Lancelot The Knight Of The Cart Literary Analysis

Through the transitions of time and culture, a change in the world’s literature is clearly presented. Works tend to hold distinctive or even repetitive content with highlights of the author’s artistic imaginings and ideas. The most popular legend regarding Sir Lancelot, who’s known to uphold the position as King Arthur’s greatest knight, involves King Arthur’s wife. Sir Lancelot and Guinevere have an affair behind King Arthur’s back which eventually leads to the destruction of Arthur’s kingdom. As time proceeds, the Arthurian Legend of Sir Lancelot has been uniquely altered by authors. The book Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart translated by W.W. Comfort, and the poem Guinevere to Lancelot written by H.C Caulfield both embody the Legend of Lancelot

Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart was written during the medieval period. During the Medieval period, the desire for courtly love was customary yet admired. The marital status of a woman did not affect her chance of having a courtly relationship with a brave, handsome knight, instead the tradition was encouraged. With a request from King Arthur, Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere share a courtly love that eventually turns into an insolent affair. Fidelity was frequently preached by religious officials during this time period, and many strived to follow the morals of Christianity. Therefore being in a courtly relationship did not excuse the sin of adultery and infidelity. In Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart, Lancelot is initially heartbroken for Guinevere’s lack of passion towards him. He saves her like a respectable knight should, but in return she gives him no respect for saving her life. He then expresses to Guinevere, “I am grieved at this, but I dare not ask your reason” (Comfort 49). The author reveals that although they are in a courtly relationship together, she does not fall in love with Lancelot immediately, like she does in some modern versions. It takes time for Guinevere to appreciate and realize the affection

During this time, writers articulated physical and emotional passion through their writings, because freedom was highly encouraged. Through the art of poetry, writers had the liberty to write freely. In this poem, the author entirely concentrates on the relationship between the two characters. He depicts the affair between Lancelot and Guinevere by solely focusing on Guinevere’s passion towards Lancelot, which adds a twist to the legend because stories usually highlight Lancelot’s infatuation with Guinevere. Despite her being married, Guinevere’s true feelings for the knight are exposed. Lancelot, the individual, has the power to leave an unshakeable expression on the Queen in the writing. Referring to the love between her and Lancelot she expresses that it is “a love that cannot die” (Caulfield 14). In this version, it is clear that the author creates Lancelot to have an everlasting effect on Guinevere. With the emotion the writer uses in the poem, it seems as if Lancelot has loved her like no other man has. He shows her how it feels to truly be loved by a man. She reveals that Lancelot has always been there for her, she says “The night is here, and thou art with me still” (Caulfield 1). The passion released in this poem displays that the intensity of their love goes deeper than the affair it originally was created be by writers’ decades before. In the medieval version, Guinevere