Idylls of the King

Poetic version of the arthurian legends. I have to say i have zero interest in arthurian mythology but thats ok because this isn't about myths and legends this is about people.
These poems have a remarkable amount of humanity in them. There are so many surprises and characters act in very human but unexpected ways. Also the magical elements of the myths are mostly minimized or made ambiguous.
Other poetry epics like Orlando Furiouso or the Faerie Queene tend to be very good on the action this less so with most action taking place between the lines. However thats ok because it's again about people not events.
The only real flaw is that each section is a bit long for a comfortable read in one go at least for me.
One other small complaint is show more that it mixes in the Tristan and Isolde legend, so is your not familiar with that you may get confused as it assumes you already know it, i had to wiki it.
This is really like a modern film adaptation taking modern issues and viewpoints and clothing them in the arthurian lengendry, i like. show less

Rest in peace Arthur 3
I was skeptical going into this at first since it’s a 19th century text and I was curious as to how much Tennyson would change from Malory and earlier works. I really enjoyed it, though. I think it’s beautifully written and I love all the imagery Tennyson uses. Malory’s Grail Quest is still my favorite version of it, but I do still *really* like Tennyson’s take on it. Writing it in past tense and hearing it through Percival instead of reading it as the quest was going on was a choice I really liked. The Grail Quest has always felt like the beginning of the end to me and I think Percival’s recollection really adds it that. I also loved the last line of ‘The Last Tournament’ - “And Mordred thought show more ‘the time is hard at hand’” hell yeah dude it’s your time to shine go kill your dad !!
Also the art in my edition is absolutely gorgeous. The only character that’s drawn different from my mental image of them is Geraint/Erec and the Bedivere and Galahad portraits are my favorite. Also Gawain looks extremely fruity in his but of course he does. show less

A major Victorian Poet tries to deal with some of the aspects of the Arthurian Corpus by poeticising them. There are good lines, but no great sympathy for the material as a whole. Arthur and his ideas are too totalitarian for the minds of Alfred's audience, and perhaps of Alfred himself. I think then of the legendary Arthur with his perfect personal leadership, and Alfred the king of Wessex, who was a systemizer. Tennyson should have turned his pen to Alfred, not Arthur, really.

A venture of epic poetry, this is Alfred Lord Tennyson's take on the Arthurian legends. An incredible read in its own right, when taken in relation to Malory, Tennyson's work highlights the passion, tragedy, and Romanticism that sometimes was left at a simmer in Malory's work. Tennyson's work is more 'fantastic' than Malory's, and his descriptions of Camelot are as awe inspiring for the reader as they are for the characters he follows. For those familiar with Malory, Tennyson does not parallel the tales Malory depicts but rather has his own interpretations to suit his goal in describing the tragic emotional arc of the fall of Camelot. Though I would not consider myself an expert in poetry, I have read quite a few epic pieces, and this show more is a monumental work with a humanisitic focus, anchoring its place among the timeless classics, such as Homer's 'Illiad'. Whether you are a fan of Malory, or Arthurian legend in general, this should be part of your collection. show less

As usual, I thought right up there the short story of Balin, who is to blame for his own tragedy ('My violences, my violences!').

Darker than I had expected and gutsier. I think I decided to read this at last after I saw a book on Tennyson's battle poetry. How he wrote 54 battle poems and had a genuine feel for the 'heroic ethos' of ancient fiction to which he was devoted. Fair enough, I thought. Tried a couple of short ones: his Boadicea is as bloody as she came, and I throbbed to 'The Revenge: a Ballad of the Fleet'. I even felt the tribute in his Ode on Wellington.

I think he's a gorgeous poet, on the whole, although I'd make cuts. The guy can write.

Arthur is his hero, and not Lancelot. This isn't the courtly love version, but the show more version where a self-indulgent love corrupts a heroic kingdom. Arthur's certainly a fighting king against pagans. Give him a pagan, he can let loose without qualms and soar with the sword.

The comedy can be faux-medieval -- I mean you think of those silly films in tights, but perhaps comedy wasn't his forte. I expect tragedy is, and melancholy.

Again, I'll have Balin, ten pages of him, gut-wrenchingly tragic and very darkly done. But I'd say that about Malory's Balin. Which proves to me Tennyson was awake to the old authentic stuff, though he's often condemned for Victorian. show less

Tennyson, unhappy in school, early recognized a beauty and significance in epic poetry, reciting Pope's Homer's 'Iliad' at the age of nine, improvising a la Walter Scott by ten, and composing his own epic by the age of twelve, largely in his father's excellent library.[8] The Arthurian romances made a deep impression. [33] By the age of 24, Tennyson began the work of poetrifying the drama of King Arthur, although it took many years --decades-- of preparation.
There are four character studies of women, comprising four "Idylls" of the King (!): Elaine, tender and innocent, in contrast with Vivien, crafty and wicked. Enid, the faithful wife, in contrast with Guinevere, who strays.
But the work goes far beyond character, into an epic show more surrounding the great figure of Arthur himself, warring in some way between sense and spirit, struggling with his own nature against his own ideals. Tennyson intended this allegory in the tale: "New-old, and shadowing Sense at war with Soul/...one touched by the adulterous finger of a time/ That hover'd between war and wantonness,/ And crownings and dethronements." [37]
With quite helpful Notes, and a Glossary which cites back to the text where the defined word is used. show less

A Victorian era take on the Arthurian legends in poetic form. The language is archaic even for Victorian times, and it feels forced into the poetic structure. The effort required may put off many readers.