Thanks Guys

Well now that class is officially over I can finally say that this being my first semester here at HOOD College this was one of my favorite classes this semester. Prior to this class, I was not very familiar with King Arthur. I had only read Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Each story we have read has been enjoyable, some more than others though. It was very productive to hear everyone else's views on all the topics. Today in class we went over all of the texts that were read during this semester. It has been a lot and we've all come very far. Not only was this class enjoyable, but it was very productive as well. I guess I just wanted to thank everyone and Dr. MB for a great learning environment and class. I also hope everyone does great on their finals. Good Luck.

Avalon High. A hiatus for your brain.

Every since I was little, I have always loved curling up with a good book filled with drama and just enjoyed my night. With being an English major, it has been so hard to do this lately, however, Meg Cabot's Avalon High, was this perfect book. I am so glad this book was assigned to us, especially this week. My first reaction was, this book when finals are so close and I have so many papers to write this week!!! Oh, NO. However, as soon as I picked this book up, I could not put it down. I mean I had to of course. Bathroom breaks, class, work, but I did not want to put this book down. To be able to read this book and lose oneself in the drama. Not having to think and analyze so much of everything little thing was just the break that I needed. I just had to finish this book, which I did.

I thought this book had some hilarious moments. For example on page 12, Elaine was talking about her father's glasses and if he had lived in medieval times he would have died by falling down a well or something for not being able to see. Cabot wrote, "In fact, in medieval times, he'd probably have been dead by the age of three or four from falling down a well or whatever..." It reminded me of myself, I am blind as a bat and cannot see without my contacts or glasses. I am so glad, probably just like Ellie's dad, that I was not born in those times. I would be with him, down into that well, dead.

Also, when Ellie told Mr. Morton about Will and Jennifer, he was totally shocked. Was I the only who thought that he could be Merlin??? He knew everything that was going to happen. But I was so disappointed in him that he was going to give up. Also, was I the only one who has noticed that Merlin likes to go to the Caribbean when he gets upset??? This is not the first time we've (the reader) has seen this. He has gone to Aruba and the Bahamas so far, if I recall correctly.

I was so dead set that Ellie was the Lady of Shallot. But to be the lady of the Lake?!?!?!?! I feel as surprised as Mr. Morton and her parents. It's pretty cool. Also, I was SO angry with Jennifer and Lance. Yet, happy that Arthur (Will) was relieved and he wasn't the fool like in every other story, where EVERYONE else knew except for him. In this book, I actually do like Lance and Jen. I really feel like she genuinely cares for Will and Lance. You can't help but to fall in love with her character, unlike in the other stories.  Arthur and Elaine or in other words King Arthur and the Lady of the Lake. That's different. Yet they are two powerful people. I never thought of them together before, but in this book, it works. And of course, King Arthur, or Will, is the most loveable person in all the kingdom, or Avalon. And how can I forget Mordred, I mean Marco. He really is totally out of his mind, just crazy. I don't like him so I don't wanna say much about him, but I am glad that the darkness left him at the end and with rehabilitation, Marco can be normal.

Crazy or Nahhh?

These reading that we have done this week, The Mists of Avalon, is very interesting. Is anyone else as intrigued as I am??? I love that Morgan is a fairy priestess. However, the readings that are supposed to be due for tomorrow, they are a little crazy!!!! Viviane set Morgan up to sleep with her own brother!!! How disgusting. Before Morgan even takes apart of the ritual, she sleeps in some random woman's bed and the next morning, this older woman is checking to make sure her "cherry" is still there. Ughhhh. And then to sleep with a deer man with your body dyed a blue color and covered in blood?!?!?!?! It's definitely weird. They were extremely high on herbs and roots, must have been some strong weed. She had collapsed on the hill, but still while running with the deer and then becoming the deer. Sounds crazzzeeeeeeee. She should've needed a couple days to recuperate after that. Plus, y'all know she doesn't really eat anything, which just makes it worse. She should've had some serious munchies. She ate meat for the third time in like six or seven years??? That would've added to her being way out of it. Apart of me is so disgusted by this whole ordeal, but then it is also a sacred ritual. Don't some cultures do some crazy ass things when it comes to virginity and sacrifice??? Or am I just wrong?

Plus, we've seen something that we've never seen before about Excalibur. Excalibur is made from metal from a meteorite, and the sheath is made by Morgan, who used her magic. We always hear that Excalibur is given to Arthur through the Lady of the Lake, her hand appears above the water and Arthur must retrieve it from the hand. But, in this version, Arthur and Merlin and Kevin, whoever he is, actually go to Avalon to take apart in an oath before receiving Excalibur. He must rule fairly no matter what God is being blessed. Christian or Druid, Arthur must rule fairly. And we all know he does this.

