English 83

Hey everybody. A couple of weeks ago in class I compared the vulgate Lancelot to King David of biblical tradition. At first glance the characters are very similar and share important dramatic themes, for instance Lancelot and David both commit adultery and play important roles in the demise or destruction of close friends (David with Uriah the Hittite and Jonathon the son of Saul, and Lancelot with Arthur and basically all the knights) while being otherwise exemplary heroic figures. In fact, David and Lancelot represent for their respective cultures the ideal king and knight, which is curious in the face of their incredible flaws. The tradition of a cultural hero who is both perfect and flawed hero is also present in Greek antiquity and the heroes of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Heroes like Odysseus and Achilles provided the important social function of showing the downfalls of their societies most grievous of flaws such as hubris and arrogance, very similar to how David displayed the dangers of lust, divorce, and ritual impropriety (the ritual in question being marriage).

So as I was marveling at the similarities between Arthurian heroes and the heroes of Greek and Hebrew tradition, but I was skeptical at first just how much an Arthurian author would actually be influenced by these ancient works. While the religious fervor of the time might suggests that the bible would be an obvious influence on the scribes of the day, the religious culture might suggest otherwise. Europe was deeply enthralled in Christendom at the time most of the Arthurian legends were being written, and was obsessed with all things Christ, not necessarily all things Old Testament. Reaching beyond the obvious obsession with the grail that in all its various incarnations was related to Christ, we see the religious culture of the time period manifest in various characters; Galahad had a strict, nearly monastic chastity, Gawain was almost certainly a member of the Cult of the Virgin Mary in SGGK, and Yvain basically redeemed himself in Knight with the Lion by retreated into an aesthetic lifestyle a la John the Baptist (living like a wild beast).

While considering the argument against direct influence of famous characters like David and Odysseus on Arthurian characters, I stumbled across Voeux du Paon by Jacques de Longuyon written in 1312 which seems to link Arthur to Greek and biblical heroes. The book includes the “Nine Worthies,” which is basically a list of nine heroes from pagan, Old Testament, and Christian times who define chivalry. And would you believe it Hector, prince of Troy and hero of the Iliad and David, king of the Hebrews both have places alongside King Arthur himself. This contemporary list seems to indicate that the heroes of Greek tradition and those of the bible had a place in the consciousness of the time period and probably influenced the characters we’ve come to enjoy so much. Just thought it was kind of interesting…