The Book Le Morte D’Arthur starts off with the conception of Arthur. Uther Pendragon, Arthur’s father fell madly in love with Igraine, the wife of Duke of Tintagil. With the help of Merlin, who promised to make Uther look like the duke, so that he could sleep with Ingraine, in return for taking the son after he was born. Arthur was born then raised in one of his Vassals, Sir Ector. He take his rightful spot as king when as a boy he takes the sword from the stone , which says that if you pull this sword out of the stone you shall be king. He takes claim to the throne, which is detested by his uncle King Lock and his alliance, they go to war Arthur ultimately wins. Then years later he falls in love with Gwenyvere, which is where he gets the round table which, despite popular belief, is able to hold 150 knights instead of 12. Eventually Arthur goes to war with a leader from Rome, who demands tribute. Arthur wins. Other drama goes on, as the storyline starts to shift from talking about Arthur to his other Knights. The main ones would be Sir Lancelot, Gwain, and Gareth. We learn a lot about all of them. Like how Gwain is forced to be nice to women and give mercy whenever someone asks for it or Lancelot being almost perfect except for his love for Gwen. The Quest for the Holy Grail comes, and we find out that Lancelot he has done everything for Gwen and not God so he doesn't deserve the cup, but his son does. Lancelot and Arthur gets into a fight over his affair with Gwen. Mordred who is son of Arthur and his sister, that he didn't know was his sister at the time, convinces him to go to war with Lancelot leaving England to Mordred who falsifies letter to become king. Then Arthur comes back to reclaim the throne. Mordred is killed and Arthur fatally wounded. Gwen blames herself for his death and becomes a nun, Lancelot becomes a priest and then buries Gwen, later, next to Arthur's body. Also Arthur might or might not come back.
Annotated Bibliography
Gweneth Whitteridge. “The Identity of Sir Thomas Malory, Knight-Prisoner.” The Review of English Studies, vol. 24, no. 95, 1973, pp. 257–265. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/514968.
Whitteridge is concerned mostly with the distinction between two names written in two pardons. The Two names were Sir Thomas Malory of Newbold Revell and Sir Thomas Malory of Fenny Newbold. Because the surname Malory was a popular one in the time period it was probable that these two names are separate people. She further distinguishes the two later in the article using different means. Although it was interesting to read the article is not really that relevant to my research paper it was interesting to read about Thomas Malory’s life. It gave me a little background to the environment in Malory’s life. Whitteridge was trained in medieval french studies and palaeography. She was most known for translating and editing William Harvey’s work in physiology. I couldn't find anything about her in medieval french studies or palaeography, so I would need further research if I was to use her writing.
Montgomery, Catherine J. “THE DIALECTICAL APPROACH OF WRITERS OF CHILDREN'S ARTHURIAN RETELLINGS.” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 3, no. 1, 1988, pp. 79–88. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868652.
Montgomery focuses on the language used in the retellings and how they change across time. She first with discussion on early retellings and explains how they drop the minor details but keeps true to the language that Thomas Malory used. She then begins to show how the language changes, as well as the style becoming more eclectic as more retellings are written. She also explores the storyline and the changes made by each author, paying particular attention to the affair between Gwen and Lancelot. This article helped me understand why when I read this I found a lot of differences between what I though I know of the story of King Arthur and what really happened in Le Morte D’Arthur. This article gave me an idea of what my paper could be about. Montgomery work through the University of Pittsburgh with the help of Professor Gary Waller from the University of New York. It safe to say that the source is credible. Both professors are notable for their work in the field of medieval literature.
Victoria L. Weiss. “Grail Knight or Boon Companion? The Inconsistent Sir Bors of Malory's ‘Morte Darthur.’” Studies in Philology, vol. 94, no. 4, 1997, pp. 417–427. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4174589.
Weiss focuses on the characterization of Bors, a character that I considered to be minor. She aims to characterize him as inconsistent throughout the texts as opposed to an author that she mentions, Robert Lumiansky. She also goes further to explain how Bors character compromises his religious belief for the protection of Lancelot. Although I do not think I will right a paper on Bors it gives a new perspective of the book, one that I did not think to be important, but may very well be. I would say it shows me how you can analyze smaller characters in terms of the work as a whole. Victoria Weiss I would consider to an authority on Le Morte D’arthur as well as Philology, as she has written many article on the subjects as well as being a professor at oglethorpe University.
