BOOK ANALYSIS

Plot overview | Characters |

Themes, Motifs and
Imagery | Analysis

Submitted to:
Prof. Vicky Bacani

Submitted by:
Caligagan, Bianca Viel T.

BEOWULF
INTRODUCTION

Beowulf probably was composed in England sometime in the eighth

century ad and written down circa1000 ad by a literate scop (bard) or perhaps
a Christian scribe who was possibly educated in a monastery. The poem was
created in the oral-formulaic tradition (or oral poetic method), probably
developing over a period of time with roots in folk tales and traditional stories
until a single, very talented poet put it in something very near its current form.1
SETTING
5th or 6th Century Scandinavia
-

characterized as BRUTE FORCE: Different tribes, such as the Geats, the Danes,
and the Swedes, lived in constant warfare with one another. Kings were little
more than local strong men who had a lot of treasure and some powerful
warlords to back them up. Pretty much everyone could expect to die in battle, or
in a raid from a neighboring tribe. Blood-feuds between tribes and revenge
killings were common. Boasting, or telling everyone about your prowess as a
warrior, was an important part of heroic conductas was paying rewards to your
followers with golden rings and armor. For the warriors in the highest circles of
society, life was made up of feasts, drinking, boasting, bloody battles, the spoils
of war, and an untimely death. If you were a peasant, it was even more brutal
than that. But there aren't very many peasants in heroic epics like Beowulf.

SUMMARY
Beowulfs story begins during the reign of King Hrothgar of Denmark who enjoys a
prosperous and successful reign. Wherein he builds a great mead-hall, called Heorot.
However, there comes now the villain of the story - The jubilant noise from Heorot
angers a horrible demon, Grendel who lives in the swamplands of Hrothgars kingdom.
Grendel terrorizes the Danes every night, puts the men to death, defeating their efforts
to fight back. The Danes suffer many years of fear, danger, and death at the hands of
Grendel. Eventually, however, a young Geatish warrior named Beowulf hears of
1 http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/b/beowulf/about-beowulf

Hrothgars plight. Challenged, Beowulf sails to Denmark with a small company of men,
determined to defeat Grendel.

Hrothgar, who had once done a great favor for Beowulfs father Ecgtheow,
accepts Beowulfs offer to fight Grendel and holds a feast in the heros honor. During the
feast, an envious Dane named Unferth taunts Beowulf and accuses him of being
unworthy of his reputation. Beowulf responds with a boastful description of some of his
past accomplishments. His confidence cheers the Danish warriors, and the feast lasts
merrily into the night. At last, however, Grendel arrives. Beowulf fights him unarmed,
proving himself stronger than the demon. As Grendel struggles to escape, Beowulf tears
the monsters arm off. Mortally wounded, Grendel slinks back into the swamp to die.
The severed arm is hung high in the mead-hall as a trophy of victory. Hrothgar showers
Beowulf with gifts and treasure at a feast in his honor. Songs are sung in praise of
Beowulf, and the celebration lasts late into the night. But another threat is approaching.
Grendels mother, a swamp-hag who lives in a desolate lake, comes to Heorot
seeking revenge for her sons death. She murders Aeschere, one of Hrothgars most
trusted advisers, before slinking away. To avenge Aescheres death, the company
travels to the murky swamp, where Beowulf dives into the water and fights Grendels
mother in her underwater lair. He kills her with a sword forged for a giant, then, finding
Grendels corpse, decapitates it and brings the head as a prize to Hrothgar.The Danes
are again overjoyed, and Beowulfs fame spreads across the kingdom. Beowulf departs
after a sorrowful goodbye to Hrothgar, who has treated him like a son. He returns to
Geatland, where he and his men are reunited with their king and queen, Hygelac and
Hygd, to whom Beowulf recounts his adventures in Denmark. Beowulf then hands over
most of his treasure to Hygelac, who, in turn, rewards him.
Hygelac is killed in a war against the Shylfings, and, after Hygelacs son dies,
Beowulf ascends to the throne of the Geats. He rules wisely for fifty years, bringing
prosperity to Geatland. When Beowulf became an old man, however, a thief disturbs a
barrow, or mound, where a great dragon lies guarding a horde of treasure. Enraged, the
dragon emerges from the barrow and begins unleashing fiery destruction upon the
Geats. Sensing his own death approaching, Beowulf goes to fight the dragon. With the
aid of Wiglaf, he succeeds in killing the beast, but at a heavy cost. The dragon bites
Beowulf in the neck, and its fiery venom kills him moments after their encounter.
CHARACTERS
1. Beowulf the ultimate hero
2. Grendel- His nature is accompanied by ambiguity. Despite his animal attributes
and a grotesque, monstrous appearance, he seems to be guided by human

emotions and impulses, and he shows more of an interior life than one might
expect.
3. Hrothgar- the aged ruler of the Danes who accepts Beowulfs help in the first
part of the story, aids Beowulfs development into maturity. Hrothgar is a relatively
static character, a force of stability in the social realm.

