They are names to conjure Sir Galahad, Sir Launcelot, Queen Guenevere -- rising here alongside names of mythic heroes whose tales have been too-long Sir Peredur, Sir Geraint, and the Fair Maiden of Astolat . . . Beatrice Clay's Stories brings together the works of Thomas Malory, who penned the classic Morte d'Arthur , and Charlotte Guest, whose translations of ancient Welsh tales helped inspire Tennyson's poetic masterpiece, The Idylls of the King .
“Nunca hubo allí una lucha tan encarnizada, puesto que enfrentaba a hermanos con hermanos, amigos con amigos”.
Pocos personajes han conseguido que se viertan ríos de tinta como el mítico rey Arturo. Un monarca que dentro del imaginario popular encarna un ideal tanto en los tiempos de guerra como en los de paz. Por ello, hoy les quiero hablar de una de las novedades publicadas por Pulpture Ediciones en su colección Almaya: Cuentos de la muerte de Arturo y el Mabinogion, de Beatrice E. Clay. Una adaptación del mito artúrico que sirve tanto para iniciarse de manera amena en las aventuras del afamado rey como para descubrir aspectos menos conocidos sobre sus compañeros, los caballeros de la Mesa Redonda.
This is a retelling of the Arthurian legends for children, written by Beatrice Clay, who as far as I can figure out, was an Englishwoman writing in the early 20th century. I read this one when I was a kid myself, back in the day.
Read in a nicely musty-smelling Everyman Edition (1920) that we picked up at Montacute House. Familiar stories, mostly, with a few new ones, like the adventures of Sir Geraint and the Fair maid of Astolat. Enjoyable read.
I picked this up from gutenberg.org as a replacement for the Keith Baines translation of Le Morte d'Arthur. Thus far what I have read is a duplication of what I'd read in the Baines work. I am finding it much more coherent and readable.
UPDATE These stories were fascinating. For one thing I'd never read the actual stories (or any translation of them) but had just absorbed what our culture "knows" about King Arthur. I was bemused by how much of Monty Python and the Holy Grail was obviously taken from these but upon reflection realized that English schools probably require more actual reading of these. Or, if not, that the stories themselves are probably a bit closer to the surface there than here.
As well, seeing knightly chivalry practiced over and over made a forcible impression upon me as a reflection of Christian living (minus all the cutting off of heads, obviously). However, I repeatedly noticed levels of courtesy and chivalry practiced on a scale that our society would do well to emulate. In a sense we have plenty of heads cut off all the time in the way that people feel free to lambaste others publicly.
In her 1905 Edwardian retelling of Mallory’s Morte d’Arthur, Beatrice Clay includes Morgan le Fay, but - as it’s for a family audience - elides most of the salacious aspects of the stories involving Morgan, Edith or Guinevere. So the stories are brief and come across as reports on what happened, no attempt at characterisation or overarching plot. That might be a true reflection of Mallory! But the ‘horse bro’ chivalry gets rather tedious - it’s all toxic masculinity - and by the end it seems more a relief than a tragic end. However Dora Curtis’ illustrations are gorgeous!
Las palabras de Beatrice E. Clay desde el primer momento logran que el lector viaje junto a los legendarios Caballeros de la Mesa Redonda, hacen que nos conmovamos con sus aventuras y admiremos su gran sentido del honor. Sencillamente Cuentos de la muerte de Arturo y el Mabinogion nos transporta una época de ensueño, de magia y de aventura.
This book contains 2 seperate books - The first is a poor retelling of some classic King Arthur stories, the second is well imagined but I think my 10 year old son will appreciate it more than I did.