I am intrigued by the magic that is being described in the Mists of Avalon. It is a lot nicer than any other readings we have done. I believe its because its explained a little bit more than in any other text we've read so far. But these readings are also the craziest we've read so far as well.

Hunchback

I really want to be the first one to say, that after the reading, that's due in a couple of hours, Mordred's description reminds me of the hunchback of Notredame.

Mordred is as shady as they come. Am I the only one who thinks he killed his brothers and blamed it on Lancelot?????

Lancelot and Guinevere had their demise was coming. They both deserved it. King Arthur seems to be a wuss when knowing about this affair and let it continuing it to happen. He is a public figure and EVERYONE knows about this affair. How many times has Guinevere shamed King Arthur? She sucks as a wife. King Arthur even states at the end that he loved his knights of the round table more than his wife. King Arthur could have gotten a new and even better wife, Queen 2.0. One who doesn't sleep with the king's best friend. 

King Arthur and Oliver Twist

First off, this is the type of readings I was expecting when I first signed up for this class. A young King Arthur who is tutored by a quirky loveable Merlin. So, I am taking three literature courses this semester and our class discussion had me thinking about texts I read in another class.

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens seems to have influenced this text. For those of you who haven't read it, Oliver Twist is an orphan who gets caught up by a gang, Fagin and his gang, who steal and pickpocket for a living. Although Oliver Twist is being influenced by bad all around him, he has good morals and WANTS to do good, despite everything going on around him. Oliver Twist's life is threatened several times and is cared for by good people, for example, Mr. Brownlow. At the end of the book, Fagin and his gang die and Oliver Twist gets adopted by Mr. Brownlow, who cares for him as his own. Does this not sound like Wart/King Arthur???? He is an orphan. Merlin becomes his tutor, and he seems to love him, well that's how I view it. He overcomes battles of evil/darkness. Of course, it's not an ever after ending, but we all know he becomes a truly great and wonderful king, who is waiting in Avalon to come back and rule again.

The first picture above is a famous scene of Oliver Twist. At this point in the novel, Oliver Twist is living in a sort of foster home for boys, except, they have to work hard each day in a factory and get only one bowl of gruel, which is mostly water, than anything else. He is then punished because he asked for some more food. The two pictures of Oliver Twist and King Arthur favor one another. They both have a dirty blondish, light brownish hair color and they are both small and have skinny physiques that look like they need to eat a lot. They also both have some air of innocence about them.

The reason I said the text reminds me of Oliver Twist instead of Oliver Twist is similar to this story is because Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist in the 1800's. It came out in a serialized form in 1837-1839. After a very quick comment to our Professor, Dr. MB told me that he, Charles Dickens, influenced a lot of writers. I can see that in the text that we're reading now. Can You?

King Arthur's death???

So we're soon to be reading the death of King Arthur. I haven't read much of King Arthur, but I was wondering how he dies. There are different versions, as there are different versions of how King Arthur is portrayed. I looked it up several places and came across this picture. I thought it was really artistic and detailed.


The first myth that I found about King Arthur's death is that King Arthur found out about Lancelot and Guinevere. King Arthur went to war with Lancelot and left Mordred in charge of his castle. Mordred wanted the castle for himself. Mordred and King Arthur became involved in a sword fight, where they both killed each other.

The second myth is that King Arthur never died at all. What happens is is that King Arthur is taken to a magical island called Avalon. While on Avalon, he heals from his wounds from his sword fight with Mordred. He is now waiting (at Avalon) to return to England when the people need him the most. I also read that the disappearance of King Arthur is the most interesting.

I am definitely intrigued in hearing what happens in our texts. I cannot wait to see how King Arthur disappears or dies.

SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT

Well first off we are starting to use a different book, Le Morte Darthur (ed. Helen Cooper), some people didn't think that it was available in the college book store anymore and that we could get it from amazon. WELL, the bookstore DOES have the book, although only a few copies left.

With that being said, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, SGGK, had an interesting end to it, did it not? Some interesting topics: what was the purpose of the whole test? and did Gawain actually fail? I believe the purpose of the whole test because this story took place when King Arthur was really young and their chivalry was to be tested. Could these young knights prove Morgan Le Fay wrong??? To some degree, yes, they did. Sir Gawain confesses his sins and is only nicked for having a lack of faith. Would I have done the same thing as him? Uh, I wouldn't have gotten myself in this predicament, but if I was so foolish to do so, then yes. I would have a lack of faith and I might not have confessed my sins. Therefore, the Green Knight probably would have cut off my head. And I would be in a coffin in the green chapel probably similar to the one below:

Did Sir Gawain actually fail the test? Yes. That was the purpose of his being nicked on the neck and him wearing the green belt. It is a reminder of what he has done and for him to become a better knight. Then at the end, the belt becomes a sign of honor. Only the Knights of the Round Table can wear them.