Critical Analysis/Close Reading
“Than leep in yong Sir Launcelot de Laake, with a lyght herte, and seyde unto Kyng Arthure, ‘Thoughe my londis marche nygh myne enemyes, yet shall I make myne avow aftir my power that of good men of armys, aftir my bloode, thus many I shall brynge with me: twenty thousand helmys in haubirkes attyred, that shall never fayle you whyles oure lyves lastyth.’” (Malory 116)
This is said by Sir Lancelot after King Arthur’s speech to rally his barons and knights to go to battle with Lucius, the Emperor of Rome. This was Lancelot’s speech promising King Arthur his loyalty. This gives us an idea as to why Sir Lancelot is considered to be the best Knight. It also gives us a characteristic of a Knight and about chivalry. Loyalty is a major theme in this collection as well as a major theme in a lot of future literature. It is even valued in societal norms. Where this book gets interesting, however, is where Sir Lancelot comes short. This quote raises the question as to whether Loyalty should be broken, and if so under what circumstances? Lancelot is in love with and is alluded to the fact that he and Gwenevere are having an affair. So is Love an excuse to break Loyalty. From this quote we can infer the emphasis on physical prowess and abilities as an important part to this collection. Lancelot is in many ways a good Knight, but it is often emphasized at his physical prowess, and less his spiritual. In the quest for the Holy Grail we learn that Lancelot is not a spiritually pure and hence not able to see the cup. We also learn that he does all that he does for his love for Gwen. In this sense we could say that he a good Knight physically, but could lack spiritual, possibly moral, strength.
“Wherefore I liken love nowadays unto summer and winter; for like as the one is hot and the other cold, so fareth love nowadays; therefore all ye that be lovers call unto your remembrance the month of May, like as did Queen Guenever, for whom I make here a little mention, that while she lived she was a true lover, and therefore she had a good end.” (Malory 837)
This is one of the few times that Malory directly speaks to the reader. In this Malory compares love to the seasons, particularly spring and winter. He says “Wherefore I liken love nowadays unto summer and winter; for like as the one is hot and the other cold, so fareth love nowadays” In this case saying that Spring love is one that grows and lasts along time, while in opposition to this there is winter love that searches for faults in their lovers. This quote also directly compares his world to the world of King Arthur, saying that compared to their world, the people in his world love so short and find fault in their partners. So they are winter. In the second half of this quote, Malory says that Gwenyvere loves right, that she is a spring lover. He says that she is a “true lover” while this complements Gwen, this is contrasting to the storyline because of her affair with Lancelot. This brings to question how fleeting love is or perhaps how fickle, how it's able to change from one person to another. She loves Lancelot, but also Arthur. This whole quote makes the idea of the power of love way more complex. “Wyte you well, now I shall make you a promyse whych I shall holde be my knyghthode, that frome thys day forewarde I shall never fayle Sir Launcelot untyll that one of us have slayne that othir. And therefore I requyre you, my lorde and kynge, dresse you unto the warres, for wyte you well, I woll be revenged uppon Sir Launcelot.” (Malory 659)
This is Gwain oath of vengeance that he swears against Lancelot for the accidental killing of his father. To a knight giving your word is a very important thing, I would probably say that it is the most important thing. For him to give his word for this tells us that he will take his vengeance or at least try. It shows Gwains habit of taking vengeance, because he would turn on his friend even though he knows it was accidental. This quote brings up the idea of how powerful vengeance is. Knights are supposed to be chivalrous, this shows a dichotomy between vengeance and the aspects of chivalry. It implies a couple aspects of Malory’s idea of chivalry. First brotherly friendship, forgiveness, as well as loyalty between knights. It begs the question, how corruptible are knights or chivalrous people, as well as is vengeance stronger than chivalry. It also brings up a question, Is forgiveness a possible in some cases? Part of the code between knights is to give forgiveness to those who ask it. So in this case can a knight bring himself to forgive despite the circumstance. As with the other knights even the great Sir Lancelot, even knights are flawed.
Checkpoint #3 Annotated Bibliography:
GIBSON, ANGELA. “Malory's Reformulation of Shame.” Arthuriana, vol. 11, no. 4, 2001, pp. 64–76. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27869684.
Gibson focuses on relationship between public opinion and private relationships and loyalties. She states that in Le Morte D’Arthur there is more emphasis on the problem of exposure and the destruction that it can cause and less on the fact that someone was unloyal to their partner. She suggests that Thomas Malory’s answer to disloyalty is not to put shame on the character because it happened, but rather put shame on the character because it was not kept a secret. I would definitely say that this article is reliable it was cited in several other articles and the author has published other articles on Malory’s texts. Also, the references were well-known, at familiar to me when I started looking at reference pages, and cited very often.
KENNEDY, BEVERLY. “Adultery in Malory's ‘Le Morte D'Arthur.’” Arthuriana, vol. 7, no. 4, 1997, pp. 63–91. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27869288.
