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LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Class content:
• Thomas Malory time and work.
• Morte d’Arthuras: Malory´ s text
structure and archetypes.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The legend of King Arthur and
the knights of the Round Table
is the most powerful and
enduring in the western
world. King Arthurand the
other characters have not
been proved, but their names
conjure up a romantic image
of gallant knights in shining
armour, elegant ladies in
medieval castles, heroic
quests for the Holy Grail in a
world of honour and romance,
the court of Camelot - a royal
and mystical Britain
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late
5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to
medieval histories and romances, led the defence
of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th
century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly
composed of folklore and literary invention, and
his historical existence is debated and disputed by
modern historians. The sparse historical
background of Arthur is gleaned from various
sources, including the Annales Cambriae, the
Historia Brittonum, and the writings of Gildas.
Arthur's name also occurs in early
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The Arthurian legend has
existed for over a thousand
years and is just as
compelling today as it was in
the faraway days of its early
creators - Geoffrey of
Monmouth, Robert de Boron,
Chrétien de Troyes, and
most majestically: Sir
Thomas Malory in his epic
work, Le Morte d'Arthur.
Countless artists, have been
inspired by these legends.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table never
existed in real life. They're purely figures of legend. There
might have been someone called Arturus (or Riothamus) in
Britain's distant past, but if there was, he was probably a
Romano-British leader or military general campaigning
against the marauding Saxon hordes in the 5th century AD.
In that period of history, however, there was no such thing
as knights-in-armour - horsemen didn't even use stirrups
until much later, so they couldn't have worn and fought in
armour. There are several theories about the location of
the 'original' court of Camelot, and although research
continues, these are irrelevances: King Arthur and his
knights will always be figures of fantasy, and Arthurian
legend should be appreciated for what it is: a large and
unique body of wonderful early European literature.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The popular literary King Arthur is
thought by some historians to
originate with a real but little-
known figure called Riothamus
who existed in post-Roman Britain
in the 5th century AD, and who
may also have been called
Arturius. Other academics believe
he may have early Welsh origins in
the poem 'Y Gododdin' which
commemorates British warriors
who died in a battle at Catraeth
during the 5th or 6th centuries
when the native Britons fought
against Germanic Saxon invaders.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The Welsh King Arthur
There is also an early Welsh poem - 'Historia
Brittonum' - from around 800, which records that "at
that time the Saxons increased in numbers and grew
in Britain. After the death of Hengist, Octa, his son,
came down from the north part of Britain to the
kingdom of the Kentishmen, and from there are
sprung the kings of the Kentishmen. Then Arthur
fought at that time against them in those days along
with the kings of the Britons, but he was their leader
in battles." The poem lists Arthur's battles,
culminating in his twelfth at Badon Hill.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The poem 'Annales Cambrie' from around 900 also
gives references to battles: "The Battle of Badon,
in which Arthur carried the Cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ for three days and nights on his shoulders
and the Britons were the victors" and "The Battle
of Camlann, in which Arthur and Medraut fell - and
there was plague in Britain and Ireland." He is
mentioned in 'Preiddeu Annwn' (The Spoils of
Annwn) and 'Pa gwr' (Arthur and the Porter) and in
the 10th century appears in the 'Stanzas of the
Grave', a Welsh poem which makes reference to
the graves of several Arthurian figures.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
•William of Malmesbury in 'Gesta regum Anglorum'
(c. 1125)
•William of Newburgh in 'Historia regum
anglicarum' (1196-98)
•Gerald of Wales (1223) claims that he witnessed
the exhumation of King Arthur from a grave
discovered at Glastonbury Abbey in around 1190 or
1191: "And there was a lead cross fixed under... a
stone slab. I have seen this cross, and have traced
the letters sculpted into it... and they said: 'Here
lies buried the famous King Arthur with Guenevere
his second wife in the island of Avalon.'
