Download or read book The Danger of Romance written by Karen Sullivan and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2018-03-07 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The curious paradox of romance is that, throughout its history, this genre has been dismissed as trivial and unintellectual, yet people have never ceased to flock to it with enthusiasm and even fervor. In contemporary contexts, we devour popular romance and fantasy novels like The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones, reference them in conversations, and create online communities to expound, passionately and intelligently, upon their characters and worlds. But romance is “unrealistic,” critics say, doing readers a disservice by not accurately representing human experiences. It is considered by some to be a distraction from real literature, a distraction from real life, and little more. Yet is it possible that romance is expressing a truth—and a truth unrecognized by realist genres? The Arthurian literature of the Middle Ages, Karen Sullivan argues, consistently ventriloquizes in its pages the criticisms that were being made of romance at the time, and implicitly defends itself against those criticisms. The Danger of Romance shows that the conviction that ordinary reality is the only reality is itself an assumption, and one that can blind those who hold it to the extraordinary phenomena that exist around them. It demonstrates that that which is rare, ephemeral, and inexplicable is no less real than that which is commonplace, long-lasting, and easily accounted for. If romance continues to appeal to audiences today, whether in its Arthurian prototype or in its more recent incarnations, it is because it confirms the perception—or even the hope—of a beauty and truth in the world that realist genres deny.

Download or read book The Mists of Avalon written by Marion Zimmer Bradley and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 2001-07-15 with total page 979 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The magical saga of the women behind King Arthur's throne. “A monumental reimagining of the Arthurian legends . . . reading it is a deeply moving and at times uncanny experience. . . . An impressive achievement.”—The New York Times Book Review In Marion Zimmer Bradley's masterpiece, we see the tumult and adventures of Camelot's court through the eyes of the women who bolstered the king's rise and schemed for his fall. From their childhoods through the ultimate fulfillment of their destinies, we follow these women and the diverse cast of characters that surrounds them as the great Arthurian epic unfolds stunningly before us. As Morgaine and Gwenhwyfar struggle for control over the fate of Arthur's kingdom, as the Knights of the Round Table take on their infamous quest, as Merlin and Viviane wield their magics for the future of Old Britain, the Isle of Avalon slips further into the impenetrable mists of memory, until the fissure between old and new worlds' and old and new religions' claims its most famous victim.

Download or read book Arthurian Fiction written by Cindy Mediavilla and published by Scarecrow Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 180 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cindy Mediavilla annotates over 200 Arthurian novels, specifically focusing upon literature appropriate for young adults. Each entry is assigned an appropriate reading level and contains a detailed description of the book's plot. An index of titles, authors, characters, and specific themes is appended. The intended audience is young adult readers, grades six through high school, and the youth services professionals who serve them.

Download or read book Arthurian Fictions written by E. Jane Burns and published by Ohio State University Press. This book was released on 1985 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Once and Future King written by T. H. White and published by DigiCat. This book was released on 2022-08-16 with total page 649 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

Download or read book Fictions of Identity in Medieval France written by Donald Maddox and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2000-11-23 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this study of vernacular French narrative from the twelfth century through the later Middle Ages, first published in 2000, Donald Maddox considers the construction of identity in a wide range of fictions. He focuses on crucial encounters, widespread in medieval literature, in which characters are informed about fundamental aspects of their own circumstances and selfhood. These always arresting and highly significant moments of 'specular' encounter are examined in numerous Old and Middle French romances, hagiographic texts, epics and brief narratives. Maddox discloses the key role of identity in an original reading of the Lais of Marie de France as a unified collection, as well as in Arthurian literature, fictions of the courtly tryst, genealogies and medieval family romance. The study offers many new perspectives on the poetic and cultural implications of identity as an imaginary construct during the long formative period of French literature.