Beverly is concerned with how knights handle and constitute dishonor. She describes three different classifications of knights, the Heroic, the Worshipful, and the True. She then elaborates on the how each type of knight handles adultery differently. She also explains how each type of knight commits these acts. She uses examples from the Le Morte D’Arthur such as Gwain, the Heroic Knight, Lancelot, the True knight, and Tristam, the Worshipful knight. This is article did not reference as many familiar articles, but it did reference articles that were cited many times. The author was extremely credible, which was probably the reason why there were not as many familiar references. He has written many articles on Malory’s and arthurian texts. It is safe to say that he is an expert on the subject.
Dobyns, Ann. “‘Shamefull Noyse’: Lancelot and the Language of Deceit.” Style, vol. 24, no. 1, 1990, pp. 89–102. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/42945831.
This was the article that I found in the reference section of “Grail Knight or Boon Companion? The Inconsistent Sir Bors of Malory's ‘Morte Darthur’” by Victoria L. Weiss. Dobyns is focusing on how Malory uses language to represent the loss of fellowship. He argues that Malory’s language intentionally emphasizing this in the last books. She explains how Malory is less interested in characterization, and rarely looks at the inner thoughts of the characters, but focuses on their speech and action. She examines the speeches given by Lancelot in the later books. This article was not cited as many times as the previous article I read. The arthur, however has written many articles of use of language in medieval texts, It is safe to say that he is an expert on language and rhetoric of medieval texts. This makes this article reliable. Reflection of Trends in Scholarship:
I have noticed that a lot of the focus by scholars regarding “Le Morte D’Arthur” has to do with how Malory characterizes knights. Many of the articles I have seen write about anything from how to classify knights in general. Social setting and aspects seem to be of interest to scholars. The interplay between a character's personal life and how the public viewed that character. I have seen articles just on adultery and how it was viewed, but also on the idea of private worlds and relationships. This also showed up in a lot of the articles pertaining to chivalry. Reputation is huge concept in many of these and other articles. Language seems to be a focus of scholars. How Malory used language to convey ideas, as well as what ideas he meant to portray. I know that “Le Morte D’Arthur is considered to be the first great prose written in english. This idea does not seem to be lost on scholars. Primarily, they focus on how Malory tells the story. For example, how he rarely spoke to the inner thoughts of characters. The knightly code seems to be a big discussion. Characteristics that Malory deemed knightly. Some article talk about the different characteristics, while other talk about single characteristics that are important. Chivalry is one of the bigger discussions. I saw an article written purely about chivalry and how it is defined by Malory. I intend to focus on something involving what is considered a knight. I am not sure which parts, but I will put more research into it to narrow in on my topic.
Research Query:
I found a lot of articles on what a knight is. Some of the characteristics of how to define a knight. But I feel I only have a broad understanding. So some questions I have are“What is a knight? Is knight still a knight if he broke one of the codes?” I am going to approach this topic by researching topics related to the mistakes some of the knights made. Since social context and reputations seem to be a major topic, I am going to look into whether or not this is maybe how the character is viewed might be a factor of what makes a knight. After reading articles on Malory’s use of language, I think I should read my text again. I did not think about how the story was written as a characteristic, I just tried to learn the facts of the storyline. I think his use of language is something that I could explore. This could help me make sense of some of the research I have read. I read that Malory does not like to express the inner thoughts of the characters, this definitely changed how I think about the text. This idea had never even crossed my mind when I read the book. I definitely need to reread the book to better understand it.
Checkpoint #4
Annotated Bibliography
Moorman, Charles. “Courtly Love in Malory.” ELH, vol. 27, no. 3, 1960, pp. 163–176. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2871877.
Charles Moorman focuses on the aspect of courtly love, and particularly with the love between Guinevere and Lancelot. Moorman proclaims that the Thomas Malory emphasizes on the paradoxical and adulterous nature of courtly love. Moorman explains that Courtly love is one of the chief downfalls of Arthur’s court. He distinguishes the early chivalric love that appears in the beginning of Malory’s book and courtly love that finds its way near the end of the book. Moorman selects one passage in particular to distinguish the two types of love. Charles Moorman seems like a reliable author because he has published several articles of Malory and Arthurian literature. This article has also been cited several times. It is safe to consider this a reliable source.
Grimm, Kevin T. “KNIGHTLY LOVE AND THE NARRATIVE STRUCTURE OF MALORY'S TALE SEVEN.” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 3, no. 2, 1989, pp. 76–95. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868661.
