Le Morte Darthur Research Paper

The Downfall of Men in Le Morte Darthur: Lust
A woman can either make or brake a man. In this case let’s just say the women of the Middle Ages and Le Morte Darthur do a lot of braking. Powerful men throughout medieval history and in Sir Thomas Malory’s, Le Morte Darthur, all fall under the rule of lust which causes nothing but turmoil for themselves and their country. Malory writes about three influential and authoritative men that all fall to lust: King Arthur of England, Merlin the Wizard, and Sir Lancelot Du Lake. Each man brakes in some form or fashion because of the lust for a women; Arthur’s lover, Morgouse, gives birth to a son, who is destined to destroy him and camelot, Merlin’s lover, The Lady of the Lake, traps him in a cave, and Lancelot’s lover, Guinever, literally drives him mad into the woods and keeps him from The Holy Grail.
First, Arthur’s love affair with Morgouse, his own sister, results in a son, Mordred, who is destined to destroy him. “But ye have done a thing late that God is displeased with you, for ye have lain by your sister, and ye have begotten a child that shall destroy you and all the knights of your realm” (23). Merlin gives this prophecy disguised as an old man to Arthur early on in the book to warn him. This prophecy, that Merlin tells, does in fact come true by the end of the book.
And

when Sir Mordred felt that he had his death’s wound, he thrusted himself with the might that he had up to the bur of King Arthur’s spear; and right so he smote his father, King Arthur, with his sword holding in both his hands, upon the side of the head, that the sword pierced the helmet and the tay of the brain (513).
In the last chapter of Le Morte Darthur, Sir Mordred finally fulfills Merlin’s prophecy by killing his father, King Arthur, by a blow to the head with a sword. The death of King Arthur also meant the death of Camelot and the knights of the round table. He works so hard throughout his life for the Kingdom of Camelot to thrive, but it takes only one lustful mistake, early on, that brings turmoil. Arthur’s lust for a women results in not only incest, but a son that destroys himself and Camelot.
Second, Merlin , the all powerful wizard, also falls victim to lust early on in the book by Nenive.

“So by her subtle working she made Merlin to go under that stone to let her wit of the marvels there, but she wrought so there for him that he came never out for all the craft that he could do. And so she departed and left Merlin” (59). The Lady of the Lake, Nenive, undoes this compelling and influential wizard, that could even see the future, because of his lust for her. Because of Merlin’s lust, he stays trapped in the cave for eternity unable to escape and powerless. Even wizards in the middle ages cannot escape the power of lust for a

woman.
Third and final, Sir Lancelot’s lust for Guinever, the Queen of England and wife of King Arthur, causes nothing but trouble over and over again.
“…and when Sir Lancelot awoke out of his swoon, he leapt out at a bay window into a garden, and there with thorns he was all to-scratched of his visage and his body. And so he ran forth he knew not wither, and was as wild as ever was man; and so he ran two years, and never man had grace to know him” (288).
Lancelot, a well respected and strong knight of the round table, lives all alone for two years in the forest, not in his right mind, due to the desire of one woman, Guinever. She not only brakes his heart, but she really brakes him mentally. Also, Sir Lancelot’s greed and lust for Queen Guinever keeps him from the most sought out item of all knights of the Middle Ages, The Holy Grail. “ Then they told him how he had lain there four and twenty days and nights. Then him thought it was punishment for the four and twenty years that he had been a sinner, wherefore Our Lord put him in penance the four and twenty days and nights” (388). The lust affair between Sir Lancelot and Guinever keeps him from experiencing the presence of God and The Holy Grail. These are two examples of the many others that show the turmoil Sir Lancelot’s lust and affair with Guinever causes. The Lancelot, best knight in Camelot and of the round table, in the end chooses his desires and wants for a women over his country.
To conclude, lust brings problem after problem to these three authoritative men in Malory’s book. First, Lust controls King Arthur to sleep with his sister, bringing forth a son that ends up being Camelot’s and his own undoing. Second, Lust controls Merlin, the wizard, by leading him into a trap forever that takes his power and magic. Finally, Lust controls Sir Lancelot by driving him mad and keeping him from the Holy Grail. Lust brought nothing but turmoil to the three men of the Middle Ages and in Le Morte Darthur. Morgouse, Nenive, and Guinever brake these men in every possible way mentally and physically.