Arthurian Literature in the Early Middle Ages

Arthurian Literature in the Early Middle Ages Student Name Course Title Due Date Arthurian Literature in the Early Middle Ages History writers in Britain had not thought of developing the history and achievements of their kings into legends until Welsh Cleric Geoffrey decided to write his account, commencing the Arthurian legend. The Arthurian literature majors on the history of the kings of Britain including various successes in wars. According to Geoffrey, Arthur and all the other kings who succeeded him had committed themselves to serve the nation in many ways and hence they deserved praise. Arthur is not the center of attention but he gets his name mentioned briefly in the history written about Britain. Brutus is a Trojan exile known to have founded Britain into the great nation it becomes later on in the story. Having their deeds memorized by word of mouth from one generation to another and reaching many people in the country remained a perfect solution to the problem. The story also involves other poets that gave different opinions by adding to what Welsh had presented in the original text. Geoffrey majors in the translation of his ancient story to Latin in an attempt to grant Britain a proud and remarkable past by creating a very powerful epic in literature. The topic of Arthurian legends is more fascinating in Europe than in Britain. Europeans believe in the legend’s phases of transition and change because the transformations brought significant changes politically and culturally. All the rulers acquired new methods of politics as the culture kept on changing drastically to accommodate the inventions available at that time. The mutual relationship between culture and politics described the connection between different countries and kingdoms. The people from such areas could understand the strong bond existing between battling kingdoms. The debate could not give any point of discussion or argument about the existence of Arthur. The question would not get to a debatable extension because the poets had talked about him extensively and presented his achievements in writing. The story about the legend exists even in modern society and it’s evident that the poets gave sufficient evidence to support their work. The development of the Arthurian legend is influenced by fluctuation in cultural activities. Every event is worth recording leading to a broad description of the literature. The changes also affect the style and plot employed in the writing of the literature because all the poets did their work at different times, inspired by different situations as well.[Mark, J. "The Literary Development of the Arthurian Legend." Last modified May 22, 2017. /article/1069/the-literary-development-of-the-arthurian-legend/] As a writer, Geoffrey had various shortcomings in his work but he worked very hard to make up for them through style and own imaginations to make his work appealing. The writer made sure that the events occurred progressively in the required speed to ensure that the story is interesting. Dramatic pacing would aid in making sure that the story is told to many people in a subsequent manner so that every generation in the country gets to know the history of their rulers. Arthur is first mentioned in a French court and this event means that he owned a kinship inherited from Briton. Throughout the explanation on the growth of Arthur from youth to a powerful king, Geoffrey ensures that the story does not contain unnecessary information which might bring boredom to the readers. The king gets a mandate to attend religious gatherings made to discuss future events after maturity. The author observes all the aspects of a narrative like dialogue and pacing to ensure that readers enjoy his work and also understand the theme described in the story easily. The book gave a clear description of Arthurs’ figure becoming the best sold internationally at that time. Britain is left without a king to run the issues of the state after the death of Uther. Merlin, King Uther's adviser announces that God had set a test to choose the best successor to the kingship. An enormous stone is placed before the cathedral and the king has an assignment of drawing the sword embedded in the stone. The instructions stated that no one except the king would get the drawing right. Many people tried but they failed. Arthur sees the sword on the stone and he can give the exact drawing, making him the king. The king reigns and with the advice of Merlin, he managed to become successful. Arthur received the sword from an anonymous hand that emerged from the lake meaning that he acquired some supernatural powers and favors from God. The ruler stayed in Camelot whereby he married a beautiful wife named Guinevere.[Baswell, Christopher, and William Sharpe. The Passing of Arthur: New Essays in Arthurian Tradition. Routledge, 2014.] Arthur takes the form of a great hero at the beginning whereby he wore a metal covering and helmet made of gold during wars. The garments had the sign of a virgin, meaning that the king always conquered his enemies during wars. Arthur possessed a mighty sword and a powerful weapon which he could use during battles. Geoffrey gave a transformation to the Badon hill and the place acquired a new name as The Battle of Bath. As the story continues, the king acquires a personal enemy from Saxon. At first, the leader takes an oath to stand by Arthur but unfortunately, the agreement gets broken quickly. Arthur turns the battle into a personal issue to protect his reputation and also protect the welfare of the nation in general. The major change leads to a drop in the defensive rule during the war. The battle takes another form as Arthur believes in god, getting an encouraging speech from the Archbishop. The religious leaders gave a speech encouraging the warriors to fight against winning without the fear of death. Fighters get a conviction that battles against the enemy will give them victory in heaven. Consequently, the king wins by killing a total of four hundred and seventy Saxons although a number of his men die during the war. Arthur becomes victorious and drives Cheldric from the field.[Not Panicking Ltd. "The Medieval Development of Arthurian Literature - Edited Entry." Last modified January 7, 2012. https://h2g2.com/edited_entry/A533350.] The Battle of Bath appears at the beginning of the narrative about Arthur in the ninth book. The placement changes the order of battles as given by Nennius traditionally hence Arthur does not follow the sequence presented. The king gains remarkable victory in the battle leading to a hilarious reign after the major change. The victory leads to significant development in book eleven as all the people get motivated to work towards the growth and building of the nation. The endless efforts lead to Arthur conquering Europe and Rome and at the same time. The conquering of the two states is a major achievement to the king making him the greatest at the time. Despite his great achievements, the king remained humble and grateful to his supporters and friends. The subjects in the country enjoyed desirable service under the reign of Arthur whereby he was always attentive to their needs. The development of this legend features Arthur with the same character throughout the narration.[Armstrong, D. "Arthurian Literature - Armstrong - - Major Reference Works." Last modified August 3, 2017.] Geoffrey took a further step and became the first one to introduce participants to integrate future legends. These characters appeared in the lives of the kings throughout their operations to run the state and conquer other nations. Some of the characters include Guinevere and the weapons used by Arthur like lance and sword. The context features the ruler as a mighty warrior who has mercy for his subjects. Arthur is featured as a powerful leader who seized several kingdoms and defeated people in battles like Mordred. Although the battle proved tough, the king held on to his skills despite the fatal wounds he acquired until he finally conquered the enemy. Guinevere is left with no option than to obey the holy order by taking the required vows. As the first writer of the history of legends in Britain, Geoffrey whose origin is Monmouth gets addressed as the Father of the Arthurian Legend. The great work done by the man is greatly recognized by everyone in the state. The texts presented today occur in the form of Geoffrey's Latin name Galfridius. The Latin expressions give the story clear definitions enabling...