The idea that knighthood has a lot to do with love, is the major concern for Kevin T Grimm. HE talks about how courtly love is a major cause of the collapse of the round table. Grimm explains that love is an incentive for knights. When a Knight does well and completes an honorable deed that he gets love of a woman. That love is then further incentive for more honorable deeds. He discussed how different types of love were explored like the love between knights, as well as romantic love. Kevin grimm can be considered an expert on Le Morte D’Arthur, because he has written several journal article on the subject, and this article has been cited a few times as well. This article also references many other articles that I have read and and have been cited many times.
Robeson, Lisa. “Noble Knights and 'Mischievous War': The Rhetoric of War in Malory's ‘Le Morte Darthur.’” Arthuriana, vol. 13, no. 3, 2003, pp. 10–35. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27870540.
Lisa Roberson defines and explores the different meanings of war and how it is represented in Le Morte D’Arthur. She defines war as being a conflict between armed forces, nations, or states. She also defines it as being any hostility between two individuals. She explains that because the individual quarrels between knights of the round tabl involve such public figures, it causes it to escalate to full warfare. She uses the example of Lancelot and Arthur. Arthur is both ruling body and private individual, so this is the reason it escalated to a full on war. This author has many publishings on arthurian legend, and this article has been cited several times. There are also references to many author experts on arthurian literature. This source is also reliable.
Hoffman, Donald L. “THE OGRE AND THE VIRGIN: VARIETIES OF SEXUAL EXPERIENCE IN MALORY'S ‘MORTE DARTHUR.’” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 1, no. 1, 1986, pp. 19–25. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868605.
Donald Hoffman makes the the argument that sexuality is the main cause of trouble in Le Morte D’Arthur. He explains how adulterous sexuality is what starts off the book, Uther’s Lust, which is followed by Arthur’s first actions as King to have sex with Lyonors and then incest with Morgause. He pays particular attention to the Ogre of the Mount and the adventures of Lancelot. The ogre being a symbol for perversion and Lancelot as a symbol of chastity. Lancelot’s love for Guinevere becomes the source of the turmoil in the round table. This article was not acited as much as the other articles, but the author has a lot of publishings on arthurian literature. It seems very reliable.
Abstract
Malory made a very clear distinction between the private inner world of the individual and the world of public view. Both of these worlds have their own obligations, and can contradict one another. When these loyalties are opposed to each other, individual conflict, particularly between public figures, can lead to war.
Furthermore, the distinction between the private and the public is parallel to the one between courtly love and virtuous love. Courtly love is a contradiction on its own, but is an extensive part of knighthood. Malory used the distinction between private and public lives to show that he did not approve of courtly love. The biggest conflict in the book, the Guinevere and Lancelot affair, was what eventually lead to the downfall of Arthur's court. Before Guinevere and Lancelot’s one sexual incident, Lancelot’s love was virtuous, it was what gave him incentive to do noble deeds. After it became a courtly love, Arthur’s court fell apart, leading to his death.
There are three distinct types of knights. There is the worshipful, the true and the heroic knight. Each with its own set of values. The Worshipful knight values the honor of the individual, the heroic knight values the honor of the family, and the True knight values the both the honor of family and the individual but also their individual honor in terms of the relationship with God. Malory used the nature of courtly love and adultery to define the distinction between the private and the public. He explores this distinction and how the different types of knights are affected. Each is affected differently because of the individual values the represent.
While many scholars a concerned with adultery, courtly love, and the separation of private and public separately it is important to combine parts to understand the whole. As a result, a better understanding of how Malory manipulates the popular theme of courtly love to show a contradiction between public views and private choices.
