Idylls of the King (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Alfred Tennyson (Author), J. M. Gray (Editor, Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 1989

Tennyson had a life-long interest in the legend of King Arthur and after the huge success of his poem "Morte d'Arthur" he built on the theme with this series of twelve poems, written in two periods of intense creativity over nearly twenty years. "Idylls of the King" traces the story of Arthur's rule, from his first encounter with Guinevere and the quest for the Holy Grail to the adultery of his Queen with Launcelot and the King's death in a final battle that spells the ruin of his kingdom. Told with lyrical and dreamlike eloquence, Tennyson's depiction of the Round Table reflects a longing for a past age of valour and chivalry. And in his depiction of King Arthur he created a hero imbued with the values of the Victorian age - one who embodies the highest ideals of manhood and kingship.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Idylls Of The King: Balin And Balan
Idylls Of The King: Dedication
Idylls Of The King: Gareth And Lynette
Idylls Of The King: Geraint And Enid
Idylls Of The King: Guinevere
Idylls Of The King: Lancelot And Elaine
Idylls Of The King: Merlin And Vivien
Idylls Of The King: Pelleas And Ettarre
Idylls Of The King: The Coming Of Arthur
Idylls Of The King: The Holy Grail
Idylls Of The King: The Last Tournament
Idylls Of The King: The Marriage Of Geraint
Idylls Of The King: The Passing Of Arthur
Idylls Of The King: To The Queen
-- Table of Poems from Poem Finder®

About the Author

Alfred, Lord Tennyson was born in 1809, the son of a clergyman. His only occupation was as a poet and he was made Poet Laureate in 1850, accepting a peerage in 1883. He is most known for In Memoriam, a speculation on mortality. He died in 1892. J.M. Gray has been an editor, schoolteacher, university lecturer and author. He is also a published poet, under the name Martin Gray.

Product Details

• Paperback: 371 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (September 5, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140422536
• ISBN-13: 978-0140422535
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #76,923 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The music of legend..., April 20, 2001

By 

Ilana Teitelbaum - See all my reviews

This review is from: Idylls of the King (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

If Malory's "Le Morte D'Arthur" is the backbone of Arthurian literature, Tennyson's "Idylls" are its flesh and blood. In this extraordinary epic poem, Tennyson has transformed Malory's automatons to living and breathing characters, and infuses the legend of King Arthur with passionate intensity that had hitherto been absent. In addition to this, for the first time King Arthur's story, told in its immensity, becomes something more than a dry cataloguing of events or an excuse to have knights and derring-do: underlying "Idylls of the King" is a vision of tragedy and destiny only vaguely hinted at in Malory.

Admittedly, this is not the easiest thing in the world to read, but simply reading major parts is worth it, without necessarily following the story of Tristram or other such details. Most interesting in this poem is the relationship between Guinevere and Lancelot, which is complicated and sometimes dark. Tennyson's characters are complex beings, complete with inner shadows and desires which sometimes conflict with the ideals put forth by Arthur's "Table Round."

Since it is after all Tennyson, the language is breathtaking, though one familiar with his other poetry might be slightly regretful, as I was, that it occasionally lacks the power of his other poems. Perhaps this is to be expected, given the length: and since it is Tennyson, less powerful than his other work is still marvelous.

Some may be irritated by Tennyson's moralistic streak, which is hard to ignore, as well as the distinct parallels with Christianity which the poet introduces from time to time. The idea that women somehow embody all sin certainly makes an appearance here, as Guinevere is sometimes portrayed almost as evil incarnate.

