King Arthur

Essay by huhuhuhuhuHigh School, 10th gradeA+, August 2012

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King Arthur

A legend is a nonhistorical or unverifiable story handed down by tradition. Over time, a legend becomes commonly accepted as true. While legends usually elevate the main characters to heroic proportion, the best of them have a basis in fact. Often times, a legend changes over time in order to keep it fresh to new generations. Legends are told to teach and to inspire. They are told to entertain and pass down tradition. Perhaps no legend has reached a wider audience than that of King Arthur and his Round Table. A close examination of this subject helps to explain why this collection of stories about the exploits of a Dark Ages era king has become so well known and popular over the centuries. What other legend draws such passionate defenses of its historical accuracy? Was Arthur real or a myth? Then there are the stories themselves. These tales have grown to include a wide array of fantastic and fanciful adventures, not only of King Arthur, but also of his worthy allies and villainous adversaries.

Finally, there are so many moral lessons to be learned from Arthur and the galaxy of characters around him. It is a timeless collection filled with a life's worth of teachings on the chivalrous behavior of gentlemen and warriors.

Modern day historians continue to debate the existence of King Arthur. They generally fall into three different categories. The first group believes King Arthur was undeniably real. Group two believes King Arthur is completely fictitious. The final group believes that King Arthur as known in the legend is not real but rather was based on one or two real people. This last group that attributes the Arthurian legend to documented historical figures is the largest. Historians are still trying to find evidence and clues. What...