Argument Against Article
In Angela Gibson’s “Malory’s Reformulation of Shame,” she argued that Malory used the distinction between private and public to say that the cause of the shame from incidents involving adultery was not the fact that courtly love and adultery were not the problem. She explained that the problem was the fact the public found out about the discretion. While I agree that Malory definitely does make a distinction between the public and the private, I do not agree that he meant to condone courtly love. I believe that he disapproved of courtly love and criticize it in a sense. Courtly love was a very popular french theme and is found all throughout Thomas Malory’s “Le Morte D’Arthur.” She made the argument that because it was such a huge part of the tales that Malory revered Courtly love, and that the problem was not hiding it well enough. I believe that because much of the strife for the knights of the round table involved courtly love, that Malory was trying to condemn it. The most prominent source of courtly love in the text was the Lancelot-Guinevere affair. Once this was made known to Arthur, a war occured, but it was not because it was made public it was because it was courtly love. Lancelot and Guinevere’s love was not courtly until the one sexual incident, it was virtuous because it still respected the marriage of Arthur and Guinevere. It turned disastrous only when the love became cou
Summary:
The Book Le Morte D’Arthur starts off with the conception of Arthur. Uther Pendragon, Arthur’s father fell madly in love with Igraine, the wife of Duke of Tintagil. With the help of Merlin, who promised to make Uther look like the duke, so that he could sleep with Ingraine, in return for taking the son after he was born. Arthur was born then raised in one of his Vassals, Sir Ector. He take his rightful spot as king when as a boy he takes the sword from the stone , which says that if you pull this sword out of the stone you shall be king. He takes claim to the throne, which is detested by his uncle King Lock and his alliance, they go to war Arthur ultimately wins. Then years later he falls in love with Gwenyvere, which is where he gets the round table which, despite popular belief, is able to hold 150 knights instead of 12. Eventually Arthur goes to war with a leader from Rome, who demands tribute. Arthur wins. Other drama goes on, as the storyline starts to shift from talking about Arthur to his other Knights. The main ones would be Sir Lancelot, Gwain, and Gareth. We learn a lot about all of them. Like how Gwain is forced to be nice to women and give mercy whenever someone asks for it or Lancelot being almost perfect except for his love for Gwen. The Quest for the Holy Grail comes, and we find out that Lancelot he has done everything for Gwen and not God so he doesn't deserve the cup, but his son does. Lancelot and Arthur gets into a fight over his affair with Gwen. Mordred who is son of Arthur and his sister, that he didn't know was his sister at the time, convinces him to go to war with Lancelot leaving England to Mordred who falsifies letter to become king. Then Arthur comes back to reclaim the throne. Mordred is killed and Arthur fatally wounded. Gwen blames herself for his death and becomes a nun, Lancelot becomes a priest and then buries Gwen, later, next to Arthur's body. Also Arthur might or might not come back.
Annotated Bibliography
Gweneth Whitteridge. “The Identity of Sir Thomas Malory, Knight-Prisoner.” The Review of English Studies, vol. 24, no. 95, 1973, pp. 257–265. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/514968.
Whitteridge is concerned mostly with the distinction between two names written in two pardons. The Two names were Sir Thomas Malory of Newbold Revell and Sir Thomas Malory of Fenny Newbold. Because the surname Malory was a popular one in the time period it was probable that these two names are separate people. She further distinguishes the two later in the article using different means. Although it was interesting to read the article is not really that relevant to my research paper it was interesting to read about Thomas Malory’s life. It gave me a little background to the environment in Malory’s life. Whitteridge was trained in medieval french studies and palaeography. She was most known for translating and editing William Harvey’s work in physiology. I couldn't find anything about her in medieval french studies or palaeography, so I would need further research if I was to use her writing.
Montgomery, Catherine J. “THE DIALECTICAL APPROACH OF WRITERS OF CHILDREN'S ARTHURIAN RETELLINGS.” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 3, no. 1, 1988, pp. 79–88. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868652.
Montgomery focuses on the language used in the retellings and how they change across time. She first with discussion on early retellings and explains how they drop the minor details but keeps true to the language that Thomas Malory used. She then begins to show how the language changes, as well as the style becoming more eclectic as more retellings are written. She also explores the storyline and the changes made by each author, paying particular attention to the affair between Gwen and Lancelot. This article helped me understand why when I read this I found a lot of differences between what I though I know of the story of King Arthur and what really happened in Le Morte D’Arthur. This article gave me an idea of what my paper could be about. Montgomery work through the University of Pittsburgh with the help of Professor Gary Waller from the University of New York. It safe to say that the source is credible. Both professors are notable for their work in the field of medieval literature.
Victoria L. Weiss. “Grail Knight or Boon Companion? The Inconsistent Sir Bors of Malory's ‘Morte Darthur.’” Studies in Philology, vol. 94, no. 4, 1997, pp. 417–427. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4174589.
Weiss focuses on the characterization of Bors, a character that I considered to be minor. She aims to characterize him as inconsistent throughout the texts as opposed to an author that she mentions, Robert Lumiansky. She also goes further to explain how Bors character compromises his religious belief for the protection of Lancelot. Although I do not think I will right a paper on Bors it gives a new perspective of the book, one that I did not think to be important, but may very well be. I would say it shows me how you can analyze smaller characters in terms of the work as a whole. Victoria Weiss I would consider to an authority on Le Morte D’arthur as well as Philology, as she has written many article on the subjects as well as being a professor at oglethorpe University.
