Theme Of Loyalty In Lancelot's Moral Code

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T. H. White uses characters’ unbalanced loyalties to suggest that loyalty must by appropriately balanced between commitment to others and to one’s own judgment because one must make decisions that align with his own morals without hurting others.
Elaine’s love and loyalty to Lancelot causes her to use her twisted morals to trick him into sleeping with her, which causes him immense pain by removing his ability to perform miracles. Elaine, a young maiden who is saved from a five-year curse by Lancelot, quickly falls madly in love with her savior. Determined to get his love, Elaine follows her dysfunctional moral compass, fueled by an obsessive love for Lancelot, and devises a plan to make him love her, an experience that will end up causing great …show more content…

Lancelot is a fascinating character who believes strongly in his moral code. Very early in the novel and in Lancelot's journey as a knight, he establishes two core beliefs: it is important to be honest and to be chivalrous. When T. H. White narrates, "[Lancelot] considered [his word] to be the most valuable of possessions," it becomes evident that he strongly values the truth and rejects lying in all situations (White 339). Lancelot is also shown to have a strong belief in chivalry when it is revealed that he has a "medieval respect for honour" (White 338). These two core principles, chivalry and truth, are the cornerstones of Lancelot's ideology and are the rules with which he wants to live his life. However, although Lancelot has a strong set of morals, he cannot find the balance between loyalty to his own beliefs and to the welfare of others. Lancelot, unlike Elaine, puts all his energy into his loyalty to others, specifically Arthur and Guenever. In order to satisfy both his lover and his best friend, Lancelot is forced to compromise his own morals and to reject his core beliefs. This is most evident in his love for Guenever. Lancelot does not want to disappoint Guenever, to whom he is loyal and in love with, by rejecting her love, but also feels strongly against betraying the King. After struggling with the decision, Lancelot decides to find a situation where he does not upset either of them. His solution is to sleep with his best friend's wife, Guenever, an act that is not very chivalrous, and to not let Arthur know about it, an act that is not very truthful. The rejection of his values and principles leads to Lancelot calling the situation "torture'' (White 387) and to extreme self-loathing: He loved Arthur and he loved Guenever and he hated himself" (White 368). Lancelot's attempt to

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