Myths and Legends by HUB Scuola https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e en-us 2021-03-19 09:05:04 UTC 2025-04-24 08:40:04 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.net/icons/png/1f934.png Introduction mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329020366 England in the Middle  Ages was a fertile ground for the birth of legends, modern myths, heroic figures, and fantastic creatures. And what British legend is more famous than that of King Arthur? This era comes from a time when the Anglo-Saxons were invading Britain, and the remaining people, the Britons, were supposedly led by a valiant king named Arthur. His name is first mentioned by Nennius, a Welsh poet and monk from the 9th Century. His story emerges throughout the centuries, for example in works by Dante, Burne-Jones, Freud, Watts, and Turner.]]> 2021-03-19 09:08:33 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329020366 King Arthur: the man of legends around the globe – who was he and what is his story mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329021888 King Arthur, also called Arthur or Arthur Pendragon, legendary British king who appears in a number of medieval romances as the leader of the Round Table. Watch this short TedEd clip to watch the story of King Arthur unfold, which mentions keep people in the creation of its legacy including Geoffrey Monmouth, Thomas Malory, and Chretien de Troyes.

Watch the video here:  ]]> 2021-03-19 09:09:23 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329021888 Nennius: a record of the earliest known reference to King Arthur mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329024986 Nennius complied or revised the Historica Brittonum, a miscellaneous collection of historical and topographical information including a description of the inhabitants and invaders of Britain and providing the earliest-known reference to King Arthur.

The account of the battles of Arthur in the earliest surviving copy of the Historia Brittonum from the early 12th century]]> 2021-03-19 09:11:09 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329024986 Geoffrey Monmouth: History of the Kings of Britain: a key text in the mystery and legend of King Arthur mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329027995 Geoffrey of Monmouth was an Anglo-Norman cleric and historian, active during the mid-12th century and is principally known as the author of the Historia regum Brittaniae (History of the Kings of Britain). It includes the history of royal dynasties which were brought to an end by the Saxon invasion, most notably Uther Pendragon and Arthur. Geoffrey’s work provides one of the first substantial treatments of the legendary figure’s life and reign and it continued to be a major source for writers of Arthurian literature, centuries after his death, including characters such as Merlin.

Portrait of King Arthur at the beginning of Geoffrey Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain]]> 2021-03-19 09:12:46 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329027995 Uther: the father of King Arthur mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329030392 Uther Pendragon also known as King Uther, is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.

Uther Pendragon illustrated in a 15th century Welsh version of Historia Regum Britanniae]]> 2021-03-19 09:13:56 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329030392 Merlin: an important character in Arthurian legend with magical powers mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329033016 King Arthur’s most trusted advisor, prophet, magician, and friend, Merlin was almost certainly the creation of Geoffrey of Monmouth. Geoffrey combined tales and stories of a bard and wizard named Myrddin, who was created by a ninth century mystic named Nennius. 
Merlin has inspired legend throughout the centuries, even a television series for the BBC.

Watch the trailer here: 
]]> 2021-03-19 09:15:16 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329033016 Chretien de Troyes: an important writer who brought key parts of the legend to life mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329034587 Lancelot (8), also known as Sir Lancelot and Lancelot du Lac (“Lancelot of the Lake”) is the greatest knight of King Arthur's court and lover of Arthur's wife, Queen Guinevere, best known from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur (1469 CE). However, the character was first developed by the French poet Chretien de Troyes (l. c. 1130-1190 CE) in his Lancelot or the Knight of the Cart (c. 1177 CE) who introduced Lancelot's affair with Guinevere as well as his reputation as a famously skilled warrior.]]> 2021-03-19 09:16:05 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329034587 Thomas Malory: Le Morte d’Arthur: his depiction of Lancelot’s affair has been used repeatedly throughout history and film mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329039922 In Malory's work, Lancelot's affair with Guinevere finally destroys the unity of Arthur's Round Table of noble knights and allows the villain Mordred to take over the throne. Mordred's actions lead to the destruction of the kingdom and the deaths of most of the greatest knights while Arthur, mortally wounded, is taken away to the mystical isle of Avalon. It also includes reference to the magical sword, Excalibur and The Holy Grail.
This love story has been retold and created throughout the centuries, one example is the film, The Sword of Lancelot, in 1963:

Watch the video here:  
]]> 2021-03-19 09:18:56 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329039922 Lancelot and Guinevere: the fated lovers whose affair caused the demise of Arthur’s great kingdom mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329042171 Lancelot was depicted as King Arthur’s close companion and one of the Great Knights at the Round Table. He was a hero in battle and a highly skilled swordsman and jouster. His affair with King Arthur’s wife, Guinevere, however, was the undoing of Arthur’s kingdom and is the source of much literature and many films.