Critical Analysis/Close Reading
“Than leep in yong Sir Launcelot de Laake, with a lyght herte, and seyde unto Kyng Arthure, ‘Thoughe my londis marche nygh myne enemyes, yet shall I make myne avow aftir my power that of good men of armys, aftir my bloode, thus many I shall brynge with me: twenty thousand helmys in haubirkes attyred, that shall never fayle you whyles oure lyves lastyth.’” (Malory 116)
This is said by Sir Lancelot after King Arthur’s speech to rally his barons and knights to go to battle with Lucius, the Emperor of Rome. This was Lancelot’s speech promising King Arthur his loyalty. This gives us an idea as to why Sir Lancelot is considered to be the best Knight. It also gives us a characteristic of a Knight and about chivalry. Loyalty is a major theme in this collection as well as a major theme in a lot of future literature. It is even valued in societal norms. Where this book gets interesting, however, is where Sir Lancelot comes short. This quote raises the question as to whether Loyalty should be broken, and if so under what circumstances? Lancelot is in love with and is alluded to the fact that he and Gwenevere are having an affair. So is Love an excuse to break Loyalty. From this quote we can infer the emphasis on physical prowess and abilities as an important part to this collection. Lancelot is in many ways a good Knight, but it is often emphasized at his physical prowess, and less his spiritual. In the quest for the Holy Grail we learn that Lancelot is not a spiritually pure and hence not able to see the cup. We also learn that he does all that he does for his love for Gwen. In this sense we could say that he a good Knight physically, but could lack spiritual, possibly moral, strength.
“Wherefore I liken love nowadays unto summer and winter; for like as the one is hot and the other cold, so fareth love nowadays; therefore all ye that be lovers call unto your remembrance the month of May, like as did Queen Guenever, for whom I make here a little mention, that while she lived she was a true lover, and therefore she had a good end.” (Malory 837)
This is one of the few times that Malory directly speaks to the reader. In this Malory compares love to the seasons, particularly spring and winter. He says “Wherefore I liken love nowadays unto summer and winter; for like as the one is hot and the other cold, so fareth love nowadays” In this case saying that Spring love is one that grows and lasts along time, while in opposition to this there is winter love that searches for faults in their lovers. This quote also directly compares his world to the world of King Arthur, saying that compared to their world, the people in his world love so short and find fault in their partners. So they are winter. In the second half of this quote, Malory says that Gwenyvere loves right, that she is a spring lover. He says that she is a “true lover” while this complements Gwen, this is contrasting to the storyline because of her affair with Lancelot. This brings to question how fleeting love is or perhaps how fickle, how it's able to change from one person to another. She loves Lancelot, but also Arthur. This whole quote makes the idea of the power of love way more complex.
“Wyte you well, now I shall make you a promyse whych I shall holde be my knyghthode, that frome thys day forewarde I shall never fayle Sir Launcelot untyll that one of us have slayne that othir. And therefore I requyre you, my lorde and kynge, dresse you unto the warres, for wyte you well, I woll be revenged uppon Sir Launcelot.” (Malory 659)
This is Gwain oath of vengeance that he swears against Lancelot for the accidental killing of his father. To a knight giving your word is a very important thing, I would probably say that it is the most important thing. For him to give his word for this tells us that he will take his vengeance or at least try. It shows Gwains habit of taking vengeance, because he would turn on his friend even though he knows it was accidental. This quote brings up the idea of how powerful vengeance is. Knights are supposed to be chivalrous, this shows a dichotomy between vengeance and the aspects of chivalry. It implies a couple aspects of Malory’s idea of chivalry. First brotherly friendship, forgiveness, as well as loyalty between knights. It begs the question, how corruptible are knights or chivalrous people, as well as is vengeance stronger than chivalry. It also brings up a question, Is forgiveness a possible in some cases? Part of the code between knights is to give forgiveness to those who ask it. So in this case can a knight bring himself to forgive despite the circumstance. As with the other knights even the great Sir Lancelot, even knights are flawed.
Checkpoint #3
Annotated Bibliography:
GIBSON, ANGELA. “Malory's Reformulation of Shame.” Arthuriana, vol. 11, no. 4, 2001, pp. 64–76. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27869684.
Gibson focuses on relationship between public opinion and private relationships and loyalties. She states that in Le Morte D’Arthur there is more emphasis on the problem of exposure and the destruction that it can cause and less on the fact that someone was unloyal to their partner. She suggests that Thomas Malory’s answer to disloyalty is not to put shame on the character because it happened, but rather put shame on the character because it was not kept a secret. I would definitely say that this article is reliable it was cited in several other articles and the author has published other articles on Malory’s texts. Also, the references were well-known, at familiar to me when I started looking at reference pages, and cited very often.
KENNEDY, BEVERLY. “Adultery in Malory's ‘Le Morte D'Arthur.’” Arthuriana, vol. 7, no. 4, 1997, pp. 63–91. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27869288.
