Versions of Arthur Concluded, Holt

Before we move onto the Mists of Avalon, I’d like to conclude my thoughts on the age difference found from our past readings to T.H. White’s version of King Arthur.  With our presentation on “The Sword in the Stone” and T.H. White’s version of the young Arthur or ‘Wart’, we get a new perspective of Arthur in his very younger days.  He was very scrawny and naïve to most of his surroundings.  Comparing this to previous versions of Arthur where we didn’t even get to experience him as a child. I think seeing Arthur’s up and comings were a great new way of understanding Arthur and even if they are told in different versions, we’ve come to notice different tales told in a variety of versions (i.e. Dracula). It was also interesting to see Merlin in a new light. As discussed in class as previously reading being the son of the Devil, Merlin is just as real as you or me, except his a powerful magician with a tremendous beard. I enjoyed Merlin’s silly approach to things in the story, as well as Arthurs. It was a lot better than the serious Merlin in the early readings who predicted everyone’s death.   Also seeing the difference between a clean and organized Merlin (Death of Arthur) rather than a disorganized messy Merlin (Once and Future). 

Overall I felt that the “Once and Future King” version of Arthur gave me a better perspective at a more ‘real-er’ version of him. Hearing a godlier version of him in the “Death of Arthur” books felt a little too overwhelming even though the things he did were pretty badass.  I felt that the version in T.H. White’s version was more relatable only for the fact that he seemed more human and seeing him grow from a thin boy to a king, we could see his uprising and how he changed the throne and led the knights of the roundtable.  As I said in class, if I could have the best of both books combined into one Arthur, I would have envisioned my Arthur as the Aragorn type in which he had a personality, feelings, and could lead an army of undead.

-J.H

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http://arwen-undomiel.com/images/aragorn/Aragorn_poster_3.jpg

The Attempt to Disillusion Me

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What characteristics come to mind when thinking of King Arthur? Who is he as not just a King, but as a man? For me, I envision someone who is courageous and brave, which he demonstrates through the different battles he fights. He believes in fairness and equality, which is represented through the idea of the Round Table, where no one sits at the head of the table making all the Knights equal. He's a protector of his people, and as a result he has earned their respect, loyalty, and love.

Arthur is the ideal King. He is symbolic of what other Monarchs should strive to be like. He is a King who does not just cares for his people in words, but serves them in action. I think that has a lot to do with King Arthur's appeal. He seems to base his decisions on what he truly believes is in the best interest of his people and his kingdom before anything else. His actions and behaviors makes him the type leader people wish they have.

Our text, from last week, tried to disillusion me, and, thanks to Dr. Mitchell-Buck's underlining, I noticed it.  In our Who Was Arthur reading from Snyder, there was a very brief description of Arthur as a "tyrannical monarch" (15). One of the OED definitions of a tyrant is "a ruler who exercises his power in an oppressive, unjust, or cruel manner", so I never imagined King Arthur in this role.  The description in the reading actually shocked me because it was so far from the ideas of what I have had about Arthur as a King.

The Most Menacing Picture of King Arthur I could Find
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Yes, I am aware that my ideas were naive. Most rulers will have someone, somewhere who has the perspective that they are an unfair, I just never pictured it with King Arthur. However, I guess on reflecting on it, Arthur, was a King and he was a ruler. Not everyone can be happy, and someone is going to be his enemy or someone in his kingdom is going to be suffering somehow like from hunger or poverty.

                                           My other favorite Monty Python Moment
                                        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8bqQ-C1PSE

Maybe King Arthur was not the perfect King in all his stories that I have imagined, but the idea of being a tyrant is not comforting one. I like the idea of Arthur being a model of a good king. Even if he makes mistake, I like the fact that that he considers the people around him, and I do not picture a tyrant doing that. There are big differences in the images I have of King Arthur and images of tyrants. I want to keep some of those ideas I have of Arthur being good because there is a big difference from the Arthur above, with a storm around him and blood dripping off his sword, and this…

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