ARTHUR AND MEDIEVAL WELSH MYTHOLOGY
Module Director: Dr. Margaret Tilsley
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This course is a one semester module in Welsh Studies as a Minor and Joint subject within the B.A. Humanities scheme. It seeks to demonstrate the role of myths and legends, particularly those concerning Arthur, in the development of the Welsh identity during the late Middle Ages and early modern period and to explain the entry of Arthur into the European mythological and literary tradition.
The importance of Old Celtic mythology in the evolution of these myths is discussed, together with the ways in which that mythology was passed on to subsequent generations. Key Welsh texts such as The Mabinogion are studied in translation, with emphasis on those tales relating to Arthur, and references are also made to other texts such as Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain and Arthurian texts in English and other European languages. The course also addresses the issue of Arthur as a historical personage and the way in which he developed as a myth: for the Welsh in early imaginative literature, for the Normans, the French and other European peoples, for the Tudors in England and also as a myth in modern times, in the Victorian Age and in the present day.
Students will be encouraged to interpret the myths in the light of contemporary conditions and circumstances and to account for the continuing importance of medieval myths and legends to the present day.
Students will have the opportunity to visit and utilise the Arthurian Collection housed at the County Library Headquarters at Mold, a unique collection of Arthurian literature comprising nearly 2000 volumes. The collection has material in twelve different languages, including basic texts by Gildas, Nennius, Geoffrey of Monmouth, Chretien de Troyes, Malory and Tennyson and books covering such topics as history, criticism, prose, poetry, children's stories, novels and art.
Course Content
The course consists of the following elements:
1. Introduction, Myths and Legends
The importance of myths in general and of Arthur as a myth; how myths were passed on and changed; old Celtic mythology and legends
2. The Professional Story-tellers of Wales
The role of the professional story-teller in passing on and changing myths
3. The Mabinogion: The Four Branches of the Mabinogi
The background to the Mabinogion Tales and a study of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi
4. Welsh Arthurian Tales: Culhwch and Olwen and The Dream of Rhonabwy
A study of two independent Welsh Arthurian tales
5. Welsh Arthurian Tales: The Three Welsh Romances
A study of the three Welsh romances, The Lady of the Fountain, Peredur son of Efrawg, and Gereint son of Erbin
6. The Arthur of History
The issue of Arthur as a historical personage and the references to him in historical chronicles
7. Arthur: the Welsh Myth
Arthur as the "deathless hero" of early Welsh imaginative literature
8. Arthur and Geoffrey of Monmouth
The role of Geoffrey of Monmouth and his Historia Regum Britanniae in influencing the portrayal of Arthur for subsequent generations
9. Arthur: the Norman Myth and its Transmission to Europe
Arthur as a Norman myth and the transmission to Europe of the Arthurian Legend: the French tales of Chretien de Troyes, Arthur and the Holy Grail and the Vulgate Cycle
10. Arthur: the Myth of the Tudor Period
The fading of the Arthurian myth in Europe and its revival in Britain in the Tudor period
11. Visit to Arthurian Collection at Mold Library
12. Arthur: the Renaissance in Modern Times
The renaissance of the Arthurian myth in Victorian times and in the early twentieth century : Blake, Tennyson, T.Gwynn Jones
13. Arthur: the Myth Today in Literature and Film
Arthur as a myth today: his place in modern literature, films and other aspects of life
14. Conclusion
The interpretation of myths in the light of contemporary conditions and circumstances and the continuing importance of medieval myths and legends to the present day
Key Texts
JONES, GWYN and JONES, THOMAS (trans. and intro.), The Mabinogion (J.M. Dent 1976) for the Welsh Arthurian Tales, Culhwch and Olwen and The Dream of Rhonabwy; The Lady of the Fountain, Peredur son of Efrawg, and Gereint son of Erbin; and The Four Branches of the Mabinogi.
Secondary texts
ALCOCK, L,. Arthur's Britain: History and Archaeology, London, 1971
BROMWICH, R. & JARMAN, A.O.H. & ROBERTS, B.F.(eds), The Arthur of the Welsh, Cardiff, 1991
JACKSON, K., The International Popular Tale and Early Welsh Tradition, Cardiff, 1961
JONES, B.L., Arthur y Cymry - The Arthur of the Welsh, Cardiff, 1975
JARMAN, A.O.H. and HUGHES, G.R. (eds), A Guide to Welsh Literature, Vol. I, Cardiff, 1992
MAC CANA, P., The Mabinogi (Writers of Wales), Cardiff, 1992
WILLIAMS, G.A., Excalibur - The Search for Arthur, London, 1994