¶ … Grail Quests In Christian mythology, the Holy Grail was the dish, plate, cup or vessel that caught Jesus' blood during his crucifixion. The Holy Grail was said to have the power to heal all wounds. Over the course of the three Grail quests of medieval, Arthurian origin, "Percival," "Parzival," and "The Quest for the Holy Grail," the meaning of the quest for the Holy Grail shifts over time, although the Grail retains its integrity as a symbol of healing. In the earliest incarnation of the Holy Grail quest narrative, entitled "Percival," the Grail is a means by which to heal an ailing king and a barren land. In "Parzival" the Grail becomes a test of the hero's Christian values and integrity to inquire what ails the sick Fisher king. Finally, in "The Quest for the Holy Grail," the Holy Grail is not a means or quest for individual heroic achievement and a demonstration of fidelity to one's Lord at all. Rather, realizing the quest for the Holy Grail takes the form of a non-chivalric, even unearthly test of a knight's chastity and purity. Seeking the Holy Grail becomes means for healing all of Arthur's knights, and a way to restore all of the Christian people...
The Welsh knight begins his life is ill-clad, unlettered, and entirely lacking in the chivalric graces expected of a knight, yet his foolish but holy innocence leads him to the Holy Grail and the dwelling of the Fisher king, though this location has eluded so many of Arthur's greatest knights. But unlike later "Quest" narrative, the heroes of "Percival" and "Parzival" do not remain chaste. Both Percival and Parzival marry ladies, as is expected by the chivalrous knights these originally rude and unlettered men eventually become. Percival marries a woman named Blanchefleur and Parzival becomes husband and a father. But in the narrative of the "Quest" Galahad's ability to access the grail is due to his chastity -- only a person who is entirely pure can access the Holy Grail.
Individualistic Quest Despite the many differences between the different incarnations of the Grail quest, all of the Holy Grail quest narratives are essentially individualistic quest narratives, as defined by the historian of mythology Joseph Campbell. Both "Percival" and "Parzival" are defined by their uniqueness as individuals, from the rest of their knights, because of their upbringing in isolated circumstances, from the rest of the chivalric Round Table. And in the
"The body of a bloodied Christ is divinely displaced from its sepulcher" and transferred to the West, where it must regain its rightful place, symbolically making Christianity's ownership of Jerusalem rightful and just." Works Cited Allen, Charlotte. "The real grail tale," Belief Net, December 16, 2009. http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Movies/The-Da-Vinci-Code/The-Real-Grail-Tale.aspx Hughes, Linda K. "Reinventing King Arthur: The Arthurian Legends in Victorian Culture." Victorian Studies, 48. 3 (April 1, 2006): 559-560. http://www.proquest.com / (accessed December 16, 2009). Miesel, Sandra.
Courtly Love -- the French Ethos Embodied in the Romantic Lancelot, and the English Ethos Embodied in the Dutiful Gawain In many ways, the courtly love narratives of medieval chivalric romance were equally as formulaic as Hollywood romances today. The typical Hollywood romance is boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl, while the typical courtly love scenario might be defined along the lines of knight pines for (married) lady,
Natural, by Bernard Malamud [...] its importance in American baseball literature. THE NATURAL The Natural" was author Bernard Malamud's first book. In an interview, Malamud said he wrote it because "Baseball players were the 'heroes' of my American childhood. I wrote 'The Natural' as a tale of a mythological hero because...I became interested in myth and tried to use it, among other things, to symbolize and explicate an ethical dilemma of
The history and influence of the Templars did not end with these confessions and executions. To Philip's "dismay" (92), the story seemed to gain power now that it was a legend. In fact, it is recorded that when de Molay was burning, he spoke and cursed Philip. The history of the Knights Templar is riddled with obscurity and doubt. While we know that they did exist, we must wonder what
Bernard Malamud, a Natural Writer Bernard Malamud, was the oldest son of an immigrant grocer. His parents, Max and Bertha, were Russian-Jewish immigrants and would frequently work late, and Bernard would spend many hours in the Gravesend section of Brooklyn absorbing the atmosphere of the area. Times were different then and he was allowed to stay out late as a child, and "wander in the neighbor hood." He would skate on
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