Chivalry: the reality vs. the ideal
In this day and age of alleged gender equality, women have the same rights and privileges as men do. They can work the same jobs, be the family bread winner, and serve in the armed forces if they so choose, and while most women firmly support this parity, from time to time when a door is not held open for her or no one offers to help her carry her luggage, a woman can be heard to lament, "Is chivalry dead?" Pondering this question leads to another query. What is chivalry? The image of the prototypical, dashing knight in armor on his white steed is firmly ingrained in the mind of the Western world, yet could he actually be the flawless hero that is imagined today? The answer could not possibly be yes. Knights were human. They had their faults, and while viewing them as perfect is simpler, acknowledging their shortcomings and the problems associated with the chivalric system is probably more correct. In T.H. White's The Once and Future King, the reader is introduced to character!s such as King Pellinore and Sir Grummore who seek to fulfill the chivalric standard but inevitably fall short. White attempts to depict the problems related with chivalry through satirical juxtaposition of the ideal of
ually under pressure, their true colors show through. This particular situation allows them to lapse out of their heroic and gallant facade. The ensuing argument over who is a "cad" continues until the two knights decide to charge each other again. However, this time, they miss each other and both collide into trees thus knocking themselves unconscious. In the end, nothing has been accomplished. The two combatants have struggled and argued and attacked one another, never having any sort of reason. The knightly code required that they have an altercation when neither had any real need or desire to do so. They expended great amounts of time and energy, and in the end neither knight came out victorious. The reader is left asking, "So, what was the point?" and that is exactly what White wanted. Chivalry was not all bad, but neither was it all good. There were innate paradoxes and pitfalls. This episode in the novel elucidates that fact, and as for all those people left in the world who lament chivalry's demise, perhaps they should actually be saying, "Good riddance!" When Pellinore and Grummore meet, they greet each other amiably. They decide that they should joust, yet neither has a good purpose for doing so. "What shall we have it for?" asks King Pellinore. "Oh, the usual thing, I suppose," says Grummore in reply(64). The two knights are about to begin physical combat for no other reason than the fact that they believe that is the proper thing to do. While the armor that they wear does significantly decrease the risk of injury involved, the mere act of fighting implies that they must attempt to do bodi
Some common words found in the essay are:
Sir Grummore, Pax Grummore, Chivalry Ideal, Pellinore Oh, King Pellinore's, Grummore Pellinore, White Chivalry, Pellinore Pax69, King Grummore, Pellinore Grummore, sir grummore, king pellinore, associated chivalric, knights begin,
Approximate Word count = 1089
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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