(no subject)
Emily Libby
12/7/06
Ewain and the Stranger
Now we fast forward from Ewain’s journey to the following evening back at Camelot. The night was young, and King Arthur and his Noble Knights of the Round Table were enjoying a hearty meal with drinks and tales of the latest quests of Gawain, Marhalt and Ewain when the most unexpected event happened. Storming through the doors of the hall came a plump and stout knight on horseback galloping at full speed. Ewain noticed Gawain flinch beside him as if he recognized the intruder. Sure enough, the knight rode up to the very place Gawain was seated, yelling as he rode, “My lust for your damsel who ran away with that silly dwarf has far surpassed my loyalty to the chivalric code! You are the knight who intervened and made her choose him over me, and for this you shall be punished!” He grabbed Gawain and flung him over the rear of his horse and rushed out the hall doors as quickly as he entered.
As the room came alive with chatter and bustle, all heads turned toward King Arthur to receive any orders or commands. Before he had a chance to answer, Sir Ewain bravely rose, and made an announcement. “Sir King Arthur, I declare myself the knight to go after Sir Gawain to provide any aid I can. I know I have just returned on quest to prove my knighthood and loyalty to you, but I believe I need to do this to protect the innocence and pride of my cousin.” King Arthur gladly supported this decision of one of his most devoted and skilled knights, and Ewain, remaining faithful to his pledged word, set off early the next morning on his next quest.
Sir Ewain rode on through the forest a bit wearily at first without the presence of the experienced, cunning damsel that he had left off at the fountain just a few days ago. But after remembering how skillful he had become in his training, he boldly sat up straight on horseback as his confidence and independence returned to him. Just then, he saw some movement in the trees ahead. It was nearing darkness already, so he could only make out a general shape of the thing about fifty feet in front of him. As he neared, he saw that it was a man with no horse - as he edged closer still, he noticed that the man was without armor or weapons! He was a tall man, and dressed in extremely silly clothing. He seemed to have more facial hair around his chin and upper lip than on his head, and he had tired, aged eyes. Ewain assumed he was in no danger, so he approached the man and dismounted from his horse.
“’Lo, sir! Are you in any need of some help?”
“No, sir knight, I can’t imagine that I will be staying long,” the man said.
“You have such a peculiar way of speaking! Do you come from the north?” Ewain asked his sudden companion.
“No, I do not come from this place or time,” he answered.
This time? Ewain was confused by his response, but too weary from traveling to think about it. He continued the conversation by introducing himself. “My name is Sir Ewain. I come on a quest from King Arthur. I am a knight from his Round Table.”
“Ah, yes, I know you well,” the stranger said. “You see, I am from the future. I am very well acquainted with your story and those of your companions. I spent a good deal of my lifetime retelling the story of King Arthur in my own words. My name is John Steinbeck.”
“I’m pleased to meet you. I would challenge you to a joust of honor, but I can see that you are without any armor,” Ewain observed.
“In my day, we try to cast off anything that restrains us from fighting for what we believe in and instead allows us to be free to do anything at all. Knowledge, skill and the human brain have much more power over some silly piece of metal. I assume you have learned that what really matters in life is one’s own skill rather than the equipment he uses to practice it. The pen is mightier than the sword, which I suppose is why I became a writer. My hidden meanings and direction of words is a far better way to convey ideas to people through books where the readers can interpret the meaning themselves. Literature can only be powerful when the writer has something to say or expand on and has the skill of saying it eloquently, just as how a knight can only do so much with his sword when he does not have the skill agility to use it.”
“Yes, I have learned that concept just recently and found it incredibly enlightening,” Sir Ewain responded. “You said you had written an entire book of King Arthur and his knights?”
“Well, I did not invent the whole story on my own; I did have lots of help. Your experiences have turned into a legend in my time - many people have added their own twists on the tale through their own retelling. I just happened to use this legend as a way to uniquely tell a popular story in my own words and add in some of my own insight on humanity and society in general. In fact, you can read it for yourself - I have brought a copy of the book from the future.” And sure enough, Steinbeck reached inside a pack slung over his shoulder and pulled out a thick, frayed paperback titled The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights. He effortlessly flipped to one page with the words “Gawain, Ewain, and Marhalt” printed at the top and handed it over to Ewain.
