This volume is part of a series of lectures given at the inaugural seminar of the Arthurian Institute at St. David's College, Lampeter, Wales, in July 1992. These are done in informal style, with much humour, omitting all footnotes and bibliographical references. The lectures start with Malory and proceed through the major incarnations of the Lady through to the 20th century.
FREE Two-Day Shipping for students on millions of items. Learn more |
Book Description
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An indispensable intro to a fascinating topic,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Lady of the Lake in Arthurian Legend (Hardcover)
For anyone who wants to know more about this fascinating figure of Arthurian legend than can be gleaned from one-page entries in sources like The New Arthurian Encyclopedia and The Arthurian Name Dictionary, there are really only two places to turn: the original sources; or this indispensable little volume. Dean traces the development of the character and trappings of the Lady of the Lake in Arthurian literature. He deals well with the issues surrounding the character's pre-history while avoiding rash speculation, and devotes most of his space in equal parts to Malory's Nimue, Tennyson's Viviene, and the versions of contemporary writers. I was particularly impressed with his penetrating critical insights regarding Marion Zimmer Bradley's _Mists of Avalon_. Having dealt so well with Bradley, however, Dean oddly makes no mention in this too-short book of the vastly superior work of Mary Stewart, who was able to make Nimue a strong and compelling character without (as in Bradley) detracting from the male figures of Merlin and Arthur. (The only thing I can think of is that, compelling as Stewart's Nimue is, she is a less central character than Bradley's Vivian.) This cheaply made cloth-bound book has the look of a small- press job; which means two things. First, perhaps because the press run was small, it is on the expensive side for so short a book (less than 60 pages). Second, the red dye on the cover begins to scratch off almost immediately. If this is likely to bother you, you might want to have some contact paper to cover it when it arrives. All in all, though, I'm most pleased to have this well-written and informative book in my library.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
