Week 12 Reading Notes Part A: King Arthur

-It is interesting that Merlin tried to counsel Arthur out of marrying Guinevere, saying that he could find someone who is just as pretty but is a much better person. It is like he knows that something bad is going to happen, but it is typical that Arthur only cares about her looks. I do agree with the statement that once a heart is set on someone it is futile to try and change it, however
-Women are getting a pretty bad rap in these tales. The woman who Merlin loved basically treated him like a plaything and then buried him alive after she had gained all his knowledge. His sister stole his scabbard and then tried to burn him alive with a mantle.
-Arthur is pretty one-dimensional. I wish he would have more of a struggle, I feel like the only struggle he has is being a little arrogant, which if you pull the sword out of the stone I think you're allowed to be a little arrogant.
-I have heard a lot about Guinevere in popular media and such but they almost begrudgingly give her a section of the story, and they allude to her possibly not being the best but then we just hear of her as "the queen" from then on
-It would be really interesting to hear about the feud between Arthur and his sister from Morgan's point of view- why did Arthur have to kill the knight that she loved? Was he a bad person? Or was Arthur being overprotective of his sister? Were they close before then? It would take a lot to cause a sibling to hate another so much that she tries to kill him, so the knight must have meant a lot to Morgan. There is a lot of potential there to flesh out

Story source: King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1902).

Voyage of King Arthur and Morgan Le Fay to the Isle of Avalon by Frank William Warwick Topham (1838-1924) - Source