody care to discuss Geoffrey of Monmouth?

[Daniel Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend is just that. Starting with the earliest references to Arthur, Alan Lupack investigates every known scrap of material (from historical to fictional) of the once and future king, from earliest mentions (in the sixth century) to the present. "This guide is designed so that the book as a whole may serve as a critical history of the Arthurian legend. By selecting one chapter, a reader may follow some of the main traditions from their origins to the present." Since different traditions (and threads or components within them) "intersect and diverge frequently," there are a lot of intratextual references within the volume (and thus some repetition).

Lupack looks at the following:
- Early Accounts of Arthur, Chronicles, and Historical Literature
- The Romance Tradition
- Malory, his Inflence, and the Continuing Romance Tradition
- The Holy Grail
- Gawain
- Merlin
- Tristan and Isolt

This work is impressive in scope and detail. I skimmed or read sections only, as it is too much to ingest in anything other than small doses. Each work (be it historical or romantic) is evaluated and explained in some depth—Lupack will give synopses and other insights as he deems fit. That is great (for the dedicated) and too much (for the novice wanting more of an overview).

Having dabbled in Arthur for years, I enjoyed this work. I learned of a few works I had no idea existed, earmarked several I'd like to read one day, and will keep this as a nice (and compact) reference for Arthurian studies.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive guide to The Matter of Britain from its origins to contemporary works. It covers an immense amount of ground and is enjoyable and informative if somewhat academic in tone.

On the down side, the print is extremely small and I needed my reading glasses.

[Jorge Guitián Castromil · Rating 3 out of 5]

La edición de bolsillo es espantosa, casi ilegible.

[John Keats · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic reference for anything related to Camelot and Arthur. There are summaries of characters and plots based on alterations in the plots over the years, and tropes or devices (e.g. open-ended promises to ladies, the tension between chivalry and 'courtly love')are highlighted that often explain inexplicable complications of character motivation. The division of subjects makes it easy to jump around, and there's a fantastic glossary of places and names for immediate answers. The bibligraphies are also wonderful, if you want more, especially in terms of analysis or criticism; but I'll admit, there was a lot more analysis than I expected in the text itself. Some of the brief summaries of the modern explorations of Arthurian matter were, for me, incredibly rich, as a way to get a rapid sense of how trends in culture or film or politics might have been exploited, or as a guide to what I'd like to put on my reading or watch list. That being said, I think you need a big dose of the primary material behind you for this book to matter, or to give all it's meant to give. Malory should be enough.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thorough overview of the Arthur stories from their beginnings to the time of publication. Although probably best as a reference, it can also be read through, as I did, although I skimmed some of the discussion of more modern works that I don't know. The dictionary of people, places and things will be a valuable reference as I continue to read more Arthurian works.

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive overview of Arthurian works with great discussion of the most influencing literature as well as critical looks at reworkings of the legend, contemporary and old. Thanks to this book, my TBR pile has grown quite a lot.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great reference for those who want background on Arthurian literature. A good accompaniment to Gidlow's Reign of Arthur.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-have for readers of Arhtur. Keeping it by the bed for reference.

Going back to it over and over. Anyone want to share what the numbers in parentheses throughout the book refer to?

[Karen (Living Unabridged) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains just about anything you ever wanted to know about Arthurian related legends and literature. Great reference material and I'd like to own a copy.

[Cheryl Carpinello · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this off and on as well as use it for research. Probably will be on my shelf for a while.

[Marie Routledge]

Oh, my, that is small print.