Arthurian Legend:A Romance Narrative and The

Romance Hero

Mrs. Eckman Wissler

12th Grade English

Chivalry is…• Reached its height in 12th-13th centuries• Boys from the nobility were raised in code of

chivalry– At 7- Became pages in castles– At 14- Became squires, serving knights,

learning horsemanship– At 21- Became knights

• Loyalty to God, lord, and lady who he had sworn his love

• Represented Christian and military ideals—faith, modesty, loyalty, courtesy, bravery, and honor

Is Chivalry dead?

King Arthur: Fact or Fiction?

• Did Arthur truly exist?• White and Red

Dragon• Excalibur &the sword

in the stone• Merlin• Lady of the Lake• The Round Table

Arthur was real BUT….

• …..Little is known

• ….Scholars are not entirely sure if he was real

• …. He was a Briton

• …..He was a leader against Anglo-Saxon invaders in 6th century

• …..Oral poets in Wales celebrate him as a HERO

Geoffrey of Monmouth (1135)

• Produced semi-historical History of the Kings of Britain from Welsh legends

• His book became popular amongst French, German, and English writers

• Writers updated the stories to reflect notions of chivalry

• He wrote about King Arthur because it was Good for Morale, Public looking for a HERO and for National Pride

King Arthur’s Family Tree

• The genealogy of King Arthur and his family has changed from one generation to another, during the medieval period. The main difference between one source from another, is that of number of sister and half-sisters, or the number of nephews Arthur had.

• The spelling of names had also changed, depending on languages or regions.

Source: http://www.timelessmyths.com/arthurian/housearthur.html

There are many variations:• Family Tree of King Arthur (Geoffrey‘ of Monmouth’sversion)

Family Tree of King Arthur (Chretien de Troyes' version)

• The family tree of King Arthur shown here, comes from Chretien de Troyes' five Arthurian romances. Chretien was the first to introduce Lancelot and Perceval into the legend. He was also responsible for beginning the Grail legend.

• Here, Morgan le Fay is Arthur's full sister. He had another unnamed sister in Conte du Graal ("Story of the Grail" or "Perceval“). But if we followed the First Grail Continuation, then her name was either Norcadet or Morgawse. Also, Chretien had listed three brothers to Gawain, but no Mordred.

Family Tree of King Arthur (Vulgate / Post-Vulgate version)

(This is) almost identical to the next family tree, which used Sir Thomas Malory's work, Le Morte d'Arthur, 1469. The difference is mainly in the spelling of Arthur's nephews and the number of his sisters. Notice that here, Morgeuse and Morgan are Arthur’s half sisters.

Family Tree of King Arthur (Sir Thomas Malory's version)

This is one of the more popular versions….it is based on the work by Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte d'Arthur (1469)

Romance Narrative

• A Romance Narrative or a Medieval Romance is “a dramatic verse or prose narrative that usually involves adventurous heroes, idealized love, exotic places and supernatural events” (Holt McDougal Literature 229)

• First appeared in France in the 12th Century- quickly spread to England

• Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is considered one of the best examples of this genre in Arthurian literature.

• So- what does this really mean?

Characteristics of a Romance Narrative:

1. Idealized or Larger- than-Life Characters

2. A hero who faces a challenge or test

3. Exotic Settings or Supernatural/magic Elements

4. Hidden or Mistaken Identity

The adventures of a knight/hero on a quest (good-vs-evil), overcoming danger to save a noble lady or for love

The Romance Hero….1. Born under mysterious

circumstances2. Grows up in obscurity3. Undergoes childhood

initiation (usually involving a magical weapon)

4. Fights evil-promotes good5. Aided by magical

weapons & wise mentors6. Mysterious events

surround his departure from earth (death?)

12. Status Quo

1. Call to Adventure

2. Assistance

3. Departure

4. Trials

5. Approach

6. Crisis

7. Treasure

8. Result

9. Return

10. New Life

11. Resolution