THEMES
1. The Importance of Establishing Identity- the concept of identity of which the
two principal components to wit: ancestral heritage and individual reputationis
clearly central to the poem. The opening passages introduce the reader to a
world in which every male figure is known as his fathers son. Characters in the
poem are unable to talk about their identity or even introduce themselves without
referring to family lineage. This concern with family history is so prominent
because of the poems emphasis on kinship bonds.
2. Heroism and the Values - Beowulf is devoted to articulating and illustrating the
Germanic heroic code, which values strength, courage, and loyalty in warriors;
hospitality, generosity, and political skill in kings; ceremoniousness in women;
and good reputation in all people.
MOTIFS
1. Monsters these referred to birth defects, which were always understood as an
ominous sign from Goda sign of transgression or of bad things to come, in
Medieval Era. The monsters, Beowulf must fight in this Old English poem shape
the poems plot and seem to represent an inhuman or alien presence in society
that must be exorcised for the societys safety. They are all outsiders, existing
beyond the boundaries of human realms. Grendels and his mothers
encroachment upon human societythey wreak havoc in Heorotforces
Beowulf to kill the two beasts for order to be restored.
2. The Oral Tradition- Beowulf itself contributes to the tradition of oral celebration
of cultural heroes. Like Homers Iliad and Odyssey, Beowulf was passed on orally
over many generations before being written down.
3. The Mead-Hall - The poem contains two examples of mead-halls: Hrothgars
great hall of Heorot, in Denmark, and Hygelacs hall in Geatland. Both function as
important cultural institutions that provide light and warmth, food and drink, and
singing and revelry. Historically, the mead-hall represented a safe haven for
warriors returning from battle, a small zone of refuge within a dangerous and
precarious external world that continuously offered the threat of attack by
neighboring peoples. The mead-hall was also a place of community, where
traditions were preserved, loyalty was rewarded, and, perhaps most important,
stories were told and reputations were spread.

SYMBOLS
1. The Golden Torque- The collar or necklace that Wealhtheow gives Beowulf is a
symbol of the bond of loyalty between her people and Beowulfand, by
extension, the Geats. Its status as a symbolic object is renewed when we learn
that Hygelac died in battle wearing it, furthering the ideas of kinship and
continuity.
2. Banquet - The great banquet represents the restoration of order and harmony to
the Danish people. The preparation involves the rebuilding of the damaged
mead-hall, which, in conjunction with the banquet itself, symbolizes the rebirth of
the community.

ANALYSIS
Majestic, Grandiose, Gruesome
Apart from the poetic qualities of the alliterative verse in which Beowulf is written
the epic has a grand, majestic style that seems to lift you up as you read it. Beowulf isn't
just a hero, he's a "prince of goodness". Grendel isn't just a demon, he's a "captain of
evil". Beowulf isn't just trying to win a wrestling contest for the Danes, he's going to
"ease their afflictions". In Beowulf, you never just take off a necklace; you unclasp a
collar of gold from your neck in your great-heartedness.
Sometimes all this grandeur and majesty gives way to gruesome descriptions of
violent deaths. Grendel doesn't just eat a man; he "bit into his bone-lappings, bolted
down his blood / and gorged on him in lumps"

SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT

INTRODUCTION
Sir Gawain and The Green Knight is a poem which form part of the medieval
romance tradition, that means it focuses on the journey or quest of a single knight (here,
Sir Gawain) and what he learns about himself and his culture in the process of pursuing
a great adventure. The noble Gawain accepts the challenge of a mysterious knight.
The poem was written in northwestern England in the late 14th century, meaning
the 1300s. Old as it is, Sir Gawain was written in English. It's written in a dialect of
Middle English called North West Midland. Middle English was a much less
standardized language than modern English is today.