Download or read book Medieval Iberian Crusade Fiction and the Mediterranean World written by David A. Wacks and published by University of Toronto Press. This book was released on 2019-07-15 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reading crusader fiction against the backdrop of Mediterranean history, this book explains how Iberian authors reimagined the idea of crusade through the lens of Iberian geopolitics and social history. The crusades transformed Mediterranean history and inaugurated complex engagements between Western Europe, the Balkans, North Africa, and the Middle East in ways that endure to this day. Narratives of crusades powerfully shaped European thinking about the East and continue to influence the representation of interactions between Christian and Muslim states in the region. The crusade, a French idea that gave rise to Iberian, North African, and Levantine campaigns, was very much a Mediterranean phenomenon. French and English authors wrote itineraries in the Holy Land, chronicles of the crusades, and fanciful accounts of Christian knights who championed the Latin Church in the East. This study aims to explore the ways in which Iberian authors imagined their role in the culture of crusade, both as participants and interpreters of narrative traditions of the crusading world from north of the Pyrenees.

Download or read book Logical Fictions in Medieval Literature and Philosophy written by Virginie Greene and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2014-10-23 with total page 307 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, new ways of storytelling and inventing fictions appeared in the French-speaking areas of Europe. This new art still influences our global culture of fiction. Virginie Greene explores the relationship between fiction and the development of neo-Aristotelian logic during this period through a close examination of seminal literary and philosophical texts by major medieval authors, such as Anselm of Canterbury, Abélard, and Chrétien de Troyes. This study of Old French logical fictions encourages a broader theoretical reflection about fiction as a universal human trait and a defining element of the history of Western philosophy and literature. Additional close readings of classical Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, and modern analytic philosophy including the work of Bertrand Russell and Rudolf Carnap, demonstrate peculiar traits of Western rationalism and expose its ambivalent relationship to fiction.

Download or read book Rewriting the Women of Camelot written by Ann F. Howey and published by Praeger. This book was released on 2001-02-28 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Though firmly rooted in the Middle Ages, Arthurian legend has captivated readers since Caxton and Malory and continues to thrive today. By looking at contemporary reworkings of Arthuriana, this book explores the intersection of popular fiction and feminist discourses in Western society. It examines selected Arthurian novels and short stories by such women writers as Fay Sampson, Mary Stewart, Gillian Bradshaw, and Marion Zimmer Bradley to analyze the textual strategies that articulate feminist ideas. While these texts maintain continuity with established literary traditions through the replication of conventions, their reworking of women's roles encourages readers to engage liberal feminist ideology. The book first gives an overview of theories of popular fiction, feminism, and reading. It then surveys the medieval texts on which the Arthurian tradition is founded and which the contemporary texts rewrite. The chapters that follow discuss how popular contemporary women writers have reworked Arthurian legend through their narrative strategies and their representation of female character types, such as the royal woman and the magical woman.

Download or read book King Arthur s Children written by Tyler R. Tichelaar and published by Loving Healing Press. This book was released on 2010-01-31 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Did you know King Arthur had many other children besides Mordred? Depending on which version of the legend you read, he had both sons and daughters, some of whom even survived him. From the ancient tale of Gwydre, the son who was gored to death by a boar, to Scottish traditions of Mordredas a beloved king, Tyler R. Tichelaar has studied all the references to King Arthur's children to show how they shed light upon a legend that has intrigued us for fifteen centuries. "King Arthur's Children: A Study in Fiction and Tradition" is the first full-length analysis of every known treatment of King Arthur's children, from Welsh legends and French romances, to Scottish genealogies and modern novels by such authors as Parke Godwin, Stephen Lawhead, Debra Kemp, and Elizabeth Wein. "King Arthur's Children" explores an often overlooked theme in Arthurian literature and reveals King Arthur's bloodline may still exist today.ÿ Arthurian Authors Praise "King Arthur's Children" "Author Tyler R. Tichelaar has performed impeccable research into the Arthurian legend, finding neglected details in early sources and reigniting their significance. Great brainstorming fun! I am proud to add this to my personal collection of Arthurian non-fiction." --Debra Kemp, author of The House of Pendragon seriesÿ "Tyler R. Tichelaar's in-depth analysis of the plausibility of King Arthur's children reaffirms the importance the King Arthur legacy continues to have for society and the need of people all over the world to be able to connect to and believe in King Arthur and Camelot." --Cheryl Carpinello, author of Guinevere: On the Eve of Legend

Download or read book The Development of Arthurian Romance written by Roger Sherman Loomis and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2012-11-13 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stimulating and masterly study examines the evolution of the great mass of fiction surrounding the Arthurian legend in Western literature — from Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain and the collection of Welsh tales known as The Mabinogion, to Chrétien de Troyes' Arthurian stories, the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach, and such English masterpieces as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Le Morte d'Arthur. Painstakingly researched and brimming with scholarly insight, this highly readable and entertaining work will be a favorite with general audiences as well as scholars and students of the Arthurian legend.

