post#6

The Arthurian legend has been able to endure the test of times because of the fact that it portrays elements of medieval romances such as a hero engaged in pure adventure and emphasizing rank and social distinctions. People have always loved to read about an epic hero going above and beyond their capabilities to defeat a seemingly invincible villain.

For example, in The Sword in the Stone, no one expected someone like Authur to be able to pull the sword from the stone. It is basic elements of irony like that that have always entertained people to read and have endured the test of time. The Authurian Legend also displays a hero being brave. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain shows bravery when he, "leaned forward to the king and spake, ‘I beseech ye, my lord, let this venture be mine.’” (para. 12). Sir Gawain also shows bravery by accepting the Green Knight's challenge. Then the Green Knight spoke to Gawain, ‘Make we our covenant ere we go further. First, I ask thee, knight, what is thy name? Tell me truly, that I may know thee.” (para. 14) .

Another reason why the Authurian Legend has been able to endure the test of time is because the Authurian Legend depicts people who have a lot of pride in themselves and who never give up. For example, "What are you going to do. bleed on me?Black Knight: I'm invincible!" (Monty Python and the Holy Grail). In a humorous way, the black knight, despite clearly being defeated by Authur, refuses to give up on the fight against Authur. People have been and always will be entertained by a character who is relentless and who never quits. Times may change, but people's personal values and things that enterain people will never change and that is why the Authurian Legend has been able to endure the test of time.

My personal reaction to Medeval Romance Literature is that it is very wordy in the way that it is written by Medieval Romance authors. This makes some of the pieces hard to understand and therefore hard to enjoy reading. For example, "He was often alone at nighttime in places where the path ahead would please no one" (Sir Gawain). Instead of simply saying "the upcoming path was bad" the author makes that sentence very wordy and thus it forces me to have to think about what is meant to be said. I feel like I spend more time trying to undertsand the context in which the Medieval pieces are written in rather than actually understand what is going on within the story and being able to interpret it.

Beowulf is not in anyway selfish in his desire for fame. This is because Beowulf has risked his life on several diffrent occasions in order to save Herot from Both Grendel and Grendel's mother. Beowilf's unselfishness is truly testified when he ventrues deep into the swamp where Grendel's mother lives in order to kill her and save Herot. In addition, Beowulf is not even protecting his home land fro mevil. He is risking his life in order to save a foriegn land of Herot from evil when Beowulf lives in Geatland.
It is clear that Beowilf would be willing to risk his life in order to achieve eternal fame. This is because Beowulf mentions that, ("fame after death is noblest of goals." lines 1388-89.) Beowulf believes that risking your life in order to save a group of people is the ultimate achievement. A person who was selfish about fame woud not in anyway want to risk themselves to order to save people from a foriegn country.

The second book cover is the best one for The Fifth Child. This is because on the cover, there is a picture of Ben who is mimicking the image of a monster. Ironically, this is the same way that Ben is viewed by hsi family due to his mental disabilities. The cover also depicts Ben as being somewhat of an unwanted character in the story. This is done by showing Ben in a "scary" fashion being crouched over as if he is about to do something very unwanted. For example, Harriet, the mother of Ben, mentions in the novel, "It'll be alright if we are careful never to leave Amy alone with Ben." This clearly shows that the family does not trust Ben in anyway and views him as an unwanted prescence in their family.

It is very true that Frankenstein is a story suitable for ages and that the monster character of Frankenstein is a very recognizable figure in both literture and in movies with the work Hollywood has done with the novel. I also think it is interesting how Universal Home Video is repackaging the monster movie with double-features all on one DVD. In addition, Mel Brooks' idea of the "Young Frankenstein" movie version to be put onto Broadway would be a very entertaining thing to see.

My opinion of Frankenstein so far is that it deserves the title of being the first and best horror story ever. This is because Mary Shelley made up an incredibly unique story line about someone wanting to mimick the role of god by trying to create a being of their own. What makes it more interesting is that that being begings to have desires of its own and it pushes Victor to building him a female companion.
Also, I think it is an intersting concept on how Mary Shelley made it so that Victor begins to regret his creation when the creature he created turns out to be evil. Frankenstein is a very original story and is a very susenseful horror story.