SUMMARY
At King Arthurs court, specifically New Years eve, a strange figure, referred to
only as the Green Knight, pays the court an unexpected visit. He challenges the groups
leader or any other brave representative to a game. The Green Knight says that he will
allow whomever accepts the challenge to strike him with his own axe, on the condition
that the challenger find him in exactly one year to receive a blow in return.
Arthur hesitates to respond, but when the Green Knight mocks Arthurs silence,
the king steps forward to take the challenge. As soon as Arthur grips the Green Knights
axe, Sir Gawain leaps up and asks to take the challenge himself. He takes hold of the
axe and, in one deadly blow, cuts off the knights head. To the amazement of the court,
the now-headless Green Knight picks up his severed head. Before riding away, the
head reiterates the terms of the pact, reminding the young Gawain to seek him in a year
and a day at the Green Chapel. After the Green Knight leaves, the company goes back
to its festival, but Gawain is uneasy.
On the Day of All Saints, Gawain prepares to leave Camelot and find the Green
Knight. He puts on his best armor, mounts his horse, Gringolet, and starts off toward
North Wales, traveling through the wilderness of northwest Britain. Gawain encounters
all sorts of beasts, suffers from hunger and cold, and grows more desperate as the days
pass. On Christmas Day, he prays to find a place to hear Mass, then looks up to see a
castle shimmering in the distance. The lord of the castle welcomes Gawain warmly,
introducing him to his lady and to the old woman who sits beside her. For sport, the host
(whose name is later revealed to be Bertilak) strikes a deal with Gawain: the host will go
out hunting with his men every day, and when he returns in the evening, he will

exchange his winnings for anything Gawain has managed to acquire by staying behind
at the castle. Gawain happily agrees to the pact, and goes to bed.
The first day, the lord hunts a herd of does, while Gawain sleeps late in his
bedchambers. On the morning of the first day, the lords wife sneaks into Gawains
chambers and attempts to seduce him. Gawain puts her off, but before she leaves she
steals one kiss from him. That evening, when the host gives Gawain the venison he has
captured, Gawain kisses him, since he has won one kiss from the lady. The second day,
the lord hunts a wild boar. The lady again enters Gawains chambers, and this time she
kisses Gawain twice. That evening Gawain gives the host the two kisses in exchange
for the boars head. The third day, the lord hunts a fox, and the lady kisses Gawain
three times. She also asks him for a love token, such as a ring or a glove. Gawain
refuses to give her anything and refuses to take anything from her, until the lady
mentions her girdle. The green silk girdle she wears around her waist is no ordinary
piece of cloth, the lady claims, but possesses the magical ability to protect the person
who wears it from death. Intrigued, Gawain accepts the cloth, but when it comes time to
exchange his winnings with the host, Gawain gives the three kisses but does not
mention the ladys green girdle. The host gives Gawain the fox skin he won that day,
and they all go to bed happy, but weighed down with the fact that Gawain must leave for
the Green Chapel the following morning to find the Green Knight.
New Years Day arrives, and Gawain dons his armor, including the girdle, then
sets off with Gringolet to seek the Green Knight. A guide accompanies him out of the
estate grounds. When they reach the border of the forest, the guide promises not to tell
anyone if Gawain decides to give up the quest. Gawain refuses, determined to meet his
fate head-on. Eventually, he comes to a kind of crevice in a rock, visible through the tall
grasses. He hears the whirring of a grindstone, confirming his suspicion that this
strange cavern is in fact the Green Chapel. Gawain calls out, and the Green Knight
emerges to greet him. Intent on fulfilling the terms of the contract, Gawain presents his
neck to the Green Knight, who proceeds to feign two blows. On the third feint, the
Green Knight nicks Gawains neck, barely drawing blood. Angered, Gawain shouts that
their contract has been met, but the Green Knight merely laughs. The Green Knight
reveals his name, Bertilak, and explains that he is the lord of the castle where Gawain
recently stayed. Because Gawain did not honestly exchange all of his winnings on the
third day, Bertilak drew blood on his third blow. Nevertheless, Gawain has proven
himself a worthy knight, without equal in all the land.
When Gawain questions Bertilak further, Bertilak explains that the old woman at
the castle is really Morgan le Faye, Gawains aunt and King Arthurs half sister. She sent
the Green Knight on his original errand and used her magic to change Bertilaks
appearance. Relieved to be alive but extremely guilty about his sinful failure to tell the
whole truth, Gawain wears the girdle on his arm as a reminder of his own failure. He

returns to Arthurs court, where all the knights join Gawain, wearing girdles on their arms
to show their support.

