The Once And Future King Literary Analysis

Throughout the novel The Once and Future King, author T.H. White takes the readers into the world of King Arthur and his legendary story. Spanning from when King Arthur was nothing more than a boy called by the name of Wart, up until his final battle, White brings us into the a world of chivalry, magic, and adventure. During the course of the novel, White maintains the ability to introduce major, and minor, themes and lessons that are routed within a thrilling plot filled with animal transformations, enrapturing characters, and exciting journeys. The story of King Arthur, as told by White in The Once and Future King (which is based upon White’s interpretation of Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Arthur) (Day and Lagorio 213), holds multiple lessons and themes in which the readers can take away after reading …show more content…
For his first lessons, Wart is transformed into a perch. As a perch within the moat of the castle, Wart has an encounter with Mr. P, a massive pike who holds the title “King of the Moat” (Fulton 430). While this encounter is brief, during their conversation Mr. P primarily exemplifies how power, particularly absolute power being that Mr. P is portraying an absolute monarchy form of government, can has the ability to corrupt those who wield the power. Arthur observes from Mr. P, that when one holds absolute power, that power can drive a leader power hungry, to the point that power is all that matters to that individual. In relation to a war-free society, this power-hungry quality in a leader can make any attempts at long-term peace futile, for such a leader will be willing to break peace if doing so will invest upon them even more power. Power can blind those who hold it to the point where factors that should be held at utmost importance become miniscule to the importance of gathering more