The Once and Future Kingis a collection offantasy novelsbyT. H. Whiteabout the legend ofKing Arthur.It is loosely based upon the 1485 workLe Morte d'Arthurby SirThomas Malory.It was first published in 1958 as a collection of shorter novels that were published from 1938 to 1940, with some new or amended material. The title refers to a legend that Arthur will one day return as king.[2]
 First edition cover | |
| Author | T. H. White |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Set in | England,c. 1200–1485[1] |
| Publisher | Collins |
Publication date | 1958 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | Print (hardback and paperback) |
| OCLC | 35661057 |
| 823/.912 21 | |
| LC Class | PR6045.H2 O5 1996 |
Plot
editMost of the book takes place in Gramarye, the name that White gives to Britain, and chronicles the youth and education ofKing Arthur,his rule as a king, and the romance betweenSir LancelotandQueen Guinevere.The story starts in the final years of the rule of KingUther Pendragon.
The first part, "The Sword in the Stone" (first published 1938), chronicles Arthur's upbringing by his foster fatherSir Ector,his rivalry and friendship with his foster brotherKay,and his initial training by Merlyn, a wizard who lives through time backwards. Merlyn, knowing the boy's destiny, teaches Arthur (known as "Wart" ) what it means to be a good king by turning him into various kinds of animals: fish, hawk, ant, goose, and badger. Each of the transformations is meant to teach Wart a lesson, which will prepare him for his future life. Merlyn instills in Arthur the concept that the only justifiable reason for war is to prevent another from going to war and that contemporary human governments and powerful people exemplify the worst aspects of the rule of Might.
White sets the stage for Arthur's demise by introducing theOrkneyclan and detailing Arthur's seduction by their mother, his half-sisterQueen Morgause.While the young king suppresses initial rebellions, Merlyn leads him to envision a means of harnessing potentially destructive Might for the cause of Right: thechivalric orderof theRound Table.
The focus shifts from King Arthur to the story of Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere's forbidden love, the means they adopt to hide their affair from the King (although he already knows of it from Merlyn), and its effect onElaine,Lancelot's sometime lover and the mother of his sonGalahad.
Mordred's hatred of his father andSir Agravaine'shatred of Lancelot cause the eventual downfall of Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, and the entire ideal kingdom ofCamelot.The "Candle in the Wind" is an allegory to the hope of progress. Arthur sends little Tom (Sir Thomas Mallory) to be a vessel and carry on his ideas from his famous round table.
Published separately following White's death, this book chronicles Arthur's final lessons fromMerlyn.
Reception
editFloyd C. GalepraisedThe Sword in the Stoneas "blithely comic and entirely delightful", stating that it was "in utter contrast to the mounting tragedy" of the other three volumes of the series.[3]Fantasy historianLin Cartercalled it "the single finest fantasy novel written in our time, or for that matter, ever written."[4]Constance Grady ofVoxalso praised the novel, stating: "White was writing for a post–World War II audience, but his book has a vigor and clarity that makes it an urgent and important read today."[5]
Adaptations
editAlthoughWalt Disneyinitially purchased the film rights toThe Ill-Made Knightin 1944,[6]he produced an adaptation ofThe Sword in the Stone,released in 1963.
Alan Jay LernerandFrederick Loewe's 1960 musicalCamelot(which was made intoa movie in 1967) is based mostly on the last two books ofThe Once and Future Kingand features White's idea of havingThomas Malorymake a cameo appearance at the end, again as "Tom of Warwick".
BBC Radio produced a dramatised version of "The Sword in the Stone" for Children's Hour shortly after its publication in 1938. Incidental music for the serial was specially composed byBenjamin Britten.
A two-hour version ofThe Sword in the Stone,dramatised by Neville Teller, was first broadcast as aSaturday Night TheatreonBoxing Day,1981. Michael Hordern played Merlyn and Toby Robertson was the Wart. The cast included Pauline Letts, David Davis, Jeffrey Segal and Lewis Stringer.Benjamin Britten's incidental music, played by the English Sinfonia, was used in the production, which was by Graham Gauld.
BBC Radio 4 serialised the book in six one-hour episodes dramatised byBrian Sibley,beginning on Sunday 9 November 2014 withPaul Readyas Arthur andDavid Warneras Merlyn.[7]
References
edit- ^"The Once and Future King, by T. H. White".www2.netdoor.com.
- ^"What does the Once and Future King mean?".
- ^Gale, Floyd C. (August 1959)."Galaxy's 5 Star Star Shelf".Galaxy.pp.138–142.Retrieved14 June2014.
- ^Carter, Lin(1973).Imaginary Worlds.Ballantine Books.p.125.ISBN0-345-03309-4.
- ^"Why The Once and Future King is still the best King Arthur story out there".Vox.18 May 2017.Archivedfrom the original on 11 November 2020.Retrieved5 February2021.
- ^"FUTURIAN WAR DIGEST No. 37 (Oct. 1944)".efanzines.com.Archivedfrom the original on 14 September 2009.Retrieved19 March2009.
- ^Brian Sibley (7 November 2014)."BBC Blogs – The Radio 4 Blog – The Once and Future King – New Drama".The Radio 4 Blog.Archivedfrom the original on 26 May 2022.Retrieved25 December2019.
External links
edit
- The Once and Future KingatFaded Page(Canada)
- The Book of Merlyntitle listing at theInternet Speculative Fiction Database
- "NLS/BPH: Minibibliographies, The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
- Essay: "The Importance of the Second World War to T.H. White'sOnce and Future King".
- 1958 review by Ken Slater