CHARACTERS
1. Sir Gawain - his modest claim to inferiority and his high status at courthe is
Arthurs nephew and one of Camelots most famous knightstestify to both his
humility and his ambition. Gawain seeks to improve his inner self throughout the
poem. After Gawain arrives at Bertilaks castle in Part 2, it is evident that his
reputation is quite widespread. To Gawain, his public reputation is as important
as his own opinion of himself, and he therefore insists on wearing the green
girdle as a sign of shame at the storys end. He believes that sins should be as
visible as virtues.
2. The Green Knight a mysterious, supernatural creature. He rides into Arthurs
court on New Years Eve almost as if summoned by the kings request to hear a
marvelous story. His supernatural characteristics, such as his ability to survive
decapitation and his green complexion, immediately mark him as a foreboding
figure

THEMES
1. Chivalry and its Nature Christian ideals of morality and knightly chivalry are
brought together in Gawains symbolic shield. The pentangle represents the five
virtues of knights: friendship, generosity, chastity, courtesy, and piety. Gawains
adherence to these virtues is tested throughout the poem, but the poem
examines more than Gawains personal virtue; it asks whether heavenly virtue
can operate in a fallen world. What is really being tested in Sir Gawain and the
Green Knight might be the chivalric system itself, symbolized by Camelot.
2. The Letter of the Law The Green Knight refers to his challenge as a game,
he uses the language of the law to bind Gawain into an agreement with him. He
repeatedly uses the word covenant, meaning a set of laws, a word that evokes
the two covenants represented by the Old and the New Testaments. Throughout
most of the poem, the covenant between Gawain and the Green Knight evokes
the literal kind of legal enforcement that medieval Europeans might have
associated with the Old Testament. The Green Knight at first seems concerned
solely with the letter of the law. Even though he has tricked Gawain into their
covenant, he expects Gawain to follow through on the agreement. And Gawain,
though he knows that following the letter of the law means death, is determined
to see his agreement through to the end because he sees this as his knightly
duty.
SYMBOLS
1. The Pentangle - A symbol of truth, the star has five points that link and lock with
each other, forming what is called the endless knot. Each line of the pentangle
passes over one line and under one line, and joins the other two lines at its ends.
The pentangle symbolizes the virtues to which Gawain aspires: to be faultless in
his five senses; never to fail in his five fingers; to be faithful to the five wounds
that Christ received on the cross; to be strengthened by the five joys that the
Virgin Mary had in Jesus (the Annunciation, Nativity, Resurrection, Ascension,
and Assumption); and to possess brotherly love, courtesy, piety, and chastity. The
side of the shield facing Gawain contains an image of the Virgin Mary to make
sure that Gawain never loses heart.
2. The Green Girdle - It is made out of green silk and embroidered with gold
thread, colors that link it to the Green Knight. She claims it possesses the power
to keep its wearer from harm, but we find out in Part 4 that the girdle has no
magical properties. After the Green Knight reveals his identity as the host,

Gawain curses the girdle as representing cowardice and an excessive love of

mortal life. He wears it from then on as a badge of his sinfulness. To show their
support, Arthur and his followers wear green silk baldrics that look just like
Gawains girdle.
THE CANTERBURY TALES
( by Geoffrey Chaucer)
INTRODUCTION
The Canterbury Tales is a story about a storytelling competition, many of the
questions it asks are about stories, to wit: What makes for a good story? Why do we tell
stories? Why should we tell stories? As the pilgrims tell their stories, though, they turn
out to be talking not just about fairytale people in far-off lands, but also about
themselves and their society. This leads to a lot of conflict in a group of pilgrims formed
by members of that same society, who often take offense at the versions of themselves
they see portrayed in the tales.
Records disclose that Geoffrey Chaucer most likely wrote The Canterbury Tales
late 1380s and early 1390s, after his retirement from life as a civil servant. In this
professional life, Chaucer was able to travel from his home in England to France and
Italy. There, he not only had the chance to read Italian and French literature, but
possibly, even to meet Boccaccio, whose Decamerona collection of tales told by
Italian nobility holed up in a country house to escape the plague ravaging their city
may have inspired the frame story of The Canterbury Tales.2
SETTING: In a tavern outside England, April (Springtime)