Nonetheless, with its almost mystical undertones, beautiful language and psychological complexity, "Idylls of the King" is worth checking out, whether you are a fan of King Arthur or Tennyson; it is an epic which combines emotion and the magical, life and the legendary.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tennyson squares the Round Table, April 15, 2005

By 

A.J. (Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Idylls of the King (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Based primarily on Sir Thomas Malory's "Le Morte d'Arthur," Tennyson's "Idylls of the King" is an epic poem comprising twelve loosely connected episodes narrating the adventures and romances of the knights of Camelot. Even in the Victorian era King Arthur had a secure place in the popular imagination, so Tennyson's poem, published in sections over roughly a fifteen-year period, was warmly received. Because it is bookended by dedications to Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, whom Tennyson perhaps viewed as quasi-Arthurian figures just as Virgil exalted Augustus Caesar, it carries the authority of an accepted British cultural document.

Tennyson recasts the individual stories of the knights in his own poetic vision, and in some instances invents his own anecdotes or contributes his own details, merging chivalric imagery with post-Romantic lyrical beauty. As an Arthurian medium, Tennyson's verse is much more readable than Malory's cumbersome prose (a forgivable style owing to Malory's time, but difficult to appreciate nowadays unless you have a taste for the archaic). As irresistibly dazzling as a hyperbole like "The wood is nigh as full of thieves as leaves" is, there is much more to the "Idylls" than linguistic elegance.

Arthur is nearly a Christ-figure, and his knights are not unlike the apostles: "[F]ollow the Christ, the King,/Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--/Else, wherefore born?" the idealistic Gareth rhetorically asks his mother just before journeying to Camelot to fulfill his dream of joining the Round Table. Knighthood is a mission in life, a devotion to the service of God and the king (or King, to use the Christian allegory). In the Arthurian milieu, knights represent the highest, most virtuous ideal of mankind, though in practice they occasionally fail, falter, and face moral dilemmas that help to build character. Such conflicts also compel the poem, for an infallible knight hardly makes for interesting reading.

To be sent on a quest is not a chore but an honor of which a knight must be deemed worthy by Arthur. Prove yourself inept, and he won't even send you to the McDonald's drive-thru to pick him up a Big Mac. Whether rescuing a lady from a castle guarded by evil knights (Gareth), delivering a diamond as a prize to the winner of a joust (Gawain), searching for the Holy Grail (Galahad), or even properly disposing of the sword Excalibur upon Arthur's death (Bedivere), a knight is expected to obey and succeed.

The vicissitudes of love often pose ethical challenges for the knights and provide the most memorable scenes of the poem, as adultery, jealousy, and betrayal set the stage for turbulent drama. The illicit affair of Lancelot and Guinevere, Arthur's wife, the tragic story of Elaine, the peasant girl who pledges her love to Lancelot, the punishment meted out to Tristram by his uncle Mark for the seduction of Isolt, and Pelleas's amorous pursuit of the hellion Ettarre, are the essence of legend.

The tale that somehow haunts me the most is that of Merlin and Vivien, which ominously takes place in a forest just before a storm. The petulant Vivien disparages Arthur's knights and tries to coax a love spell out of the ancient but apparently still libidinous wizard; having achieved her objective as the storm breaks, she runs away from the beguiled and sleeping magician as the uttered word "fool" echoes through the trees--a very poetic representation of lust subduing and fleeing wisdom.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An epic Arthurian Romance, April 15, 2003

By 

bixodoido (Utah, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Idylls of the King (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

This lengthy poem about King Arthur's court is written in grand epic style, in the spirit of the Iliad, the Odyssey, and Paradise Lost, and drawing on these and other great epics. Tennyson follows many of the traditional epic conventions here--the epic similes, the epic quests, etc. But this work is not wholly an epic, it is rather more of a Romance. The book is divided into various sections, each dealing with a knight (or knights) of King Arthur's court. The adventures they encounter are various and only remotely connected, but there is a back story to each. Something is going on behind the scenes. The first part of the book deals with the rise of Arthur, and of the glory of his kingdom. The second part focuses on the gradual decline of his influence, and culminates with the King's discovery of Lancelot and Guinevere's affair.

This is one of my favorite Arthurian romances. Tennyson's verse is beautiful and vivid, and his story is both compelling and easy to follow. No study of English Romanticism would be complete without Tennyson, and this is one of his finest works.