Since the time of great antiquity, heroes emerge in both history and literature across the global arena. Historically, a hero will surface immediately to counteract disputes and clashes without any adjournment. In Persian and English medieval literature, too, the presence of heroes is inevitable. Heroes (e.g. Beowulf, Sir Gawain, Rostam, Sohrab, Sekander, etc.), both, historical and literary, share common features, such as selflessness and compassion for their people. Outsiders, however, are not…
Magic and Merlyn Moment #1 On a warm day near the end of summer, the Wart was sitting near the tilting yard watching Kay practice his skills. Wart was feeling particularly dreary that day and decided to console in Merlyn about his seemingly pathetic dreams of being a knight, like Kay was destined to be. Wart began to go on about how he would call himself the Black Knight. “ And I should have hoved at a well or a fjord or something and made all true knights that came way to joust with me in honor…
After America won independence from Great Britain, the Founding Fathers wanted to create a strong nation that could stand on its own. However, in order for the new nation to be successful it had to be governed by someone who was selfless and respected amongst many. The country was in great need of someone who could keep it in order and always have it moving in a positive direction that would make our country expand. The Founding Fathers wanted to build a country that would last for thousands of…
In Thomas Malory’s, Le Morte d’Arthur, King Arthur has to confront many difficult challenges through his rise to leadership and eventually up to his demise. Arthur and his innocence is demonstrated throughout his birth and his royal abilities are progressed as a young child who has no clue of his bright future. He pulls the Excalibur for his brother who was in need, not knowing of the power the sword possessed. Arthur possesses values essential for the time period and is seen as someone who was…
King of Britain, Leader of the Knights of the round table, and folk tale hero. King Arthur has been in many stories and is a huge part of British History. People mostly know him for pulling the legendary sword, Excalibur, from the stone that proved he was the one true king, but there are facts that people don't know. Where did King Arthur come from, who wrote the stories, was he even real? King Arthur has been in many stories that tell different parts of his life, but what are the true facts on…
Malory includes the characteristic of a braver and nobler hero in his work, Le Morte d’Arthur, much like he included the characteristic of supernatural events . For instance in “The Coronation of Arthur,” Arthur pulls the sword multiple times from the stone. The nobles do not believe Arthur could be the successor to the throne and so they ignore that he has pulled the sword. Arthur shows patience, in knowing that he is the successor but no one else believes that he is. Arthur does not become…
Within the literary criticism “Knight in Tarnished Armour: The Meaning of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” by Gordon M. Shedd, the medieval romance of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was analyzed to express the theme of the “nature of man” (Shedd). Shedd begins by illustrating that the narrative poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight contrasts with other literatures that was created with the same era. Afterwards, he then explains the poem with great detail regarding the events within the piece…
Sir Gawain, King Arthur’s nephew who becomes a famous knight in the land of Brutus is a hero who is aware of a Christian knight’s behavior but is also conscious of the times he failed to lived up to those standards. Sir Gawain popularity arose because he wanted to protect his and King Arthur’s honor. Therefore, he entertains a game created by the Green knight who stormed the castle before the feast. The game is, one of the knights should attempt to cut the green knight’s neck clean off using a…
However, There are several traditional examples of a heroic archetype like the Pearl Poet's literary work, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, which is a good example because he is the closest example of a virtuous hero. In this medieval piece of literature, Sir Gawain is challenged by a Green Knight to cut off his head and to cut off his own as well. This absurd challenge starts off when the Green Knight challenges King Author’s court to take part in his challenge: "You've nothing but beardless…
Lancelot’s treason is not just a betrayal of King Arthur, but also a betrayal of Knight’s of the Round Table to whom he swore an oath. The Pentecostal Oath, sworn by each member of the Round Table, establishes the values of this Arthurian chivalric community. In this oath, they bind themselves to Arthur as their king and agree to a standard of behavior. As they take their oath, Arthur “charged them never to do outerage nothir mourthir, and allwayess to fle treason, and to go gyff mercy unto hym…