Download or read book The Skystone written by Jack Whyte and published by Forge Books. This book was released on 2004-08-01 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This first novel in Jack Whyte's riveting Arthurian series tells how the story of Camelot may have actually come to be. We all know the story—how Arthur pulled the sword from the stone and how Camelot came to be. But how did it really happen? The Roman citizens of Britain faced a deadly choice: leave to live in a corrupt Roman world, or stay amidst the violence of the warring factions of Picts, Celts, and invading Saxons. For Publius Varrus and Caius Britannicus, there is only one answer. They will stay, try to preserve the best of Roman life, and create a new culture from the wreckage. In doing so, they will plant the seeds of a legend. For these two men are Arthur's great-grandfathers and their actions will shape a nation...and forge the sword known as Excalibur. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Download or read book A Companion to Arthurian Literature written by Helen Fulton and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2012-01-30 with total page 594 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Companion offers a chronological sweep of the canon of Arthurian literature - from its earliest beginnings to the contemporary manifestations of Arthur found in film and electronic media. Part of the popular series, Blackwell Companions to Literature and Culture, this expansive volume enables a fundamental understanding of Arthurian literature and explores why it is still integral to contemporary culture. Offers a comprehensive survey from the earliest to the most recent works Features an impressive range of well-known international contributors Examines contemporary additions to the Arthurian canon, including film and computer games Underscores an understanding of Arthurian literature as fundamental to western literary tradition

Download or read book Troubling Arthurian Histories written by James R. Simpson and published by Peter Lang. This book was released on 2007 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on a range of approaches in cultural, gender and literary studies, this book presents Chrétien de Troyes's Erec et Enide as a daring and playful exploration of scandal, terror and anxiety in court cultures. Through an interdisciplinary reading, it locates Erec et Enide, the first surviving Arthurian romance in French, in various contexts, from broad cultural and historical questionings such as medieval vernacular 'modernity's' engagement with the weight of its classical inheritance, to the culturally fecund and politically turbulent histories of the families of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II Plantagenet. Where previous accounts of the tale have not uncommonly presented Chrétien's poem as a decorous 'resolution' of tensions between dynastic marriage and fin'amors, between personal desire and social duty, this reading sees these forces as in permanent and irresolvable tension, the poem's key scenes haunted - whether mischievously or traumatically - by questions and skeletons from various closets.

Download or read book Arthurian Literature and Christianity written by Peter Meister and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-05-13 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Intended as "the other bookend" to Jessie Weston's work some eighty years earlier, this essay collection provides a careful overview of recent scholarship on possible overlap between Arthurian literature and Christianity. From Ritual to romance and Notes, taken together, bracket contemporary inquiry into the relationship (if any) between Jesus and Arthur. T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" is here regarded as one strand joining this matter to many a recent literary riddle (such as the meaning of the term "postmodernism"). Without reprinting work readily available elsewhere and no longer subject to revision through dialogue with fellow contributors, Notes attempts to do justice to all sides in twentieth century exploration of christianity's contribution to an art form which is also grounded in early European polytheism ("paganism").

Download or read book The Crystal Cave written by Mary Stewart and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2003-05-06 with total page 514 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Born the bastard son of a Welsh princess, Myridden Emrys -- or as he would later be known, Merlin -- leads a perilous childhood, haunted by portents and visions. But destiny has great plans for this no-man's-son, taking him from prophesying before the High King Vortigern to the crowning of Uther Pendragon . . . and the conception of Arthur -- king for once and always.

Download or read book A Coalition of Lions written by Elizabeth Wein and published by Firebird. This book was released on 2004 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After the death of virtually all of her family in the battle of Camlan, Goewin--Princess of Britain, daughter of the High King Artos--makes a desperate journey to African Aksum, to meet with Constantine, the British ambassador and her fiance. But Aksum is undergoing political turmoil, and Goewin's relationship with its ambassador to Britain makes her position more than precarious. Caught between two countries, with the power to transform or end lives, Goewin fights to find and claim her place in a world that has suddenly, irrevocably changed. . . .