Guinevere

media type="youtube" key="lvbzd5688l4" width="425" height="350" The Song Guinevere by the Eli Young Band: -"To make the damage of her days disappear just like Guinevere"-Much like in the song Guinevere was hurt by her past relationships, her affair with Lancelot ruined what she had with Arthur and eventually led to the downfall of Camelot. -"Because she once fell hard because she dropped her guard. And no one gets to stay it's just too late."- After Arthur found out about her affair both of her relationships were ruined. Lancelot and Arthur were at war and she was left with no one.

Historical Basis: -Guinevere was the legendary queen of King Arthur. -She first appeared in a Welsh tale where she is described as Arthur's wife, but not much else is said about her. -According to the earliest legends Guinevere lived as a ward at the court of Duke Cador of Cornwall. She came from a noble Roman family, residing as a sort of lady in waiting, when she met King Arthur. -In many tales she is said to have had a love affair with Arthur's head knight Sir Lancelot. -This story first appeared in //Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart// and reappears many times in other Arthurian stories. -Guinevere and Lancelot's betrayal was considered to have led to the downfall of the kingdom. When war broke out between Arthur and Lancelot, the values that the Round Table stood for were broken. -The way the story is told depends greatly on the author and their background. In Welsh tradition Guinevere betrayed Arthur by marrying Mordred after he seized the throne, but in romances of the French she betrays Arthur with her love affair with Lancelot. -The difference between Lancelot and Mordred was that Lancelot truly loved Guinevere. Mordred only wanted to replace King Arthur. -Some legends suggest that Arthur married three different women, and some argue that Guinevere didn't exist at all and she was just a mythical figure representing sovereignty. -Its tough to tell how accurate a story is, because so many different versions have developed depending on the time it was written and where it was written. However among all the stories there were two main tales: the first was her abduction by Meleagant, and the second was her betrayal of Arthur. Because these two appeared so frequently one could assume that these are the most accurate.

Change through Tradition: -Early stories rarely included much about Guinevere, but as time went on authors began to use her good and bad characteristics to give her more of a role. -Chretien was the first to increase the role that Guinevere played, and that is likely due to the fact that his audience composed mostly of upper class women. -She was used as a tool by romantics to enhance stories of King Arthur. -The idea of her being rescued comes from 11th century literature, and started with Arthur saving her but some had Lancelot as her hero. -The idea of her infidelity was first introduced by Geoffrey of Monmouth, and she cheated on Arthur with Mordred while Arthur was away fighting. -In Chretien's Lancelot, Guinevere is Lancelots lover after he saves her from Meleagant. -English versions tended to ignore the development of her charcter. At first she was just the woman who married Arthur and later betrayed him by taking the throne with Mordred. In later versions she was the lover of Lancelot and the reason for the war between the knights and the King, and this allowed Mordred to rebel against the king. -Many of our perceptions of her today come from Alfred Tennyson, and she was seen as a symbol of purity and goodness. -Over time the character of Guinevere became more complex, and this was for a variety of reasons. It depended on what audience the author was trying to appeal to, the authors manipulated her character to be seen as either good or evil to reach a certain group.

Characteristics of Guinevere: -She has been portrayed as a weak and opportunistic traitor, and a fatally flawed but virtuous woman. -In //Y'vain, Knight of the Lion// she was praised for her intelligence and friendliness -In //Lanval// she was viewed as a vindictive adulteress that was hated by all the knights (English versions). -In Welsh versions she is seen as noble and beautiful, but also tragic. These characteristics remain in later versions of the legend of Arthur. -In all texts she is described as beautiful and desirable. -Guinevere was described as being so beautiful that all men wanted her, and this is likely the reason she was kidnapped multiple times and needed to be saved either by Arthur or Lancelot. -When she is mentioned people instantly recall her beauty, but they also recall her betrayal. Her actions caused doubt among the knights, forcing them to question their brotherhood and this would lead to their destruction. By cheating on Arthur she started the chain of events that would eventually lead to his death after his final fight with Mordred.



Sources: http://www.historyandwomen.com/2010/10/love-story-of-lancelot-and-guinevere.html [|__http://library.thinkquest.org/C004305/guinevere.htm__] [|__http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/4186/Arthur/htmlpages/kingarthurlegendpeople.html__] [|__http://bestoflegends.org/kingarthur/guenevere.html__] [|__http://www.arthurianadventure.com/guinevere.htm__] [|__http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/FAQ-Arthur.htm__] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guinevere http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/John_Collier_Queen_Guinevre%27s_Maying.jpg http://www.britannia.com/history/biographies/guinever.html