Honestly, I don't think anyone else other than Gawain could have done a better job. I know some may say Lancelot, but he probably would have had sex with Bertilak's wife. EVERYONE, even King Arthur, thought Gawain was going to die on this journey. He proved them all wrong and only came back with a nick on the neck??? I'd say that's pretty bad ass. If I was Gawain, I probably never even wanted to make the journey to meet the Green Knight. And if I did, I would've died killing all those trolls and woodland creatures he met along the way. If I didn't die, I would've stopped after the first one. I just would not be able to do the same thing Gawain did. So kudos to him.

Hilarious saga of the mantle story

I wanted to write this before class today, but ran out of time. I really enjoyed reading about the Saga of the Mantle. I noted a couple of quotes while reading this that I found to be hilarious. The first is the beginning of the story, when King Arthur is described. "He was the most valiant man at arms, the most generous with gifts, the gentlest in words, the cleverest in his designs, the most benevolent in mercy, the most polished in good manners, the noblest in all kingly craft, godfearing in his undertakings, gentle to the good, harsh to the wicked, merciful to the needy, hospitable to the companionable, so perfect in his entire authority that neither ill will nor malice was found in him..." This quote is so dramatized, that there is no way this is describing ONE person. It seems as if the original author is describing GOD. This is absolutely hilarious to me. However, this is King Arthur and everything about these stories are over the top.

The next quote I thought was even more funny was when Kay wants his beloved to try on the mantle. He was so much faith in her loyalty to him that he doesn't even think twice about the mantle not fitting her. Low and behold, "the mantle became so short for her in back that it hardly reached the hollow of her knees; in front, however, it did not even reach the knee." Kay was absolutely embarrassed by the others, but took happiness when the other knight's beloveds did not have a victory. Kay goes on to talk about the other women stating, "I  shall not be the only one to be disgraced today because of my beloved...I can easily interpret what that means: this beautiful maiden has raised up her right leg but the left leg she let lie quietly while she allowed the man she liked to do what she wished him to do...I shall lead you a seat beside my beloved because there are no two women more alike than you two are." Once I read this, I had to stop and laugh. Kay calls her a beautiful woman, then he embarrasses her in front of everyone as if they could not see what the cloak had revealed for themselves.

At the end of the story, Karadin and his beloved triumph over everyone. He really shows the reader and the other knights what a real man is. He treated his woman with respect and loyalty. I believe this contributed to her not wandering astray from him. Although King Arthur ordered all the woman try on the mantle, she would not until she received Karadin's permission. The other knights of the court, especially Kay, embarrassed all of the women (with the exception of the last) and disrespected them. This is not one of the 31 rules of courtly love. Respect is a part of love, to me, and it goes both ways. These beloved women are stepping outside of their relationships probably because their men do not treat them the way they ought to be treated. King Arthur should set an example because in every story so far, Guinevere has cheated on Arthur. Although it does not specify in what way in this story.

I really enjoyed this story. It was short and humorous at the same time. I hope we read more stories like this one, as far as length is concerned. Many King Arthur stories are way too long for my taste. But entertaining. I also added the picture below because it reminded me of the elf who wove the mantle. 

First thoughts of King Arthur

There are several reasons I decided to take this class; I am ignorant of King Arthur and wanted to learn more about him, I thought the class would be very interesting, and I thought it would be a reasonably easy class. When I think of King Arthur I think of two things. The first would be the movie, The Black Cauldron. In my head, I picture King Arthur as showed in the picture below: 

The second would be of Camelot in the Warner Brother's version called Quest for Camelot. However, when doing the assigned reading, Arthur in Geoffrey of Monmouth, I got a totally different picture of Arthur. He controlled a lot of Europe and was described as being a giving ruler. I thought it was very deceitful of his nephew, Modred, to take over his kingdom. After reading all of the wars he had been in, my first reaction was that King Arthur's rule was finally over. He had more than enough time as a ruler and he needed a successor, although it was not right the way Modred went about it. After reading this story, I pictured King Arthur somewhat looking like in the picture to the right.

As stated earlier, I am very ignorant of King Arthur and his legends. I took a literature class last semester and we had to read Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by JRR Tolkien. I really enjoyed reading that story, which is another reason that influenced me to take this class. I look forward to learning more about King Arthur because there are so many legends about him. Plus, he seems so interesting.