N. C. Wyeth's illustration for The Boy's King Arthur, abridged from Le Morte d'Arthur by Sidney Lanier (1922) of Lancelot riding away with Guinevere ]]> 2021-03-19 09:20:04 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329042171 The Arthurian Legend Today: Arthurian legend has transcended through the ages even into film culture of today mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329044706 Over the centuries, the legend of King Arthur has exercised an enduring influence on both high and popular culture, including cinema. From Disney’s animated movie The Sword in the Stone (1963) to that masterpiece of absurdist British humour, Monty Python, and the Holy Grail (1975), Arthurian legends have inspired countless films. One of the most famous remains John Boorman’s Excalibur (1981), which tells the classic tale of how the magical sword helped Arthur defeat his enemies and establish Camelot. A more realistic approach is found in King Arthur (2004), which omits supernatural elements and provides a historical context (the fall of the Roman Empire). King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017) instead weaves all the classic elements of the story into a high-adrenalin epic fantasy action film. Arthuriana have also inspired numerous TV series, from Merlin (2008) and Camelot (2011) to the recent Cursed (2020), described as “a re-imagining of the Arthurian legend, told through the eyes of a young heroine with a mysterious gift.”
Compare the following movie trailers 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYjUX1THmg8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urRkGvhXc8w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4M4D8vyK1mA
 
Prepare a short oral presentation for your classmates focusing on:
  • Historical background
  • Supernatural elements
  • General plot
  • Main characters
]]> 2021-03-19 09:21:23 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329044706 The Holy Grail: a critical part of Arthurian literature and one which is referenced in other contexts too mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329050141 The Holy Grail is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Different traditions describe it as a cup, dish or stone with miraculous powers that provide happiness, eternal youth, or sustenance in infinite abundance. The term "holy grail" is often used to denote an elusive object or goal that is sought after for its great significance.

Read this article to find out more ]]> 2021-03-19 09:24:13 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329050141 Excalibur: an element of the Arthurian legend which supposedly determined the true King of England mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329052095 The Excalibur Sword is described as a sword thrust into a stone which only the true King of England could free. In the legend, King Arthur was the only king to do so and therefore became the rightful and true king of the Britons. This is referred to in Greek mythology too. But where does the story of the ‘sword in the stone’ originate? 
Watch this short documentary to find out more 
]]> 2021-03-19 09:25:11 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329052095 Greek Mythology and Arthurian legend: discover more about ancient influences on Arthurian legend mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329069670 As we know from the story of Arthur and Excalibur, the sword was safeguarded until the right person came along. That special person happened to be Arthur, the son of Uther, who eventually became King Arthur. In Greek mythology, Aegeus, the king of Athens hid his sword under a rock at a time when he feared usurpers to his thrown. Other references between Greek mythology and Arthurian legend include the 12 Olympian Gods and Goddesses much like the Knights of the Round Table; the affair between Aphrodite and Ares which is remarkably similar to that of Guinevere and Lancelot; and the search for the Holy Grail by the knights, whereas in Greek mythology Jason and the Argonauts went on a quest to find the Golden Fleece. 

Find out more similarities here: 
]]> 2021-03-19 09:34:24 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329069670 Knights of the Round Table: a symbol of equality between the knights who served with Arthur mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329071914 King Arthur’s round table was so that none of his knights, when seated at it, could claim precedence over the others. It provided the knights of Arthur’s court with a name and a collective personality.

Read more here and listen to the Podcast for much more detail on Arthurian legend: ]]> 2021-03-19 09:35:33 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329071914 Francesca and Paolo (Dante): Arthurian legend depicted in art mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329074121 The tragic story of the adulterous lovers, Paolo and Francesca, is recounted in Canto V of Dante's Inferno, and was a popular subject with artists and sculptors from the late 18th Century onwards. The whole episode of Paolo and Francesca is set in a medieval courtly context and the references to the Arthurian legend are precise. Lancelot is the knight who loved Guinevere, wife to King Arthur, and who died for his unhappy love. In the proverbial phrase, “Galeotto fu ‘l libro”, galeotto does not derive  from galera – prison or gaol – as is sometimes thought, but it is the Italian version of the name Galehault or Galahad, another knight of the Round Table. It was Galehault who first incited Lancelot to kiss Guinevere. The analogy is clear: just as Galehault acted as a go-between, so the romance that Paolo and Francesca were reading incited them to their first kiss.

A painting of Paolo and Francesca da Rimini by Dante]]> 2021-03-19 09:36:47 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329074121 The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon: a huge masterpiece depicting this iconic scene from the legend of Arthur mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329077750 The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon is a painting by Edward Burne-Jones, started in 1881 and was an impressive six and a half metres wide by the time he finished it. Burne-Jones was commissioned this work in 1881 by George Howard, who wished to decorate his personal library with an Arthurian subject.

The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon ]]> 2021-03-19 09:38:21 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329077750 Tate Modern: discover more about how mythology has inspired artwork through the ages mappe_bacheche https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329080842 The Tate Modern in London showcases a number of works inspired by mythology. Examples include, The Minotaur by George Frederic Watts (1885), Apollo and Python by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1811), and Narcissus by Lucian Freud (1948).

Visit the Tate Modern website to expore these images and their stories more: ]]> 2021-03-19 09:40:00 UTC https://padlet.com/mappe_bacheche/8hd7la6aaj5v1w4e/wish/1329080842