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Every era has its own King Arthur, applying his myth to its own current concerns. This book examines the historical and mythological unfolding of that cumulative history, following him from 6th century Britain, through to the medieval period, into the world of theatre, music, media and fantasy literature. Piecing together the many fragments that constitute the image of Arthur, both the man and the myth, we show how each face of Arthur always has something to offer and how his enduring popularity proves the power of the hero-myth, truly earning Arthur the title he first received in the 15th century: ‘The Once and Future King.’ Despite the publisher’s assertion that this is ‘a complete King Arthur’, it is not. As the subtitle says, we look at the many faces of one hero in his historical, mythical and projected place in the history of Britain. 400 pp. 8 colour ill. Also available as an ebook.
‘What a treasure this book is, a gift of great magnitude from the Matthews to all the rest of us. I so wish I had had it when I was immersing myself in Arthur, in college many decades ago. The Mathews are the rarest of writers, scholars who are poets, poets who are scholars, singers of myth and history. They understand that facts are the basis of story, but equally, story is the basis of facts. Over the years of their phenomenal body of work they have never set aside one for the other but have fed them together, in great measure. – Rachel Pollack, author of The Forest of Souls.’ |
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