Martial arts: Malory's 'Morte Darthur' and late medieval chivalr

This study argues that Sir Thomas Malory's Morte Darthur depicts a far more complicated and dynamic set of late medieval chivalric conventions than has usually been recognized. This revises both the general understanding of chivalry of the period to acknowledge its vigor and diversity; and approaches to Malory, which must recognize that the book is organized to depict clashes between competing styles of chivalry, not to celebrate a few unified and well-defined forms of chivalry.;The study is guided by four observations: that chivalry depends upon literary texts; that chivalry depends upon local circumstances; that chivalry is continually changing; and that chivalry involves many groups in society.;The first part of the study argues that late medieval chivalry was used by women, writers, lower-class combatants, and, of course, knights in order advance their personal interests. Writers like Christine de Pizan and Ramon Lull and printers like William Caxton used chivalric manuals to claim places as chivalric figures. Archers used the growing popularity of the bow and tales of Robin Hood to higher social status. Tournaments, archery contests, duels, and other performances allowed the participants to display their skills and earn rewards of honor.;The second part of the study argues that Malory depicts the continuous flux of chivalric standards and the social pressures that drive those changes, His work is thus not organized around stable ideas of chivalry but rather centered on the process by which those ideas change.