The last of Malory’s Arthur tales, “Le Morte d’Arthur,” could be regarded as the tale that deconstructs all the preceding tales. The very codes of conduct which made Arthur and his Round Table powerful are depicted backfiring at an amazing speed. As power deconstructs itself, we are shown the hidden and unacknowledged weakness which was always part of it. The glory and the romance are transformed into tragedy or travesty, or both. Yet, as the illusions are in their death throes, they seem to have a power to live in our imaginations that they didn’t when all seemed well. Just when Camelot is dead, it seems most desirable. The question of how it ended this way causes a backward glance at all the stories.

continue reading »