FREE ESSAY ON SIR THOMAS MALORY'S LE MORTE D'ARTHUR

SIR THOMAS MALORY'S LE MORTE D'ARTHUR

In the Medieval Period, knights dedicated their lives to following the code of chivalry.
In Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, a number of characters performed chivalrous
acts to achieve the status of an ideal knight. Their characteristics of respect for
women and courtesy for all, helpfulness to the weak, honor, and skill in battle made the
characters King Arthur, King Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette examples of a what knights
strove to be like in Medieval society. Because of the examples ofchivalry, Le Morte
d'Arthur showed what a knight desired to be, so he could improve theworld in which he
lived.
Respect for women and courtesy were two major characteristics that knights longed to
develop, and King Arthur was able to demonstrate them in two specific instances. Arthur
showed great respect for the Lady of the Lake. Merlin, the magician who guided Arthur as
he grew to be a legendary knight advised him to "address her courteously, and do as she
directed" (page 75). Arthur spoke very politely and she gave him the famous sword,
Excaliber. In his respect for the lady, he also promised to give heany gift she wants
because she presented him with the sword. Respectfulness to women was one quality knights
strove for, but less specifically, a knight was expected to be courteous towards
everyone. King Arthur demonstrated this characteristic while dealing with the Roman
ambassadors. They asked for a tribute, and Arthur responded, "we shall not put you to
death for your insolent words" (page 74). Then, he warned them that if they came back, he
would kill them. This was considerate behavior because even though he was angry, he was
polite and allowed them to leave safely. The warning also showed his courtesy because he
could have not told them in anticipation of their return in order to kill them because of
their disagreement. These two examples of King Arthur's respect for the Lady of the Lake
and the Roman ambassadors made him a model knight since he was
obeying the code of chivalry.
In addition to being courteous, being helpful to the weak was another aspect of chivalry
portrayed through characters in the story. First, Arthur tried to be helpful to Merlin
when he was being chased by ruffians. Arthur chased them away while riding his
horse. Merlin was not in real danger because of his magical powers, but the intent of
Arthur was to help someone who needed because he thought Merlin's powers might have
failed him. Another example of this chivalrous quality was illustrated during the battle
between King Pellinore and Sir Gryfflette. Pellinore knocked Gryfflette off his horse
and, "swiftly ran over to him and loosened his armor." He then, "lifted him gently onto
his horse" (page 74). Sir Gryfflette was weak, and he was just knighted that day, so
Pellinore did the chivalrous action and helped him. Being helpful to the weak was a
quality that all the knights were trying to develop, and King Arthur and King Pellinore
showed this attribute in their actions with Merlin and Gryfflette.
Another characteristic besides helpfulness was honor. When King Pellinore was helping
Gryfflette, he was not only helping someone who was weak, he was being honorable. He knew
that he had superior fighting skills than the new knight, so he did not pursue the battle
because it would be unfair. He sent Sir Gryfflette home so he could regain his health,
even though he had a chance to finish the battle and kill the knight. Another example of
honor was Gryfflette's attempt to avenge Sir Myles' death. Gryfflette asked to be a
knight, and then he pleaded, "Sire, but I beg you" (page 73), until Arthur dubbed him. He
had a deep longing to do what was right and show his loyalty and honor by fighting the
man who killed his master. Arthur did the same when he went to fight Pellinore because
the king had wounded his knight. Although, Arthur was not ranked
below Gryfflette, he wanted the revenge. Last, Arthur showed his honor once again when he
decided not to fight a tired Pellinore. Merlin says, "To win would bring you no honor, to
lose would be to increase your shame" (page 76). The fight would not have been fair,
so Arthur did not attempt to start the jousting match. Honor was an important quality to
the knights, and all the three knights in the story proved that the had this
characteristic in
specific situations.
Finally, being skillful in battle was an important part of the code of chivalry. King
Arthur thought that Pellinore "was a magnificent fighter" (page 75). Arthur even said
that he would have rather been killed than have had the unfair advantage that Merlin's
magic gave him because Pellinore deserved to win with his great battle skills. The praise
that Arthur gave King Pellinore proved that being skillful in battle was respected by
other knights and important in the code of knighthood.
To reiterate, the code of chivalry was expected to be followed by knights in the Medieval
time period. This code made the world full of elaborate courtesy and knights trying to
make their society the best they could through fairness and respect. In Le Morte
d'Arthur, the characters demonstrated the qualities needed to make the ideal knight.
Examples of respect for women and courtesy for everyone, helpfulness for the weak, honor,
and skillfulness in battle were all observed in the actions of King Arthur, King
Pellinore, and Sir Gryfflette. Because of this romantic atmosphere in the story, the
characters proved to be the ideal knights at certain times and respected for their
chivalrous actions.