Knight Notes: The Knight, Chapters 32-34

This post covers Able’s first visit to Sheerwall Castle.

Chapters 32-34: The Marshal’s Tower, Drink! Drink!, and Being a Knight

Chapter Summaries

Able arrives in Forcetti, and makes his way to Sheerwall, the castle of Duke Marder of Celidon.  He meets Agr, the Duke’s Marshal, and asks to take service with the Duke. Agr does not believe he is a knight, and demands that Able joust with Master Thope to prove it. Able is unhorsed, and gets into a brawl with a  group of knights.  He is seriously injured, and healed by Baki’s blood in Chapter 33. He then becomes friends with Sir Woddet of East Hall, and is introduced to Duke Marder in Chapter 34.  Marder agrees to take him into his service, and once Able is healed, he is to be sent to take a stand at a mountain pass until winter.

Master Agr

Michael Andre-Driussi (MAD), in his Wizard Knight Companion (WKC), stated that Marshall Agr’s name may derives from the word “agriculture.” I am going to suggest another possibility.

Agr might also be based on the Old Norse words “ergi” and “argr”. Argr was an adjective meaning “unmanly” or “effeminate”, and apparently considered an insult. Marshall Agr was not a knight or fighting man, and more in the nature of an administrator.  Sir Woddet, when he visits Able, refers to Agr sarcastically as “His Hungryhunks.”  I am not sure what this nickname means.  Moguda later tells Able that Agr is not popular with the knights because he orders them around. Its possible there is something more to this, and that GW is hinting that Agr is gay. I don’t believe GW intends to portray Agr negatively, as he is shown to be an effective administrator, and sympathetic to Able once he got to know him.

Wikipedia notes that in modern Scandinavian languages, the root “arg” is more associated with being “irritable” or “angry.” Agr does seem somewhat irritated by his initial dealings with Able, and the subsequent matter of Master Caspar and Org. So perhaps “irritable” is all that’s intended by GW’s use of this particular name.

Duke Marder

I have previously suggested that Marder is based on King Richard from Ivanhoe, and that events at Sheerwall match certain events from the novel. I also link Marder to Duke Cador and Joseph of Arimathea in posts on Arthurian and Biblical counterparts, respectively.

I think Marder may also be based on the Sir Richard at the Lee, a knight and nobleman friendly to Robin Hood in the Child Ballads and later versions of the Robin Hood legend.  I think the use of the name Sheerwall was another example of GW leaving a clue to the mythic underpinnings of the book. Sheerwall = Sherwood.

Sir Woddet

In a prior post on character sources, I have linked Sir Woddet to the Norse hero Orvar-Oddr and Sir Gawain.  Woddet teaches Able how to use the lance after he heals up. I think he is also an allusion to the Apostle Jude Thaddeus (see the Biblical counterpart post).

Woddet may also be the “Little John” of the WK.  Able makes a point to emphasize how big Woddet is, bigger than even him. Little John was bigger than Robin Hood in the tales. In the stories, both men fight the first time they meet, like Able and Woddet in the joust fight. Able and Woddet later fight during his stand in the passes.

“A man of your hands”

Woddet uses this expression to describe Able’s brawling skills. Its a term I’ve seen used in literature about knights before, so GW did not invent it.  Its also used by an uhlan in describing Severian, in Chapter 19 of Citadel of the Autarch. An uhlan was a mounted warrior, like a knight.  I think GW  is alluding to the Book of the New Sun in a variety of ways in the WK.  Able is like Severian in that he dies, has a foe based on the Typhon of legend, etc.

The Siege Perilous

The Siege Perilous was a chair in Camelot reserved for the knight who would find the Grail. It would slay those who weren’t destined to get it.  I think Able sitting in Master Caspar’s chair, despite being warned not to, is a reference to this. Able sitting in the chair foreshadows his success in the Grail Quest by entering the Room of Lost Loves. Able is a version of Galahad, who obtained the Grail in some versions of the story.

Christian Allegory

Able’s beating by Marder’s knights is an allusion to Christ’s beating after he is taken before the Sanhedrin.  Christ says he is the Messiah, which angers those present, and the high priest’s guards beat him severely.  Able claims to be a knight, which the other knights do not accept, and beat him for it. Agr plays the role of Caiaphas or Annas in his questioning of Able.  Master Caspar of the warders may also be an allusion to Caiaphas. The warders may be an allusion to the Pharisees.  Able claiming to be a knight throughout The Knight is like Jesus claiming to be the Messiah. Neither is initially believed. Able’s discussion of Marder’s rules with Agr recalls Jesus’s conflict with the Pharisees over what the law of God requires.

Caspar’s branding may be a reference to the Mark of Cain.

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Knight Notes: Knights of the Round Table

When I began this review I had no expectation that I would be discussing movies.  However, after reading about a few movies I realized that GW is also paying tribute to/or acknowledging certain movies about knights. Perhaps they are ones he personally enjoyed.

Knights of the Round Table was released in 1953 by MGM and directed by Richard Thorpe (sound familiar?). Richard Thorpe also directed the 1952 MGM release Ivanhoe, which is based on the book of the same name. I think Master Thope of Sheerwall is a sneaky reference to Richard Thorpe. GW just dropped one letter. I can’t think of any other source, and MAD did not identify a source for Thope’s name in his WKC. Remember John Clute’s advice about GW: “not an inadvertent word.”