The young knight turned the page and began to read. He was amazed to see how accurate the story was, and how some parts were embellished or completely recreated. He began to discuss with Steinbeck why he had added in so much detail to make it read like a story. “I do really enjoy the way you developed a character out of my damsel. To me, she was simply a traveling companion. I did choose her to accompany me on my adventure because of her couple score years over me, and her manly personality did allow her to share many teachings and help train me to be a better fighter. I never did ask of her name, though, out of respect. No knight gets very personal with a damsel on a quest. I do like the name you assigned her - Lyne.”
“I guess my development with the female character shows how a writer can never escape from the world and time he lives in when he creates a storyline. Women may be seen as human beings who serve as sidekicks to men or bear children, but where I come from, they are becoming more and more dominant in our culture. The roles of the two genders are getting a bit blurred, I must say. Stereotyping people because of their sex could really throw you off track, and I used your damsel to show an example of that. Ironically, Lyne held the position as the teacher, the expert fighter, and the one who lacked vanity. Women in my time are beginning to have opportunities to equal themselves with men. Lyne’s frustration with being unable to compete with men despite her talent illustrates the restraint that the female gender is fighting against.”
Sir Ewain was quite impressed. “I’m sure all the people from your time are very grateful to have you provide them with such thoughtful reading. It seems like every small detail that you put in words has some kind of meaning behind it. Is there any significance to the part of me explaining to my damsel the time I witnessed the king weeping?”
“Everyone thinks of their elders and the authority as their protection. It is such a comforting thought to know that you are being taken care of someone so strong and who knows exactly what they are doing, but everyone needs to realize that even those who we trust with our safety are not perfect. King Arthur is human, as well, and it would break your heart if you saw him with tears in his eyes. In some ways, it’s scary to see that those people ruling over us or running the world have emotions, too.”
Ewain looked up from the text to address this wise stranger to question him some more, but noticed that he was gone. The only thing the knight could see as he looked around was the vast expanse of trees and green filling the forest. “But wait, sir!” he tried calling into the thin air. “There is so much more to your story!” But Steinbeck was gone for good. He had disappeared, probably to return to whatever far-away land that he had come from. Ewain started to remount his horse, but then looked down to see the stranger’s book still resting in his hands. He flipped open to a fresh page and sat down on the mossy grass. His quest could wait for just one more chapter.
12/7/06
Ewain and the Stranger
Now we fast forward from Ewain’s journey to the following evening back at Camelot. The night was young, and King Arthur and his Noble Knights of the Round Table were enjoying a hearty meal with drinks and tales of the latest quests of Gawain, Marhalt and Ewain when the most unexpected event happened. Storming through the doors of the hall came a plump and stout knight on horseback galloping at full speed. Ewain noticed Gawain flinch beside him as if he recognized the intruder. Sure enough, the knight rode up to the very place Gawain was seated, yelling as he rode, “My lust for your damsel who ran away with that silly dwarf has far surpassed my loyalty to the chivalric code! You are the knight who intervened and made her choose him over me, and for this you shall be punished!” He grabbed Gawain and flung him over the rear of his horse and rushed out the hall doors as quickly as he entered.
As the room came alive with chatter and bustle, all heads turned toward King Arthur to receive any orders or commands. Before he had a chance to answer, Sir Ewain bravely rose, and made an announcement. “Sir King Arthur, I declare myself the knight to go after Sir Gawain to provide any aid I can. I know I have just returned on quest to prove my knighthood and loyalty to you, but I believe I need to do this to protect the innocence and pride of my cousin.” King Arthur gladly supported this decision of one of his most devoted and skilled knights, and Ewain, remaining faithful to his pledged word, set off early the next morning on his next quest.
Sir Ewain rode on through the forest a bit wearily at first without the presence of the experienced, cunning damsel that he had left off at the fountain just a few days ago. But after remembering how skillful he had become in his training, he boldly sat up straight on horseback as his confidence and independence returned to him. Just then, he saw some movement in the trees ahead. It was nearing darkness already, so he could only make out a general shape of the thing about fifty feet in front of him. As he neared, he saw that it was a man with no horse - as he edged closer still, he noticed that the man was without armor or weapons! He was a tall man, and dressed in extremely silly clothing. He seemed to have more facial hair around his chin and upper lip than on his head, and he had tired, aged eyes. Ewain assumed he was in no danger, so he approached the man and dismounted from his horse.
“’Lo, sir! Are you in any need of some help?”
“No, sir knight, I can’t imagine that I will be staying long,” the man said.
