 First edition | |
| Author | Walker Percy |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus & Giroux, McGraw-Hill Ryerson |
Publication date | 1977 |
| Pages | 257 (first edition) |
| ISBN | 9780374183134 |
Lancelot is a 1977 novel by the American author Walker Percy. [1]
A dejected lawyer, Lancelot Lamar, murders his wife after discovering that he is not the father of her youngest daughter, Siobhan. He ends up in a mental institution, where his story is told through his reflections and monologues on his disturbing past, thus having him serve as an unreliable narrator. The novel compares the protagonist unfavorably to his namesake, Sir Lancelot, as he experiences a vision of an empty and decadent modern American culture which invokes the symbolism of the mythical Wasteland. [2] Lamar's quest to expose this moral emptiness is a transposition of the quest for the Holy Grail; as he witnesses and records the increasing moral depravity of his wife and daughter during the filming of a Hollywood movie, he becomes obsessed with and corrupted by the immorality he seeks to condemn. [2]
The novel is replete with Arthurian references. Most obviously, it includes characters named after Lancelot, Merlin, and Percival. Despite his name, Lancelot Andrewes Lamar seems partly based on King Arthur: like Arthur, he is cuckolded; like Arthur, he wants to build a new order. [2] Through this monologue, the reader learns Lancelot Lamar's view of the world. He makes accusations, but also questions his own accusations, knowing his own limited ability to view things with clarity and objectivity. He sees that there is a problem with modern American culture. Lancelot seeks to create a New Order based on his own code of honor, and this code of honor includes the preferred actions and roles of women and an avoidance of self-knowledge. He hopes to start this "Third Revolution" (the first two being the American Revolution and the American Civil War, respectively) with a female mental patient and gang rape victim in the cell next to him, Anna. He sees her as having a restored innocence, because she has been violated so completely. [3] Lancelot sees himself as a leader among other male leaders in his New Order, and other citizens will be followers. He will be part of an elite group that has knowledge of the world like himself. [4]
Lancelot's monologue also serves to develop themes such as the importance of innocence in sexual identity and the issues concerning human sexuality. These are seen in his commentary of when he sees Lucy, his daughter, as she engages in sexual activity with the two lead actors in Merlin's movie, Troy Dana and Raine Robinette. It is also seen in observation of his wife's infidelity, and in his comparisons of his first wife, Lucy, to his second wife, Margot. Lancelot also values innocence in the rape victim, Anna, who resides in the room next to his in the mental institution. [4]
Christopher Lehmann-Haupt of The New York Times gave the novel a negative review. He felt it was "bitter," "provocative," and "upsetting." He criticized the narrative voice for being "uneven and unconvincing," and the story for "[relying] on a melodrama that has little fictional resonance." He also took issue with the characters' Arthurian-inspired names, likening this to "merely...an elbow in the ribs." Lehman-Haupt ultimately felt the story was "a portrait of a philosophical quest rather than an argument for the quest's objectives." [5]
King Arthur is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain.
Merlin is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a magician, with several other main roles. The familiar depiction of Merlin, based on an amalgamation of historic and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British pseudo-historical author Geoffrey of Monmouth and then built on by the French poet Robert de Boron and their prose successors in the 13th century.
Guinevere, also often written in Modern English as Guenevere or Guenever, was, according to Arthurian legend, an early-medieval queen of Great Britain and the wife of King Arthur. First mentioned in popular literature in the early 12th century, nearly 700 years after the purported times of Arthur, Guinevere has since been portrayed as everything from a fatally flawed, villainous and opportunistic traitor to a noble and virtuous lady. Many records of the legend also feature the variably recounted story of her abduction and rescue as a major part of the tale.
Lancelot du Lac, also written as Launcelot and other variants, is a character in some versions of Arthurian legend where he is typically depicted as King Arthur's close companion and one of the greatest Knights of the Round Table. In the French-inspired Arthurian chivalric romance tradition, Lancelot is an orphaned son of King Ban of the lost kingdom of Benoic, raised in a fairy realm by the Lady of the Lake. A hero of many battles, quests and tournaments, and famed as a nearly unrivalled swordsman and jouster, Lancelot becomes the lord of the castle Joyous Gard and personal champion of Arthur's wife, Queen Guinevere, despite suffering from frequent and sometimes prolonged fits of madness. But when his adulterous affair with Guinevere is discovered, it causes a civil war that, once exploited by Mordred, brings an end to Arthur's kingdom.
Mordred or Modred is a figure in the legend of King Arthur. The earliest known mention of a possibly historical Medraut is in the Welsh chronicle Annales Cambriae, wherein he and Arthur are ambiguously associated with the Battle of Camlann in a brief entry for the year 537. Medraut's figure seemed to have been regarded positively in the early Welsh tradition and may have been related to that of Arthur's son.
Galahad, sometimes referred to as Galeas or Galath, among other versions of his name, is a knight of King Arthur's Round Table and one of the three achievers of the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. He is the illegitimate son of Sir Lancelot du Lac and Lady Elaine of Corbenic and is renowned for his gallantry and purity as the most perfect of all knights. Emerging quite late in the medieval Arthurian tradition, Sir Galahad first appears in the Lancelot–Grail cycle, and his story is taken up in later works, such as the Post-Vulgate Cycle, and Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur.
The Lady of the Lake is a name or a title used by several either fairy or fairy-like but human enchantresses in the Matter of Britain, the body of medieval literature and mythology associated with the legend of King Arthur. She plays several important roles in many stories, including providing Arthur with the sword Excalibur, eliminating Merlin, raising Lancelot after the death of his father, and helping to take the dying Arthur to Avalon. Different sorceresses known as the Lady of the Lake appear concurrently as separate characters in some versions of the legend since at least the Post-Vulgate Cycle and consequently the seminal Le Morte d'Arthur, with the latter describing them as a hierarchical group, while some texts also give this title to either Morgan or her sister.
