Arthurian romance : a short introduction / Derek Pearsall.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Pearsall, Derek.

Series:

Blackwell introductions to literature

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Arthurian romances--History and criticism.

Arthurian romances.

Physical Description:

viii, 182 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Malden, MA : Blackwell Publishers, 2003.

Summary:

How did the (maybe) historical figure of King Arthur and his totally fictitious knights come to inspire so many stories? And why does Arthurian myth continue to flourish in films today? This witty and accessible introduction takes readers on a quest through the history of Arthurian romance in order to find the answers. Medieval expert Derek Pearsall traces the fortunes of Arthur, Guenevere, Lancelot, Gawain, Tristan and the other Knights of the Round Table at the hands of different writers, artists and film-makers. He follows the evolution of Arthurian romance from the epic form into ballad, drama, elegy, satire and burlesque, showing how the story has continued to provide a medium through which different cultures could express their highest hopes and contain their deepest fears. The book consists mainly of readings of the great works of Arthurian romance, from Chretien de Troyes through Malory to Tennyson and beyond, but also pays attention to manuscript illustrations, tapestries, paintings and films.

Contents:

1 The Early Arthur 1

What is the Historical Evidence of a 'Real' Arthur? 1

Geoffrey of Monmouth 6

Wace, Roman de Brut 13

Layamon's Brut 15

2 The Romancing of the Arthurian Story: Chretien de Troyes 20

The Chivalric Love-Romance 21

Chretien de Troyes 25

Lancelot, ou Le Chevalier de la Charrette 26

Erec et Enide 30

Cliges 31

Yvain, ou Le Chevalier au Lion 33

Perceval, ou Le Conte du Graal, and its Continuations 36

3 The European Flourishing of Arthurian Romance: Lancelot, Parzival, Tristan 40

French Arthurian Romance in Verse and Prose 40

The Vulgate Cycle of Arthurian Romances 43

Arthurian Romance in Europe 48

Arthurian Romance in Germany 50

Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan 52

4 Arthur, Lancelot and Gawain in Ricardian England 60

The Alliterative Morte Arthure 64

The Stanzaic Morte Arthur 70

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight 75

5 Malory's Morte D'Arthur 83

Publication and Author 84

The Winchester Manuscript 87

Book I (Caxton's Books 1-4) 89

Books II, III and IV (Caxton's Books 5-7) 91

Book V 'Sir Tristram of Lyones' (Caxton's Books 8-12) 93

Book VI 'The Tale of the Sankgreal' (Caxton's Books 13-17) 94

Books VII and VIII (Caxton's Books 18-21) 96

The Romance of Adventure 96

The Tragedy of Lancelot 103

6 The Arthurian Sleep and the Romantic Revival: Tennyson's Idylls of the King 110

Edmund Spenser 112

Arthur in the Seventeenth Century 113

Arthur in the Eighteenth Century 115

Sir Walter Scott 117

'The Return to Camelot' 118

Tennyson's Idylls of the King 120

Victorian Arthurianism 136

7 Mark Twain, T. H. White, John Steinbeck and the Modern Arthur 139

Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court 139

T. H. White, The Once and Future King 150

John Steinbeck, The Acts of King Arthur and his Noble Knights 156

The Modern Arthur: Novels and Films 161.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [168]-172) and index.

ISBN:

0631233199

0631233202

OCLC:

51060155