arthur and chaucer

• Engels
• Middelbare school

In one word: what does Arthur and the round table mean to you?

1. Take a guess: True or False "Arthur was most likely a Roman military leader from the 5th & 6th century."

1. True
2. False

2. Take a guess: Who is Lady Morgana in the stories about Arthur?

1. Arthur's mother
2. Arthur's full sister
3. Arthur's half-sister
4. Arthur's niece

4. Take a guess: The story of Arthur first appears in the 9th century, but when was Merlin added to the story?

1. 10th century
2. 11th century
3. 12th century
4. 13th century

3. Take a guess: What is not a role of Merlin in the Arthurian legend?

1. Scribe
2. Adviser
3. Prophet
4. Magician

5. Take a guess: True or False "Mordred is the one who eventually kills Arthur."

1. True
2. False

King Arthur

- Arthur Pendragon
- Most likely: A Roman military leader 5th & 6th century
- Fought against the Saxons
- History of the Britons in 9th century
- Set the basis of Arthur as the legendary warrior
- 12th century, Geoffrey of Monmouth adds Merlin 
- Other stories added Camelot, Round Table, & Guinevere

Arthur's Influence

- Troubadours, jugglers, minstrels, storytellers spread the story
- Image of Arthur & his knights:
         - influenced clothes & fashion in Medieval era
         - guidelines for knights and how they should behave
         - jousting tournaments (on horses with lances)

- Arthur associated with the Middle English period (1100-1500)
   and not Old English period (450-1100) from which he came

Merlin

- 12th century: first appears as a prophet
- Later: becomes Arthur's adviser & magician
- First given the name Emrys
- Later: Merlin (from his Welsh name: Myrddin)
- Merlin's father an angel who visited a nun?
   or is Merlin's father an evil spirit?

Merlin & Arthur 

- Prophecy: red dragon (Britons) fights a 
   white dragon (Saxons), and the red one wins
- Merlin becomes Arthur's tutor when he's 
   a child
- Arranges the sword-in-the-stone that
   makes Arthur king

Morgana & Mordred

Morgana:                                                     Mordred:
- powerful enchantress                        - son of Arthur & Morgause
- daughter of Arthur's mother             (Morgana's sister)
- Arthur's half-sister                               - evil & wicked     
- apprentice of Merlin                            - Arthur kills all babies born
- wants to take over the throne            in May after a prophecy
                                                                          - Mordred lives & kills Arthur 

Arthur's Death

- Arthur goes to war against the Emperor of Rome, Lucius
- Le Morte d'Arthur then focuses on the knights and their     
   adventures
- Gwenyvere and Launcelot have an affair and run away
- While Arthur wages war against Launcelot, Mordred claims
   himself king
- Epic battle and both Mordred & Arthur die 

6. Arthur Pendragon was most likely...?

1. A Welsh military leader from the 5th & 6th century
2. A Roman military leader from the 5th & 6th century
3. A Roman military leader from the 8th & 9th century
4. A Welsh military leader from the 8th & 9th century

7. True or False: "The Legend of Arthur is most often associated with the Old English period instead of the Middle."

1. True
2. False

8. Which of the following did the story of Arthur and his knights not influence?

1. Clothes & fashion in the Medieval era
2. Guidelines for knights and how their behaviour
3. Medieval laws and governments
4. Jousting tournaments

9. In Merlin's prophecy which of the two dragons wins?

1. The Red one (representing the Saxons)
2. The Red one (representing the Britons)
3. The White one (representing the Saxons)
4. The White one (representing the Britons)

10. Mordred was the son between?

1. Merlin & Morgana
2. Merlin & Morgause
3. Arthur & Morgana
4. Arthur & Morgause