SUMMARY
People in England gather at the Tabard Inn in preparation for a piligrimage to
Canterbury, the purpose eof which is to receive the blessings of St. Thomas a Becket,
the English martyr. In the said pilgrim, Chaucer is one of them. They are composed of
twenty-nine. The host of the inn suggested that each member of the group share tales
on the way to Canterbury in order to make time pass more pleasantly. Hence, the story
begins and ended by each and every person in the Pilgrim sharing their own tale.
The first one to tell story is The Knight its about a noble story about knights
and honor and love. After he finishes his story the Host calls upon the Monk. The
2 http://www.shmoop.com/canterbury-tales-prologue

drunken Miller, however, insists that it is his turn, and he proceeds to tell a story about a
stupid carpenter. At the end of his story, everyone roars with laughter except the
Reeve, who had once been a carpenter. To get back at the Miller, the Reeve tells a
lowbrow story about a cheating miller. At the end of The Reeve's Tale, the Cook, Roger,
promises to tell a true story, but he doesn't complete his tale.
The following day, the Host calls upon the Man of Law for the next tale, he
proceeds to tell the tale of Constancy. The next one to share is the Shipman. The Wife
of Bath is the next to tell a story, and she begins by claiming that happy marriages occur
only when a wife has sovereignty over her husband. When the Wife of Bath finishes her
story, the Friar offers his own tale about a summoner. The Host, however, always the
peacekeeper, admonishes the Friar to let the Summoner alone. The Summoner
interrupts and says the Friar can do as he likes and will be repaid with a tale about a
friar. Nevertheless, the Friar's tale about a summoner makes the Summoner so angry
that he tells an obscene story about the fate of all friars and then continues with an
obscene tale about one friar in particular.
After the Friar and Summoner finish their insulting stories about each other, the
Host turns to the Clerk and asks for a lively tale. The Clerk tells a story about Griselda
and her patience it is a story that depicts the exact opposite of The Wife of Bath's
Tale. The Merchant comments that he has no wife as patient and sweet as Griselda and
tells of tale of a young wife who cheats on her old husband. After the Merchant's tale,
the Host requests another tale about love and turns to the Squire. He tells about
supernatural events, however he was interrupted by a certain Franklin who complimens
the Squire on his eloquence and gentility. The Host, interested only get in getting the
next story told, commands the Franklin to begin his tale, which he does. Franklin tells of
a happy marriage.
The next to offer a tale is The Physician, he tells a tragic woe of a father and
daughter a story that upsets the Host so much that he requests a merry tale from the
Pardoner.
THE PARDONERS TALE
The Pardoner tells a tale in which he proves that, even though he is not a moral man,
he can tell a moral tale. At the end of the tale, the Pardoner invites the pilgrims to buy
relics and pardons from him and suggests that the Host should begin because he is the
most sinful. This comment infuriates the Host; the Knight intercedes between the Host
and the Pardoner and restores peace.
Now its Chaucers time to share a story, he was going to share something about
a person named Sir Topas when he is soon interrupted by the Host, who exclaims
that he is tired of the jingling rhymes and wants Chaucer to tell a little something in
prose. Chaucer complies with the boring story of Melibee.After the tale of Melibee, the
merry Monk relates a series of tales in which tragedy befalls everyone. It was followed
by Nun's Priest tale of the barnyard rooster, Chaunticleer, his lady, and a fox while the

Second Nun retold the life events of St. Cecilia.Thereafter, two men approach the
pilgrims. One is a canon; the other his yeoman (servant). The Host welcomes them and
asks whether either has a tale to share.
As the party nears Canterbury, the Host demands a story from the Manciple, who
tells of a white crow that can sing and talk.
Finally, the Host turns to the last of the group, the Parson, and bids him to tell his
tale. The Parson agrees and proceeds with a sermon. The Tales end with Chaucer's
retraction.
CHAUCERS RETRACTION
Chaucer requested his readers 1) to credit Jesus Christ: as the inspiration for
anything in his book and 2) to attribute what they dont like to his own ignorance and
lack of ability.
He then retracts and prays for forgiveness for all of his works dealing with secular
and pagan subjects, asking only- that he may be remembered for what he has written
of saints lives and homilies.
ANALYSIS
Writing Style: Poetry rhyming couplets in iambic pentameter
The style of The Canterbury Tales is characterized by rhyming couplets. That
means that every two lines rhyme with each other. It's also in iambic pentameter, the
same style as Shakespeare.
So many of Chaucer's pilgrims are not what they appear or what, in a perfect
world, they would be. The Pardoner pretends to be a holy man intent on saving souls
with his relics; in reality he's a money-grubbing liar. The Friar should be living a life of
poverty and chastity; instead he's living the high life with rich people and whores. The
darkness that is oppressing the pilgrims is no one person or figure, but rather a general
state of sinfulness.
Various conflicts erupt between the pilgrims on the course of the pilgrimage: The
Miller gets drunk and interrupts the Host's proposed order of tale-tellers; the Miller's tale
offends the Reeve, who tells a tale that offends the Miller. The Pardoner and the
Summoner take cheap shots at one another and tell tales to offend each other.
The pilgrims' pride and sinfulness brings them into conflict with one another as
the pilgrimage progresses. The 'felaweshipe' that is the goal of any group of pilgrims
eludes these ones despite the Host's and others' best efforts to ensure it, because
these pilgrims' sinfulness puts them into a state of division.

