Knightmare: stories and fairytales

[Liitha]

Here is where you share your favourite stories and plotpoints with the rest of us, and discuss the strength and weaknesses of medival stories, which books have the best mythical creatures and descriptions in it, or anything else story related connected to medival.

 

 

So whatever triggers your boat, be it the big well known as Arthur and the stone in the sword or less known ones like this I found online about a monks cat

 

"I and Pangur Ban my cat,'Tis a like task we are at,

Hunting mice is his delight, Hunting words I sit all night

'Tis a merry thing to see, At our task how glad are we

When at home we sit and find, Entertainment to our mind.

'Gainst the wall he sets his eye, Full and fierce and sharp and sly,

'Gainst the wall of knowledge I, All my little wisdom try.

So in peace our task we ply: Pangur Ban my cat and I

In our arts and in our bliss, I have mine and he have his."

[Rekinu Alasayaar]

Many books have amazing Mythology, and mythical creatures.

 

Randland had mythical elements in many of the creatures used by the Seanchan, and the myths the soft countries had about Trollocs after so many years... (Due in part to the abilities of the Borderlands to keep them at bay, and part in the stupidity of the Borderlands to allow them to forget about Trollocs, but i digress)

 

Dragons IRL have always been a mythical beast thought of as being the culprit for afar off damage or problems.  I often wonder how it started, the notion of a great flying beast breathing fire? A falling comet or meteor?

[Elgee]

I find it fascinating that so many cultures feature the same mythical creatures, like dragons. I wonder if there are any experts around here, who would know more about that?

[Guest]

i always feel like to undrstand any old literaturre/stories, medieviall or older, its crucial to have knowledgge of the culture they are form for ful apreciation and as full undrstanding as can get; othrewise, you can interprett all you want, its inevitbly just goin be yuor culturall bias imposed on whatevre your lookin at and probablly not accurate of what the story or symboll really means. case in point is a dragon - in veryy ancient cultures, dragonns/dragon liek creatures often were symbollic of or came to be asociated with the penis as phalic symbol for male fertillity/male magick. came to be asociated i mean by example is yuo have an animall/creature that might hav reminnded or embodied somhow that concept (in this case, penis), such as the eell in som polynesian myths. in yuonger cultures, dragons may justt be evolvd form of this older conceptt or else its represnts something entirely diferent because originatted from som othre concept. i dont know much abuot chinese culture, so i cant say if dragon was or stil is phalic/male symbol, but i know taht the dragon is basicaly a composite of all the speciall animals and good symbolls of particular culture, which is a comon if not universall design of most suposedly mythical creatures - basicaly manifestation of all or some of the cultures speciall animals, plants, lucky or unluckky symbols ,etc. i dont know much abuot medieval dragons, especialy geting later on, but seems resonble to think that they often portrayd as prety much unanimously bad becuse serpentine (which is evil in chistiann mythos aparently) and may hav othre "bad" parts melded onto them, suchh as goat hornns and bat wings which caem to be symbollic of evil in medievall superstition. that stresses point of cuorse of understandin culture to realy apreciate stories, as just one examplle of how most stories reflectt the symbolls/psychology of the culture, which if yuor not part of it and yuo dont understand, obviously going to miss much of whatt story was getting at, even if stil enjoy it for what it is.

 

also feel like just clasifiyin whole groupp of literature all as 'medieval' doesnt do any justice tohugh is convenient; dependin on what country you get it from, and what exctly the time period (such as early medivall, later), and mayb knowin something about the author too, get prety diferent culturall perspectiv by which to anallyse. for example, most peoplle probablly dont know that the earliestt poems abuot "king arthur" were fragments of probabblly huge body of tales abot a pre-christiann legendaryy figure, as thes earliest taless present arthur as wanderin figure with a magickall band of wariors with none of that chivalruos crap later imposed on it, and he bearrs more similarty to othre pagan celtic figures liek find mac cumail. later writin however, get the king arthur peple more familiar with, basicaly a product of the culture of the time, christian, feudal systemm with chivalry thrown in, thuogh stil has lot of pagan elements remining (thuogh by that time largelly lost lot of original meaning). im not realy expert on much any kind of medievall literature - thuogh know quite bit abuot medieviall irish - much les stuff in anothre languge/from another culture, so i cant say much abuot literary strengthhs and weakneses other than from my own cuturaly bias perspective. lot of things get lost in translation too, so i usualy am somewhatt careful about puting forwardd my opinion on things i know hav been translated from language i dont know, becuse ulatimately what im saying may only hold true for translation. case in point is the poem in the first post, which is actually translation of poem come from old irish "messe ocus Panguur bán" (and its probablly why it ist too well known becuse gaeilge and literature in it/from it has nevre been particularlly popular):

 

meisse ocus pangur bán

cechtar natharr fría ṡaindán

bíth a menma sam fri seilgg

mu menma céin im ṡaincheirdd

 

Caraimm-se fos, ferr cach clú

oc m lebrán léir ingnu

Ní formtech frimm pangur bán

caraid cesin a maccdán

 

which mosttly translate as:

myself and pangur bán

each of us at his own art

his mind is always turnd to hunting

my own mind to my special trade

 

I love it quiet, better than fame

While eagerl studying my book

white Pangur is not envirous of me -

He loves his own childish art

 

can see how obviusly the translation given in the openinng is not strict so leaves a bit out and i noticedd the openin translation also leaves out whole verses from the originall, so can se quite bit of artistiic liberty in translations.

[Guest]

anted to knote that wasnt all of the poem, onlly the first two versses if anyon was confusd - i had to type it upp myself so only fellt like writin the first two as example insted of whole thign, thuogh i can do the whole thinng if anyon wants to see

[Kwom Masbag]

Hmm... perhaps I shall compose a short piece of fiction for this thread.  Stay tuned, friends!

[Gudrean]

*looks forward to the writings of Kwom*  

 

Mother, I shall look into the dragon thingy and report back.