Works Cited

Bralds, Braldt. The Mists of Avalon Cover Art. 1984. E-Reading. JPEG file.

Works Cited

"Arthurian Women." Timeless Myths. Web. 12 November 2012. http://www.timelessmyths.com/arthurian/women.html.

Bradley, Marion Zimmer. The Mists of Avalon. New York: The Ballantine Publishing Group, 1982. Print.

Mallory, Sir Thomas. Morte Darthur. The Norton Anthology of English Literature Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt and M. H. Abrams. New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2006. 438-456. Print.

Marie de France. "Lanval." The Norton Anthology of English Literature Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt and M. H. Abrams. New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2006. 142-155. Print.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Norton Anthology of English Literature Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt and M. H. Abrams. New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2006. 162-213. Print.

5. Morgan Le Fay

Morgan Le Fay: Arthurian Legend. 2011. Royal Mail. Abe Books. JPEG file.

4. The Lady of the Lake

Beardsley, Aubrey. The Lady of the Lake and Sir Bedivere. 1984. Illustration from Morte Darthur by Sir Thomas Mallory. Wikipedia. JPEG file.

3. Guinevere

Harrison, Emma Florence. It Was Their Last Hour. Illustration to "Guinevere" by Lord Alfred Tennyson. Florence Harrison Art. JPEG file.

2. Igraine

Heller, Julek. Igraine. 1990. Illustration from King Arthur and His Knights. Timeless Myths. JPEG file.

Igraine was the wife of Duke Gorlois of Cornwall, with whom she had a daughter named Morgan le Fay. After Gorlois' death, Igraine married Uther Pendragon and gave birth to Arthur, the future king of England. However, Igraine conceived Arthur while she was still married to Gorlois. In many Arthurian legends, the obsessed Uther convinces the wizard Merlin to make him look like Gorlois in order to seduce Igraine. In these tales, Igraine thinks she is sleeping with her husband (Timeless Myths). In Bradley's book Mists of Avalon, however, Gorlois is a bit of a brute, and Igraine's marriage to him is based on forming political alliances, not on true love. In this version of the legend, Igraine falls in love with Uther. Indeed the pair feel as though they have loved each other over many incarnations, and Igraine gives herself to Uther freely. In this way her character is afforded more agency than she is in the original Arthurian tales. In most visual depictions of Igraine, she is a red-haired woman of Celtic descent. In the Mists of Avalon miniseries, for example, Igraine is portrayed by actress Caroline Goodall, who has flowing, copper-colored hair and often wears a green velvet gown to accent her Irish coloring.

1. Proposal

Although I have been studying and relishing Romantic, Victorian, and Modern British literature since I was a teenager, it was only a few years ago, when I was asked to teach an ancient British literature course, that I began to discover the magic of Arthurian legend. In Medieval works such as Morte Darthur, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, "Lanval" and The Myth of Arthur's Return, all of which I love, the female characters are intriguing, varied, and mysterious but often underdeveloped when compared to their male counterparts. In the late twentieth century, writer Marion Zimmer Bradley recognized and filled this gap by creating her epic Mists of Avalon series. I count the first book in this series--a retelling of Arthurian legend from the perspectives of Morgan le Fay, Igraine, Viviane, and Guinevere--among my favorite works of literature. Its rich imagery and attention to historical detail enables the female reader to delve deeply and lose herself into King Arthur's world while simultaneously empowering her with its message of gender equality and matriarchal significance. This blog is my attempt to pay homage to these fascinating, legendary characters who have provided me with much inspiration.