The State of Joyful Union doesn't really happen in The Canterbury Tales because
the work is incomplete. The "resolutions" of the various conflicts that occur between the
pilgrims are not really resolutions at all, just containment of anger that's still present
because sinfulness is still present. Since the pilgrims never arrive at Canterbury, which
is where their sins would be cleansed, they never reach a state of joyful union. The
whole point of a pilgrimage is to receive absolution for your sins and thus, perfect union
with God. This perfect union with God would also lead to perfect union with your fellow
Christians. The pilgrims would at last be able to achieve perfect fellowship. But since we
never get to see them reach Canterbury, we never get to see them in a state of joyful
union.
THEMES

1. Pervasiveness of Courtly Love - Some of the roles of the characters in the

story are defined by their religious or economic functions which integrate the
cultural ideals of courtly love into their dress, their behavior, and the tales they
tell, in order to give a slightly different twist to their roles. This appeared from the
tales shared by the Squire (whos practically a parody of the traditional courtly
lover) and the Prioress, a nun who sports a Love Conquers All brooch.
- Courtly love was a medieval European literary conception of love that
emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of
knights setting out on adventures and performing various services for ladies
because of their "courtly love."3

2. Importance of Company - The pilgrims come from different parts of society

the court, the Church, villages, the feudal manor system. To prevent discord, the
pilgrims create an informal company, in the sense that none of them belongs to
the nobility, and most have working professions, whether that work be sewing
and marriage (say for i.e the Wife of Bath), entertaining visitors with gourmet food
(the Franklin), or tilling the earth (the Plowman).

3. Wealth - Since The Canterbury Tales are set in a time of economic transition for
medieval society, money and wealth play a very big role here, particularly in the
portraits of the pilgrims. We see the things money can buy in the descriptions of
the clothes people are wearing, the horses they're on, and the gadgets they've
got. And we learn about the ways people can make money in portraits of
characters like the Merchant, the Tradesmen, or the Wife of Bath. We also hear a
lot about the way characters can steal or cheat their way to money, as the Reeve
or Pardoner do. In many of the portraits, we witness the way that skill with
money-handling can lead to power, deserved or otherwise, and the way lack of
concern for money (the Clerk) can be just as troubling as excessive greed
(almost all the other characters). Most often, when the Tales talk about money,
3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courtly_love

it's to question the ethics of a particular character's relationship to it, particularly

in the case of the religious characters who have taken vows of poverty.

MOTIFS
1. Romance
2. Comical
3. Adventure
SYMBOLS
1. Clothing - The Wife of Bath's red stockings probably symbolize her lustful
nature, and her large hat represents her love of fashion and luxury. Some
characters, like the Merchant or the Pardoner, reveal their concern with the latest
fashions in the way they dress and style their hair. Most often, pilgrims' clothing
symbolizes their possession or lack of money in how fancy or simple it is.
2. Springtime The pilgrimage begins in Spring. Springtime here is a symbol of
beginnings. And the beginning of things is exactly what the poem emphasizes in
its description of springtime, it talks about how the wind spreads the seeds that
peek their heads above the soil as they begin to grow into crops, and how birds
begin their mating season.
3. Physiognomy as defined from Merriams Webster Dictionary, Physiognomy is
the art of discovering temperament and character from outward appearance. For
this reason, various physical features in the pilgrim's portraits are symbols of
certain character traits. The Wife of Bath's gap teeth are a symbol of sexuality, as
are the Miller's red beard and hair. The Pardoner's beady eyes and long, limp
hair are symbols of duplicity or deceitfulness. Broad, earthy features like the
Miller's symbolize lower-class status. Since these symbols were a part of their
culture, a medieval person would likely immediately have recognized the
significance of the physical traits in the pilgrims' portraits.4

4 http://www.shmoop.com/canterbury-tales-prologue/symbol-physical-features-symbol.html

LE MORTE D ARTHUR
(THE DEATH OF ARTHUR by SIR THOMAS MALLORY)

