arthurtime-blog

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It was a very fun and interesting day at the printing press. Who would’ve thought that I actually enjoy seeing old crusty books? Overall, it was an amazing experience to be able to see and touch books made from decades ago. I was able to learn more about how sacred books during this time were, and how only those of higher class were able to get their hands on books. Talk about the social issues during these times.

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The Lady of Shalott

6/25/19

Honestly, this poem was pretty strange. I don’t understand why Shalott decides to ride in the boat if she knows that she is going to die? Is it because she wants people to find her dead in the boat?

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Ending the Affair

6/24/19

I enjoyed the fact that Arthur finally confronted Guinevere about her affair. Honestly, it is satisfying knowing that there was an end to this rumor that was spoken of in every Arthurian story. It leaves us, the readers, content.

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Testing the Woman

6/21/19

When Geraint makes Enid wear the same ugly dress she first wore, she breaks down because she feels like she is being tested again. However, Enid did nothing wrong to make Geraint test her. It is his fear that Enid will be like Guinevere that makes him test her once again. So, it makes me wonder why a man during these times is so afraid of a woman to cheat on him? The man is basically doing the same thing to her.

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Let’s Blame the Womanly Wiles Again

6/20/19

The poem, Merlin and Vivien, makes it seem that it is Vivien who entraps Merlin with her womanly wiles and leads him to his downfall, but actually it is Merlin who leads himself to his own downfall. He is the one that lets himself fall for Vivien even though he knows what she is capable of. So, why do such stories love to blame the downfall of men on women?

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Loyalty ‘Til Death

6/19/19

In the Death of Arthur, we realize that Lancelot was truly loyal to Arthur. He did sleep with his wife, but his loyalty to Arthur must have been greater than his love for Guinevere. However, how was he able to remain both feelings towards both individuals? Is it possible to be loyal to a man whose wife you are sleeping with?

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Lancelot and Guinevere

6/18/19

After reading the Tale of Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere, I have realized how toxic their relationship truly is. I say this because in past stories, it makes it seem that they are truly in love and nothing can come between them. However, in this story we realize how their relationship is on and off, and in moments they are truly in love and in others they no longer want to see each other. Although, they still end up together in the end, similar to other stories. Therefore, it makes me wonder what was the point of telling their “love story” in such a negative way if they still end up together in this story?

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Worst Knights

6/17/19

In class we talked about who are the best and worst knights from the Tale of the Sangrail. However, most of these knights are the worst; they constantly lie, betray, and kill. It makes me wonder how they end up as knights in the first place? In my opinion, they do not have all the qualities a knight should have.

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The Unnamed

6/14/19

In The Tale of Sir Gareth of Orkney, Sir Gareth did not reveal his identity throughout the beginning of the story. This makes me wonder why it was so important for him to not reveal his name? Did he want to show his honorable behavior first before showing he is a man of honor?

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Christianity in a Sword

6/13/19

It is clear that Arthur’s story is always connected to Christianity. So, it is no surprise that in Le Morte Darthur Arthur had pulled the sword from the stone behind an abandoned church. However, why do other depictions of Arthur pulling the sword from the stone are never shown to be in a church? Is this to not connect him back to Christianity? I mean, they connect Arthur to religion in every other instance, but why not here?

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The “Lesson”

6/12/19

After reading The Wife of Bath’s Tale, I cannot understand why Queen Guinevere, a woman, stopped the beheading of the knight who raped a woman. Was this to teach him a lesson? If this was the case, I believe that the knight did not learn the lesson because he was able to end up happily with a woman who is beautiful and faithful. What leads us to believe that he will not engage in raping again?

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Beautiful Women vs. Ugly Women

6/11/19

The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell showed the “courage” Gawain had to marry an ugly woman to save Arthur. However, in the end this woman becomes beautiful, and is able to look beautiful in the day and night since Gawain let her choose. They then live happily after, but why couldn’t they live happily if she remained ugly? Yes, I understand that during this time a knight had to have a beautiful woman as his wife, but did stories like this just push the narrative more that only beautiful women can be loved by men of honor and ugly women cannot?

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Sir Lancelot crossing the Sword Bridge

Lancelot du Lac, Hainaut 1344

BnF, Français 122, fol. 1r

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Anti-Feminist Writing

6/10/19

When I was reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, it seemed like a very interesting story of testing a knight’s honor. However, after today’s class I realized that it is more than just that. In fact, it marginalizes and diminishes the women characters and ultimately blames them for Sir Gawain’s failure as an honorable knight. Thus, the women are blamed and the men are forgiven. This makes me wonder if all other Arthurian readings do the same and diminish the women characters? Are all of these writers anti-feminists?

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Sir Lancelot fighting the lions

Lancelot du Lac, Hainaut 1344

BnF, Français 122, fol. 1r

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Women in Society

6/6/19

I had my fishbowl discussion today and I feel that me and my classmates were able to notice and talk about the real issue in these stories, which is the marginalization of women. Now, the manner that these stories talk about the women of this time, as they are just a prize for the men, is sad but not surprising. So, as a group we were able to talk about how the past relates to the present, and how we still see the marginalization of women to this day. Yes, we have improved but it is still there. Therefore, it makes me wonder when society will finally let us women thrive?

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WOC in Arthurian Literature

6/5/19

I noticed that the women in these readings are always described as beautifully pale, soft women. For instance, the woman in page 301 is described as having her skin “whiter than the hawthorn blossom”. We also discussed this in class, and we realized that the skin color of women signifies their social class. Paler and softer women mean that they are of higher class, but tanner women mean that they are of lower class because they are working in the sun. This is just the case with white women. Thus, it makes me wonder how women of color were seen as during this time?