It starred Robert Taylor as Lancelot.  King Arthur, Merlin, Morgan Le Fey, Percival, Elaine, and Gawain are also major characters in the movie.

The main story follows an ongoing conflict between Arthur and Mordred, backed by Le Fey, over the right to rule England. Lancelot is Arthur’s ally, and at one point goes off to fight the Picts on the northern Scottish borders.

Percival and Elaine are brother and sister in this movie, and this is one factor that persuaded me that Toug and Ulfa are supposed to represent Percival and Elaine. Lancelot and Elaine marry in this movie, and many Arthurian legends involve Elaine and Lancelot in a romantic relationship. Remember that Ulfa put the moves on Able early in The Knight.

Ava Gardner plays Queen Guinevere, who is attracted to Lancelot. Lancelot never reciprocates, but their alleged affair brings civil war to Arthur’s realm. Is Queen Gaynor of the WK a reference to Ava Gardner? Gaynor is described as having a voice like a “dove”, and the name Ava is thought to be from the Latin “Avis”, meaning “bird.”

Able’s description and the cover images from the books reminds me a bit of Robert Taylor’s look in this movie and the posters (the facial hair).  I also note that GW includes the character “Rober of Greenglory” in the WK, identifying him as one of Arnthor’s best knights.  Rober or Robert is not a knight that is present in any of the Arthurian legends.  Nor can I link the name to the Bible or Greek/Norse mythology. I suspect that the Rober character is GW’s tribute to Robert Taylor.  Remember, Robert Taylor also played Ivanhoe in the movie of the same name, and GW did include elements of the novel Ivanhoe in the WK, as I explained in the post about Sir Walter Scott.

“Greenglory” could be a reference to Robert Taylor’s Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1300 Vine Street.  “Glory” is his Star, and “Green” could be referring to either “Hollywood”, a green leaved tree, or “Vine” street. Taylor also had a famous 100 acre ranch in Brentwood, Ca.

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Knight Notes: Sir Walter Scott

The WK also reflects the influence of Sir Walter Scott, one of the most popular writers of the 19th century, and a Scotsman (there is a definite Scottish undercurrent to the WK).  GW references Scott in the text of An Evil Guest, when he praises Scott’s definition of “glamour.” Some of Scott’s more famous books are Ivanhoe, The Talisman, and Rob Roy.

GW pays tribute to Scott in his creation of Duke Marder, the Knight of Leopards, and certain events which occur in the story:

• In Ivanhoe, Wilfred of Ivanhoe takes part in a joust under a pseudonym. He is initially successful, but finds himself beset by multiple knights, and is sorely injured. He is saved by the appearance of a mysterious Knight in Black.  Ivanhoe is tended to by Rebecca, the beautiful daughter of a wealthy moneylender.  Rebecca is a skilled healer, and uses her knowledge to successfully heal Ivanhoe. The Knight in Black is later revealed to be King Richard the Lionhearted. Richard take parts in some of the fighting and is restored to his throne at the end of the novel.  Ivanhoe meets Robin Hood and his band of outlaws during the story.
• In the WK, Able participates in a test joust at Sheerwall Castle to prove his worth. He gets into an argument with a group of Marder’s knights, who attack him as a group. He fights back, putting some of them out of action, but is knocked out, and severely injured.  He is tended to by Baki, who uses her Aelf blood to heal him.  Duke Marder takes Able into his service. Marder later disguises himself as a Black Knight and tests Able in a joust. Marder takes part in the fighting during the war with the Osterlings. Able comes into conflict with a group of outlaws who live in the woods called the “Free Companies”, who “rob the tax gatherers.” They fight with bows and arrows.
• There is a good match with certain events of the Ivanhoe and the WK.
  • The bow wielding Free Companies are a fit for, and a more realistic version, of Robin Hood’s merry men of Ivanhoe.
  • Marder is loosely based on the King Richard of Ivanhoe (same three letter combination “ard”  is in both names). Both disguise themselves as Black Knights.  Marder might be the implied King of Celidon after Arnthor’s death. He is the highest ranking nobleman to survive the war, and knights Wistan.
  • Is Marder’s “Sheerwall” castle a reference to “Sherwood” forest, where the Robin Hood of legend hid with his Merry Men?
  • The healing of Able by the fire Aelf Baki after the joust fight is like the healing of Ivanhoe by Rebecca after his joust. Girls with the name Rebecca are often called “Becky” or “Becca.” Baki = Becca/Becky.

For Sir Leort, the Knight of Leopards, I propose Scott’s The Talisman as a source:

• In The Talisman, we meet the young Sir Kenneth, the Knight of Couchant Leopard, who is participating in the Third Crusade. This is the same crusade that King Richard led.  Kenneth has some adventures in the Holy Land, and at the end of the story is revealed as a Scottish prince, Earl John of Huntingdon. The Huntingdon estate is in southern England.
• Sir Leort is the Knight of the Leopard, and a young knight. He wears a leopard pelisse, and has a leopard crest.  His home is Sandhill, calling to mind the desert sands of the lands of the Crusades. Its also in southern Celidon, similar to John of Huntingdon’s estate being in southern England.

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