INTRODUCTION
Le Morte d'Arthur tells the story of King Arthur and his Knights at the Round Table.
Arthur, who is son of King Uther Pendragon but was raised by another family, takes his
rightful place as king when, as a boy, he is able to pull the sword called Excalibur from
the stone. Although he rules wisely and is counseled by Merlin the magician, Arthur
makes enemies of other kings and is often at war.
Le Morte d'Arthur,completed in 1469 or 1470 and printed by Caxton in abridged
form in 1485, is the first major work of prose fiction in English and remains today one of
the greatest. It is the carefully constructed myth of the rise and fall of a powerful
kingdom a legendary kingdom, but perhaps also, obliquely, the real English kingdom
which in Malory's day seemed as surely doomed by its own corruption as the ancient
realm of King Arthur. Malory's myth explores the forces which bring kingdoms into being
and the forces, internal and external, which destroy them. The power of the myth goes
beyond whatever political implications it had in its day-set tip in, for instance, the
parallels Malory introduced between Arthur's reign and the reign of Henry V. Malory's
grim vision has relevance for any kingdom or civilization: the very forces which make
civilization necessary must in the end, if Malory is right, bring it to ruin. 5
SETTING: England, Rome and Ancestral lands of France
SUMMARY
King Uther of England falls in love with Igrayne, the wife of one of his servants. With the
help of the wizard Merlin, he disguises himself as her husband and sleeps with her,
conceiving a son, Arthur. Arthur is hidden away with another of Arthur's vassals, Sir
Ector, until one New Year's Day some time after Uther's death. Then, Arthur manages to
pull a sword from a stone bearing an inscription that declares that anyone who can get
that sword out becomes the King of England. Some grumbling of powerful barons and
lords ensues, but by Pentecost, Arthur has been installed as the king.
Arthur's reign begins in turmoil as an alliance of twelve northern kings, led by
Arthur's uncle King Lot of Orkeney, disputes his kingship. King Lot dies, however, in a
fight with Sir Pellynore, and Arthur solidifies his kingship by marrying Gwenyvere, who
brings with her a round table with room for 150, including 100 knights. With Arthur
5 http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/l/le-morte-darthur/about-le-morte-darthur

supplying forty-nine more men and a seat left for one as-yet-unknown, the fellowship of
the Round Table is born. And just in time, too, because soon after this, Arthur receives a
demand for tribute from Lucius, Emperor of Rome. At the advice of his nobles, he goes
to war with him, wins, and becomes emperor of Rome. Nice work, Artie. On his way
home, he makes all the lands he passes through become part of his kingdom. At this
point, the story diverges from Arthur to focus on a few of his knights.
"Sir Gareth of Orkeney" recounts the arrival in Arthur's court one day of a
mysterious young man who begins life there as a kitchen knave. This new guy soon
proves his worth in a series of battles with a family of knights, through which the lucky
duck wins a wife. The young man turns out to be none other than Sir Gareth, Arthur's
nephew and the brother of Sirs Gaheris, Aggravayne, and Mordred.
"The Fyrste and the Secunde Boke of Syr Trystram de Lyones" tells the story of
Sir Trystram, a Cornish knight whose love for the beautiful Isode gets him into trouble,
since she happens to be the wife of his uncle, King Mark .
Finally, the focus returns to Arthur's court with "The Noble Tale of the Sankgreal."
Here, Arthur's knights ride off in a search of the Holy Grail, the cup from which Jesus
drank at the last supper, which possesses some seriously miraculous powers. All the
knights long for even just a glimpse of the Grail, but only Galahad, Percyvale, and Bors
the knights who are chaste and pure, after all are able to see it.
Launcelot, the "best knight in the world" in all other ways, discovers that the
energy he has wasted on earthly glory and love don't do him any good in this spiritual
quest, so the Grail is not for him. Yet Launcelot's back in full form with "The Tale of Sir
Launcelot and Quene Gwenyvere," in which he successfully defends Gwenyvere
against a charge of poisoning and rescues her from the evil clutches of Sir
Mellyagaunce.
However, All good things must come to an end, and "The Death of Arthur" finds
Launcelot and Gwenyvere's illicit love exposed by Sirs Aggravayne and Mordred, who
have some seriously sinister motives. Rather than let the Queen be burned at the stake,
Launcelot rescues her, accompanied by an alliance of knights who take his side rather
than Arthur's. In the battle to save Gwenyvere, Launcelot accidentally kills Sirs Gareth
and Gaheris. These deaths cause Sir Gawain, their brother, to goad Arthur into war with
Launcelot, in the hope of avenging them. Arthur and his forces besiege Launcelot's
castle in France, leaving England in Sir Mordred's hands. Mordred forges letters
claiming that Arthur has died, and declares himself king. Arthur must return to England
to take control back from Mordred. Soon after his return, Arthur and Mordred kill one
another in the Battle of Salisbury Plain.6
6 http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/l/le-morte-darthur/book-summary