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The origin of the name Arthur remains a matter of
debate. Some suggest it is derived from the
Roman nomen gentile(family name) Artōrius, of
obscure and contested etymology (but possibly of
Messapic or Etruscan origin).Some scholars have
suggested it is relevant to this debate that the
legendary King Arthur's name only appears
as Arthur, or Arturus, in early Latin Arthurian
texts, never as Artōrius. However, this may not say
anything about the origin of the name Arthur,
as Artōrius would regularly become Art(h)ur when
borrowed into Welsh.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Another possibility is that
it is derived from a
Brittonic patronym *Arto-
rīg-ios -"bear-king“, to be
found in the Old Irish
personal name Art-ri).Less
likely is the commonly
proposed derivation from
Welsh arth "bear" + (g)wr
"man" (earlier *Arto-
uiros in Brittonic); there
are phonological
difficulties with this
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
An alternative theory, which has gained only limited
acceptance among professional scholars,derives the
name Arthur from Arcturus, the brightest star in the
constellation Boötes, near Ursa Major or the Great
Bear. Classical Latin Arcturus would also have
become Art(h)ur when borrowed into Welsh, and its
brightness and position in the sky led people to regard
it as the "guardian of the bear“.
A similar first name is Old Irish Artúr, which is
believed to be derived directly from an early Old
Welsh or Cumbric Artur.The earliest historically
attested bearer of the name is a son or grandson
of Áedán mac Gabráin (d. AD 609).
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
SIR THOMAS 
MALORY
(1414/1420 - 1471)
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Malory's exact date of birth is unknown (probably
around the year 1410), he succeeded to his
father's estates in 1434. Sir Thomas Malory of
Newbold Revel in Warwickshire (Thomas Malory of
Studley and Hutton),a knight, land-owner and
Member of Parliament - Previously, it was
suggested by antiquary John Leland (1506–1552)
as well as John Bale that he was Welsh (identifying
'Malory' with Maelor). Occasionally, other
candidates are put forward for authorship of Le
Morte d'Arthur, but the supporting evidence for
their claim has been described as circumstantial.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Le Morte d'Arthur tells the
story of King Arthur and his
Knights at the Round Table.
Arthur,son of King Uther
Pendragon and 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 is often at war.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Le Morte D'Arthur is the
firsttrue novel written in
English. A moving tale of
love and betrayal, and
quests inspired by noble
ideals amidst the turmoil
of an age of profound
change, the essence of
Sir Thomas Malory's
timeless masterpiece has
remained firmly in the
imagination of successive
generations.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Le Morte D'Arthur was finished, as the epilogue
tells us, in the ninth year of Edward IV., i.e.
between March 4, 1469 and the same date in 1470.
It is thus, fitly enough, the last important English
book written before the introduction of printing
into this country, and since no manuscript of it has
come down to us it is also the first English classic
for our knowledge of which we are entirely
dependent on a printed text.
•Caxton, William
c.1422-c.1491-William Caxton published works
including: "Morte d'Arthur," "The History of Reynart
the Foxe," and "The Canterbury Tales."
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Le Morte D'Arthur is the
story of King Arthur and
the Knights of the Round
Table, beginning with
Arthur's conception and
birth, and concluding
with his death at the
hands of his bastard son,
Mordred . Along the way,
we meet handsome
knights, beautiful ladies,
and become immersed in
Camelot.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
The "mythic hero" is a particular breed of hero
with particular traits. The Greek hero Heracles
(Latin Hercules) will stand as our model Mythic
Hero - since he exemplifies most of the associated
traits - but we shall consider other mythic heroes
from an assortment of cultures in our search to
understand what exactly we mean by "heroic" in
the "mythic" sense. Artwork used to illustrate
these myths and heroes is deliberately drawn from
a wide range of cultures, artists, periods and media
to reveal the viability and popularity of such myths
beyond antiquity
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
During the Middle Ages, Arthur was made a member of
the Nine Worthies, a group of heroes encapsulating all the
ideal qualities of chivalry. His life was thus proposed as a
valuable subject for study by those aspiring to chivalric
status. This aspect of Arthur in the Nine Worthies was
popularised firstly through literature and was thereafter
adopted as a frequent subject by painters and sculptors.
Arthur has also been used as a model for modern-day
behaviour. In the 1930s, the Order of the Fellowship of the
Knights of the Round Table was formed in Britain to promote
Christian ideals and Arthurian notions of medieval chivalry.In
the United States, hundreds of thousands of boys and girls
joined Arthurian youth groups, such as the Knights of King
Arthur, in which Arthur and his legends were promoted as
wholesome exemplars.
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I
Thomas Mallory: Le Morte d’Arthur
LITERATURA INGLESA I