Book Review: The Once and Future King
It does not get more timeless than the story of King Arthur. In all of western civilization few tales have been retold and reimagined more than the legend of the round table with its famous knights.
T. H. White’s Once and Future King is arguably the definitive modern iteration. It is a lengthy, challenging, engrossing, and ultimately incredibly rewarding work of literature. It is a dense work made all the more inaccessible by its rich language. The writing is slathered with archaic terminology related to knighthood, falconry, architecture of the middle ages, and other niche subjects. Even intelligent readers will struggle to visualize much of the setting. Yet if you soldier on you get used to the language. The second half of the book, though not as light and fun as the earlier part, definitely reads faster as a result.
The book is divided into four sections. The first part, The Sword in the Stone, will be the most familiar to modern audiences who may have seen the Disney animation of the same name. It is the story of young Wart, a squire in training who falls under the tutelage of the wizard Merlin. His training entails being transformed into different animals in order to learn a variety of moral ideas. While it starts a bit slow it is ultimately the most fun part of the book. The animals are all quite charming and their unique views on humanity are thoughtful.
Book II, The Queen of Air and Darkness is the shortest and serves as a kind of transition in tone. We learn about Queen Morgause, Arthur’s half-sister, and the Orkney clan who will serve as antagonists to the young king. Arthur is seduced by the queen’s dark magic leading to him fathering Mordred, his ultimate foil and the seed of the story’s tragic final act.
The Ill-Made Knight is Book III and for many it will be the most memorable. It is the story of Lancelot, a strong and pious knight destined to become Arthur’s greatest champion. He is such an earnest character that we feel his insecurities, his triumphs, and his disappointments so sharply, particularly his own sad relationship with Elaine, the mother of his son Galahad. The moment where he realizes he was made drunk and lost his virginity against his will haunts me to this day, his sad lament about praying to God to maintain his purity for the chance to do a miracle. His love affair with Queen Guinevere, Arthur’s wife, is even more powerfully told in a way that somehow makes us feel genuine sympathy for all three of them.
I was amazed how much I felt for Guinevere. It is rare for us to sympathize with adulterous women. We should loathe her betrayal of her position and her noblest of husbands. Yet somehow we do not. Somehow, we understand. She is such a complex character and so beautifully drawn. Both Lancelot and she loved Arthur, arguably Lancelot even more. He puts his body and soul on the line for Arthur’s mission in a way that is never asked of Guinevere. It all comes to a head in the finale in Book IV The Candle in the Wind, with the disastrous consequences of Arthur’s incestuous affair leading to a horrific civil war with his son. Here is where the book offers its most meditative prose as Arthur must slowly watch his grand vision fall into ruin.
Once and Future King is a story with all of the dramatic ‘seasons’ of ancient classical theater or Shakespeare. It features the Spring of comedy, particularly in the first book but also a bit in the third. It features the Summer of romance in the story of Lancelot and Guinevere’s beautiful courtship. It features the Fall of tragedy in the scandalous fallout of the affair. It ends with the bitter Winter of irony in Arthur’s lamentable downfall in his war with his son.
This book is perhaps the best way to experience the legend of Arthur in a work of literature. In spite of its tough language it is definitely more approachable than Mallory’s original Le Morte d’Arthur. There’s just so much here — King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, the quest for the Holy Grail, Robinhood, Merlin — so much will feel familiar and yet not. T.H. White, writing just a decade after the end of WWII, did not simply wish to retell the legend of Arthur. He wanted also to say something about the nature of leadership, society, war, spirituality, the passing of time, death, and love. He takes liberties with some characterizations and plot points but it all coheres beautifully to serve the themes. The result is a bold work that, for all it asks of the reader, gives far more. The Once and Future King truly is a tale of all seasons. Take it as a compliment if it is recommended to you.
Grade: A