Beverly is concerned with how knights handle and constitute dishonor. She describes three different classifications of knights, the Heroic, the Worshipful, and the True. She then elaborates on the how each type of knight handles adultery differently. She also explains how each type of knight commits these acts. She uses examples from the Le Morte D’Arthur such as Gwain, the Heroic Knight, Lancelot, the True knight, and Tristam, the Worshipful knight. This is article did not reference as many familiar articles, but it did reference articles that were cited many times. The author was extremely credible, which was probably the reason why there were not as many familiar references. He has written many articles on Malory’s and arthurian texts. It is safe to say that he is an expert on the subject.
Dobyns, Ann. “‘Shamefull Noyse’: Lancelot and the Language of Deceit.” Style, vol. 24, no. 1, 1990, pp. 89–102. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/42945831.
This was the article that I found in the reference section of “Grail Knight or Boon Companion? The Inconsistent Sir Bors of Malory's ‘Morte Darthur’” by Victoria L. Weiss. Dobyns is focusing on how Malory uses language to represent the loss of fellowship. He argues that Malory’s language intentionally emphasizing this in the last books. She explains how Malory is less interested in characterization, and rarely looks at the inner thoughts of the characters, but focuses on their speech and action. She examines the speeches given by Lancelot in the later books. This article was not cited as many times as the previous article I read. The arthur, however has written many articles of use of language in medieval texts, It is safe to say that he is an expert on language and rhetoric of medieval texts. This makes this article reliable.
Reflection of Trends in Scholarship:
I have noticed that a lot of the focus by scholars regarding “Le Morte D’Arthur” has to do with how Malory characterizes knights. Many of the articles I have seen write about anything from how to classify knights in general.
Social setting and aspects seem to be of interest to scholars. The interplay between a character's personal life and how the public viewed that character. I have seen articles just on adultery and how it was viewed, but also on the idea of private worlds and relationships. This also showed up in a lot of the articles pertaining to chivalry. Reputation is huge concept in many of these and other articles.
Language seems to be a focus of scholars. How Malory used language to convey ideas, as well as what ideas he meant to portray. I know that “Le Morte D’Arthur is considered to be the first great prose written in english. This idea does not seem to be lost on scholars. Primarily, they focus on how Malory tells the story. For example, how he rarely spoke to the inner thoughts of characters.
The knightly code seems to be a big discussion. Characteristics that Malory deemed knightly. Some article talk about the different characteristics, while other talk about single characteristics that are important. Chivalry is one of the bigger discussions. I saw an article written purely about chivalry and how it is defined by Malory.
I intend to focus on something involving what is considered a knight. I am not sure which parts, but I will put more research into it to narrow in on my topic.
Research Query:
I found a lot of articles on what a knight is. Some of the characteristics of how to define a knight. But I feel I only have a broad understanding. So some questions I have are “What is a knight? Is knight still a knight if he broke one of the codes?” I am going to approach this topic by researching topics related to the mistakes some of the knights made.
Since social context and reputations seem to be a major topic, I am going to look into whether or not this is maybe how the character is viewed might be a factor of what makes a knight.
After reading articles on Malory’s use of language, I think I should read my text again. I did not think about how the story was written as a characteristic, I just tried to learn the facts of the storyline. I think his use of language is something that I could explore. This could help me make sense of some of the research I have read.
I read that Malory does not like to express the inner thoughts of the characters, this definitely changed how I think about the text. This idea had never even crossed my mind when I read the book. I definitely need to reread the book to better understand it.
Checkpoint #4
Annotated Bibliography
Moorman, Charles. “Courtly Love in Malory.” ELH, vol. 27, no. 3, 1960, pp. 163–176. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2871877.
Charles Moorman focuses on the aspect of courtly love, and particularly with the love between Guinevere and Lancelot. Moorman proclaims that the Thomas Malory emphasizes on the paradoxical and adulterous nature of courtly love. Moorman explains that Courtly love is one of the chief downfalls of Arthur’s court. He distinguishes the early chivalric love that appears in the beginning of Malory’s book and courtly love that finds its way near the end of the book. Moorman selects one passage in particular to distinguish the two types of love. Charles Moorman seems like a reliable author because he has published several articles of Malory and Arthurian literature. This article has also been cited several times. It is safe to consider this a reliable source.
Grimm, Kevin T. “KNIGHTLY LOVE AND THE NARRATIVE STRUCTURE OF MALORY'S TALE SEVEN.” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 3, no. 2, 1989, pp. 76–95. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868661.