THEMES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Loyalty
Vengeance
Love
Rules and Order
Strength and Skill
Traditions and Customs

SYMBOLISM

1. Swords - Armor in general is pretty important to one's identity, and the

significance of the sword is a part of that, too. Remember that a knight is
recognizable on the battlefield only by his armor, which leads to a whole lot of
unfortunate cases of mistaken identity for knights who lose or swap theirs. A
knight's coat of arms, or the markings on his shield, tells everyone who sees it
what family he belongs to. His sword, on the other hand, tells others who he
is as an individual, and his role in Camelot.
2. Rudderless Boats- In Christian-influenced medieval literature, the rudderless
boat represents the good Christian's sacrifice of his will to God. By boarding
the rudderless boat, the Christian signals that he's putting himself completely
in God's hands. In that sense, these boats aren't rudderless at all they're
steered by God.
3. Holy Grail - The idea of a cup that bestows favorite foods, smells, and sights
symbolizes the presence of God. To a medieval Christian, being in God's
presence was pretty much the most wonderful thing you could imagine, and
the way to express this wonder was through the most pleasurable things
like food, smells, and sights you could possibly imagine. When Arthur's
knights head off on the Grail Quest, then, they aren't just on a quest for some
more of that yummy roasted boar. They're trying to achieve unity with God by
being in his presence, represented by full sight of the Grail. If the Grail
represents unity with God, or God's presence, the quest itself represents the
life of the Christian as he struggles toward that unity. On the quest, the
knights face all kinds of difficult choices, like when Bors has to decide
between saving his brother, Lionel, or a damsel in distress. They're faced with
temptation, like when Percyvale almost succumbs to the charms of a sexy

lady only to be pulled back from the brink at the very last minute. How they
make these choices helps us see whether or not they're worthy of the Grail.

ANALYSIS
A young, unknown boy named Arthur becomes King of England, and his noble
parentage as the son of King Uther is revealed. He defeats an alliance of twelve
northern kings who contest his succession. The big challenge for Arthur at this point is
simply to establish his legitimacy as king. He accomplishes this when Merlin verifies his
parentage and he defeats the alliance of kings who are still protesting his succession.
But just proving legitimacy is not all it takes to be a great king more is left to be
accomplished, and that's where Arthur turns his attentions next.
With his marriage to Gwenyvere, who brings with her a round table and whole
boatload of knights, Arthur enters the beginning of his golden period. He has 150
knights who not only swear allegiance to him, but also swear an oath to uphold certain
rules of chivalry. These knights travel all over the kingdom winning renown for and
bringing glory to Arthur.
Arthur ignores the love between Launcelot and Gwenyvere, and he fails to
protect Lamerok from murder at the hands of Lot's sons. Fractures appear among his
knights. Arthur's unwillingness to confront Launcelot and Gwenyvere over their love,
despite obvious evidence, will eventually be responsible for the total downfall of his rule,
as will his failure to put an end to the feud between the families of Lot and Pellynore.
The nightmare stage: Aggravayne and Mordred expose Launcelot and
Gwenyvere, forcing Arthur to bring Gwenyvere to justice. In the ensuing battle, the
factions in Arthur's court face off. Gawain convinces Arthur to go to war with Launcelot,
and while they are in France, Mordred takes control of Arthur's kingdom. Aggravayne
and Mordred's decision to expose Launcelot and Gwenyvere moves all decision-making
power out of Arthur's hands; if he fails to punish her and Launcelot, he'll look like a weak
king. Arthur's powerlessness continues when, for some reason, he can't seem to say no
to Gawain's demand that he go to war with Launcelot. This opens up a power vacuum
that enables Mordred to seize the throne. Things are not looking good for our guy.
In the end, Mordred gives Arthur his death-wound on Salisbury Plain. Arthur's
death is caused by forces he has set in motion in more ways than one: (1) His war
against Launcelot, which allows Mordred to seize the throne, was partially a result of his
failure to control his own knights (and his wife, for that matter) and (2) Mordred, his
killer, is the product of his incestuous relationship with his sister long ago.