“You have such a peculiar way of speaking! Do you come from the north?” Ewain asked his sudden companion.
“No, I do not come from this place or time,” he answered.
This time? Ewain was confused by his response, but too weary from traveling to think about it. He continued the conversation by introducing himself. “My name is Sir Ewain. I come on a quest from King Arthur. I am a knight from his Round Table.”
“Ah, yes, I know you well,” the stranger said. “You see, I am from the future. I am very well acquainted with your story and those of your companions. I spent a good deal of my lifetime retelling the story of King Arthur in my own words. My name is John Steinbeck.”
“I’m pleased to meet you. I would challenge you to a joust of honor, but I can see that you are without any armor,” Ewain observed.
“In my day, we try to cast off anything that restrains us from fighting for what we believe in and instead allows us to be free to do anything at all. Knowledge, skill and the human brain have much more power over some silly piece of metal. I assume you have learned that what really matters in life is one’s own skill rather than the equipment he uses to practice it. The pen is mightier than the sword, which I suppose is why I became a writer. My hidden meanings and direction of words is a far better way to convey ideas to people through books where the readers can interpret the meaning themselves. Literature can only be powerful when the writer has something to say or expand on and has the skill of saying it eloquently, just as how a knight can only do so much with his sword when he does not have the skill agility to use it.”
“Yes, I have learned that concept just recently and found it incredibly enlightening,” Sir Ewain responded. “You said you had written an entire book of King Arthur and his knights?”
“Well, I did not invent the whole story on my own; I did have lots of help. Your experiences have turned into a legend in my time - many people have added their own twists on the tale through their own retelling. I just happened to use this legend as a way to uniquely tell a popular story in my own words and add in some of my own insight on humanity and society in general. In fact, you can read it for yourself - I have brought a copy of the book from the future.” And sure enough, Steinbeck reached inside a pack slung over his shoulder and pulled out a thick, frayed paperback titled The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights. He effortlessly flipped to one page with the words “Gawain, Ewain, and Marhalt” printed at the top and handed it over to Ewain.
The young knight turned the page and began to read. He was amazed to see how accurate the story was, and how some parts were embellished or completely recreated. He began to discuss with Steinbeck why he had added in so much detail to make it read like a story. “I do really enjoy the way you developed a character out of my damsel. To me, she was simply a traveling companion. I did choose her to accompany me on my adventure because of her couple score years over me, and her manly personality did allow her to share many teachings and help train me to be a better fighter. I never did ask of her name, though, out of respect. No knight gets very personal with a damsel on a quest. I do like the name you assigned her - Lyne.”
“I guess my development with the female character shows how a writer can never escape from the world and time he lives in when he creates a storyline. Women may be seen as human beings who serve as sidekicks to men or bear children, but where I come from, they are becoming more and more dominant in our culture. The roles of the two genders are getting a bit blurred, I must say. Stereotyping people because of their sex could really throw you off track, and I used your damsel to show an example of that. Ironically, Lyne held the position as the teacher, the expert fighter, and the one who lacked vanity. Women in my time are beginning to have opportunities to equal themselves with men. Lyne’s frustration with being unable to compete with men despite her talent illustrates the restraint that the female gender is fighting against.”
Sir Ewain was quite impressed. “I’m sure all the people from your time are very grateful to have you provide them with such thoughtful reading. It seems like every small detail that you put in words has some kind of meaning behind it. Is there any significance to the part of me explaining to my damsel the time I witnessed the king weeping?”
“Everyone thinks of their elders and the authority as their protection. It is such a comforting thought to know that you are being taken care of someone so strong and who knows exactly what they are doing, but everyone needs to realize that even those who we trust with our safety are not perfect. King Arthur is human, as well, and it would break your heart if you saw him with tears in his eyes. In some ways, it’s scary to see that those people ruling over us or running the world have emotions, too.”
Ewain looked up from the text to address this wise stranger to question him some more, but noticed that he was gone. The only thing the knight could see as he looked around was the vast expanse of trees and green filling the forest. “But wait, sir!” he tried calling into the thin air. “There is so much more to your story!” But Steinbeck was gone for good. He had disappeared, probably to return to whatever far-away land that he had come from. Ewain started to remount his horse, but then looked down to see the stranger’s book still resting in his hands. He flipped open to a fresh page and sat down on the mossy grass. His quest could wait for just one more chapter.