The idea that knighthood has a lot to do with love, is the major concern for Kevin T Grimm. HE talks about how courtly love is a major cause of the collapse of the round table. Grimm explains that love is an incentive for knights. When a Knight does well and completes an honorable deed that he gets love of a woman. That love is then further incentive for more honorable deeds. He discussed how different types of love were explored like the love between knights, as well as romantic love. Kevin grimm can be considered an expert on Le Morte D’Arthur, because he has written several journal article on the subject, and this article has been cited a few times as well. This article also references many other articles that I have read and and have been cited many times.
Robeson, Lisa. “Noble Knights and 'Mischievous War': The Rhetoric of War in Malory's ‘Le Morte Darthur.’” Arthuriana, vol. 13, no. 3, 2003, pp. 10–35. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27870540.
Lisa Roberson defines and explores the different meanings of war and how it is represented in Le Morte D’Arthur. She defines war as being a conflict between armed forces, nations, or states. She also defines it as being any hostility between two individuals. She explains that because the individual quarrels between knights of the round tabl involve such public figures, it causes it to escalate to full warfare. She uses the example of Lancelot and Arthur. Arthur is both ruling body and private individual, so this is the reason it escalated to a full on war. This author has many publishings on arthurian legend, and this article has been cited several times. There are also references to many author experts on arthurian literature. This source is also reliable.
Hoffman, Donald L. “THE OGRE AND THE VIRGIN: VARIETIES OF SEXUAL EXPERIENCE IN MALORY'S ‘MORTE DARTHUR.’” Arthurian Interpretations, vol. 1, no. 1, 1986, pp. 19–25. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27868605.
Donald Hoffman makes the the argument that sexuality is the main cause of trouble in Le Morte D’Arthur. He explains how adulterous sexuality is what starts off the book, Uther’s Lust, which is followed by Arthur’s first actions as King to have sex with Lyonors and then incest with Morgause. He pays particular attention to the Ogre of the Mount and the adventures of Lancelot. The ogre being a symbol for perversion and Lancelot as a symbol of chastity. Lancelot’s love for Guinevere becomes the source of the turmoil in the round table. This article was not acited as much as the other articles, but the author has a lot of publishings on arthurian literature. It seems very reliable.
Abstract
Malory made a very clear distinction between the private inner world of the individual and the world of public view. Both of these worlds have their own obligations, and can contradict one another. When these loyalties are opposed to each other, individual conflict, particularly between public figures, can lead to war.
Furthermore, the distinction between the private and the public is parallel to the one between courtly love and virtuous love. Courtly love is a contradiction on its own, but is an extensive part of knighthood. Malory used the distinction between private and public lives to show that he did not approve of courtly love. The biggest conflict in the book, the Guinevere and Lancelot affair, was what eventually lead to the downfall of Arthur's court. Before Guinevere and Lancelot’s one sexual incident, Lancelot’s love was virtuous, it was what gave him incentive to do noble deeds. After it became a courtly love, Arthur’s court fell apart, leading to his death.
There are three distinct types of knights. There is the worshipful, the true and the heroic knight. Each with its own set of values. The Worshipful knight values the honor of the individual, the heroic knight values the honor of the family, and the True knight values the both the honor of family and the individual but also their individual honor in terms of the relationship with God. Malory used the nature of courtly love and adultery to define the distinction between the private and the public. He explores this distinction and how the different types of knights are affected. Each is affected differently because of the individual values the represent.
While many scholars a concerned with adultery, courtly love, and the separation of private and public separately it is important to combine parts to understand the whole. As a result, a better understanding of how Malory manipulates the popular theme of courtly love to show a contradiction between public views and private choices.
Argument Against Article
In Angela Gibson’s “Malory’s Reformulation of Shame,” she argued that Malory used the distinction between private and public to say that the cause of the shame from incidents involving adultery was not the fact that courtly love and adultery were not the problem. She explained that the problem was the fact the public found out about the discretion. While I agree that Malory definitely does make a distinction between the public and the private, I do not agree that he meant to condone courtly love. I believe that he disapproved of courtly love and criticize it in a sense. Courtly love was a very popular french theme and is found all throughout Thomas Malory’s “Le Morte D’Arthur.” She made the argument that because it was such a huge part of the tales that Malory revered Courtly love, and that the problem was not hiding it well enough. I believe that because much of the strife for the knights of the round table involved courtly love, that Malory was trying to condemn it. The most prominent source of courtly love in the text was the Lancelot-Guinevere affair. Once this was made known to Arthur, a war occured, but it was not because it was made public it was because it was courtly love. Lancelot and Guinevere’s love was not courtly until the one sexual incident, it was virtuous because it still respected the marriage of Arthur and Guinevere. It turned disastrous only when the love became cou