Who Was Who in King Arthur’s Few?
Even in the world of fiction, one will find that knighthood is rarely given out to just anybody. There are almost always going to be rules. Someone deserving of becoming a knight must display a number of specific characteristics as well as perform certain actions, which are both predetermined by the universe in which said knight’s story is set. Therefore, there is often very little room in which to set each knight apart from another through the variation of their respective traits. Thus, the heart of Andrew Lang’s statement that, “The knights and their combats seem all alike…” is certainly accurate, though Thomas Malory does his best through clearly setting the standard, showing where each is strong and each is weak, to make his
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The comparison is not so cut and dry, though. There are obvious elements of discipleship when it comes to the way the knights serve and follow Arthur, even to the point of performing miracles. This includes a Judas-like betrayal from Sir Lancelot. However, there are many places where this Christ and disciples model shifts. In Sir Gawain and the Greene Knight, for example, it is not Arthur who is seen as a noble, innocent, and pure sacrifice, but rather Gawain. There the Christ-comparison is muddled, but the biblical themes in these characters and in the language that Malory uses to with which to talk about them stays strong. Once Malory sets the rules for what a knight must be in his universe, he then goes about the business of making each distinguishable through the accentuating of one trait or another in every important character. In a way, it is as though the knights are all players in a game of football. Their behaviors and appearances are similar to those other players on their own team. They are all running about with the same goal in mind. Yet, each of them has a special title and skill of their own and a special job that they must do in order to make everything come together
The comparison is not so cut and dry, though. There are obvious elements of discipleship when it comes to the way the knights serve and follow Arthur, even to the point of performing miracles. This includes a Judas-like betrayal from Sir Lancelot. However, there are many places where this Christ and disciples model shifts. In Sir Gawain and the Greene Knight, for example, it is not Arthur who is seen as a noble, innocent, and pure sacrifice, but rather Gawain. There the Christ-comparison is muddled, but the biblical themes in these characters and in the language that Malory uses to with which to talk about them stays strong. Once Malory sets the rules for what a knight must be in his universe, he then goes about the business of making each distinguishable through the accentuating of one trait or another in every important character. In a way, it is as though the knights are all players in a game of football. Their behaviors and appearances are similar to those other players on their own team. They are all running about with the same goal in mind. Yet, each of them has a special title and skill of their own and a special job that they must do in order to make everything come together