tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2781723852953661837.post3732690773595239873..comments2022-06-01T12:15:43.074+10:00Comments on Prognostications and Pouting: Will the Real King Arthur Please Step Out of the Shadows?Gregory Househttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04476560824795563382noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2781723852953661837.post-88041805272155571422011-07-29T01:22:24.591+10:002011-07-29T01:22:24.591+10:00I think Morris was fascinated by the "reactio...I think Morris was fascinated by the "reaction" to people's interpretation of the Arthurian Age more than by the scanty evidence that exists. He personally did not really think the real "Arthur" would have been terribly important, though of course, he does not throw out the character entirely like so many historians have done. (Dumville comes to mind.) <br /> However, I would be rather MORE interested in a study of the shadowy character in Frisia who seemed to pull all the strings without taking any of the credit. Morris seems to think that person (whoever he is) would have been <br />a) real, <br />b) powerful beyond any abilities Arther could have had<br />c) worked so hard to stay OUT of the spotlight that the only way we know he exists is because of the blank spot in the records! <br /><br />Sort of a dark ages "George Smiley" or "Admiral Canaris". <br /> Would be good fodder for a great novel. There is a derth of spy novels in the world, and a great market for them. My favorite "period" spy novel of course would be Wheatley's "Launching of Rodger Brooke", but that is set in Napoleon's era. <br /><br />The fact that a powerful king like Beowulf visited him to receive orders before invading Britain causes one to think!<br /><br />Oh well, most of Morris's work has been, well, not discredited, but perhaps ridiculed, David Dumville for instance thinks Morris's work was far too rooted in fantasy and "wannabe" anthropology. <br /> So be it. The fact is, just as Morris pointed out...it doesn't matter if Arthur existed, it is the reaction to the story which has often made history!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14680700783923382336noreply@blogger.com