Tennyson and Arthurian Legend

Idylls of the King:

“The Passing of Arthur”

Arthurian Legend

• Body of myths about legendary King Arthur—supposedly ruled England in 5th century AD

• Camelot, capitol of Arthur’s nation—symbolized ideal of national harmony

• Knights of the Round Table, Arthur’s order of knighthood—knights were dedicated to fighting for moral purposes

Arthurian Legend

• Lancelot, Arthur’s greatest knight and best friend—had love affair with Arthur’s wife Guinivere

• Loss of Round Table’s moral values—led to civil war and destruction of Camelot

Victorian Revival of Arthurian Legend

What did the legend of Arthur mean to Victorians?

Background: Joseph Noel Paton. I Wonder Who lived in There?

• Heroic inspiration for progress

• Nostalgic connection to past greatness

• Warning about loss of traditional values

• Sense of order and national identity in a time of threatening change

Idylls of the King

• Idyll—narrative poem treating a romantic theme

• Tennyson wrote 12 separate Idylls based on Arthurian legend

• Published as a collection in 1888• Intended as a modern epic• Expresses need for moral order to

survive in the face of change

“The Passing of Arthur”The Final Idyll

p. 1293

• Recounts final battle of civil war that destroyed Arthur’s kingdom

• Narrated by Sir Bedivere, Arthur’s First and Last Knight

• Modred, Arthur’s corrupt nephew, revealed Lancelot and Guinevere’s affair, usurped Arthur’s throne, and instigated civil war

Introduction

• Arthur laments that his kingdom has returned to chaos but continues to fight evil despite defeat (Christ figure)

• Sir Gawaine’s ghost warns Arthur of his passing (loss of spiritual values)

• Arthur kills Modred but receives a mortal wound

The Battle

• Sir Bedivere tries 3 times to return Excalibur to Lady of the Lake

• Arthur passes away to Avilion, promising to return again

• Claims that the loss of his order will lead to a new and better order

Arthur’s Passing

The Once and Future King

Tennyson’s Message

• In times of change and loss, keep the faith in moral order

• While cultures and traditions change, a greater, divine order remains

• Remaining true to the greater order can cause growth and progress to come from destructive change

Monty Python and the Holy Grail1974

• Reflects a 20th-century, postmodern attitude to notion of an orderly universe

• Satirizes forms of order—political, religious, military, etc.

• Influence of Theater of the Absurd– Life is absurd, without fixed meaning/absolute

truth– Responds to life’s absurdity with bizarre satiric

humor