Excalibur is a 1981 epic medieval fantasy film directed, co-written and produced by John Boorman, that retells the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, based loosely on the 15th-century Arthurian romance Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory. It stars Nigel Terry as Arthur, Nicol Williamson as Merlin, Nicholas Clay as Lancelot, Cherie Lunghi as Guenevere, Helen Mirren as Morgana, Liam Neeson as Gawain, Gabriel Byrne as Uther and Patrick Stewart as Leondegrance. The film is named after the legendary sword of King Arthur that features prominently in Arthurian literature. The film's soundtrack features the music of Richard Wagner and Carl Orff, along with an original score by Trevor Jones.
The Knights of the Round Table are the legendary knights of the fellowship of King Arthur that first appeared in the Matter of Britain literature in the mid-12th century. The Knights are an order dedicated to ensuring the peace of Arthur's kingdom following an early warring period, entrusted in later years to undergo a mystical quest for the Holy Grail. The Round Table at which they meet is a symbol of the equality of its members, who range from sovereign royals to minor nobles.
The Queen of Orkney, today best known as Morgause and also known as Morgawse and other spellings and names, is a character in Arthurian legend in which she is the mother of Gawain and Mordred, both key players in the story of King Arthur and his downfall. In early texts, Mordred's father is her husband, King Lot of Orkney, with whom she may also have various other children. In later versions, including the seminal Le Morte d'Arthur, Mordred is the offspring of Arthur's accidental incest with Morgause, his estranged half-sister. There, she is furthermore a sister of Morgan le Fay, as well as the mother of Gareth, Agravain, and Gaheris, the last of whom murders her.
Percival, alternatively called Peredur, is a figure in the legend of King Arthur, often appearing as one of the Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Troyes in the tale Perceval, the Story of the Grail, he is best known for being the original hero in the quest for the Grail, before being replaced in later literature by Galahad.
Sir Agravain is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, whose first known appearance is in the works of Chrétien de Troyes. He is the second eldest son of King Lot of Orkney with one of King Arthur's sisters known as Anna or Morgause, thus nephew of King Arthur, and brother to Sir Gawain, Gaheris, and Gareth, as well as half-brother to Mordred. Agravain secretly makes attempts on the life of his hated brother Gaheris since the Vulgate Cycle, participates in the slayings of Lamorak and Palamedes in the Post-Vulgate Cycle, and murders Dinadan in the Prose Tristan. In the French prose cycle tradition included in Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, together with Mordred, he then plays a leading role by exposing his aunt Guinevere's affair with Lancelot, which leads to his death at Lancelot's hand.
This is a bibliography of works about King Arthur, his family, his friends or his enemies. This bibliography includes works that are notable or are by notable authors.
The Lancelot-Grail Cycle, also known as the Vulgate Cycle or the Pseudo-Map Cycle, is an early 13th-century French Arthurian literary cycle consisting of interconnected prose episodes of chivalric romance originally written in Old French. The work of unknown authorship, presenting itself as a chronicle of actual events, retells the legend of King Arthur by focusing on the love affair between Lancelot and Guinevere as well as the religious quest for the Holy Grail. The highly influential cycle expands on Robert de Boron's "Little Grail Cycle" and the works of Chrétien de Troyes, previously unrelated to each other, by supplementing them with additional details and side stories, as well as lengthy continuations, while tying the entire narrative together into a coherent single tale. Its alternate titles include Philippe Walter's 21st-century edition Le Livre du Graal.
The Post-Vulgate Cycle, also known as the Post-Vulgate Arthuriad, the Post-Vulgate Roman du Graal or the Pseudo-Robert de Boron Cycle, is one of the major Old French prose cycles of Arthurian literature from the early 13th century. It is considered essentially a rewriting of the earlier and more popular Vulgate Cycle, with much left out but also much added, including characters and scenes from the Prose Tristan. The cycle has not survived in any manuscript in its entirety and has been reconstructed from fragments in various languages.
Elaine or Elizabeth, also known as Amite, and identified as the "Grail Maiden" or the "Grail Bearer", is a character from Arthurian legend. In the Arthurian chivalric romance tradition, she is the daughter of the Fisher King, King Pelles of Corbenic, and the mother of Galahad from her rape of Lancelot. She should not be confused with Elaine of Astolat, a different woman who too fell in love with Lancelot.
L'Enchanteur is a 1984 novel by the French writer René Barjavel. It tells the story of the Knights of the Round Table and the quest for the Holy Grail from the perspective of Merlin and his relationship with Viviane. Barjavel had studied the material on the Grail legend extensively. He added several new concepts to the backstory of the grail, placing its origin to the time of Adam and Eve. According to the novel, Eve used the cup to collect Adam's blood from the wound created when his rib was removed.
Cursed is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on Netflix on July 17, 2020. It is based on the illustrated novel of the same name by Frank Miller and Tom Wheeler. The set location of the series is the United Kingdom. In July 2021, the series was canceled after one season.
Sebile, alternatively written as Sedile, Sebille, Sibilla, Sibyl, Sybilla, and other similar names, is a mythical medieval queen or princess who is frequently portrayed as a fairy or an enchantress in the Arthurian legend and Italian folklore. She appears in a variety of roles, from the most faithful and noble lady to a wicked seductress, often in relation with or substituting for the character of Morgan le Fay. Some tales feature her as a wife of either King Charlemagne or Prince Lancelot, and even as an ancestor of King Arthur.
 | This article about a 1970s novel is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article's talk page. |