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Knights of the Prose Tristram
Copyright ©2008 by Greg Stafford
Arms rendered by Frank Sultana.
I find the history of Arthurian literature almost as interesting as the stories themselves. Newcomers to Malory have no idea that he jammed stories from several sources together into his collection of books, giving them all a similar treatment and authorial hand that unites them in a way that the originals were not.
Of course this literary synthesis had been going on for centuries before good Sir Thomas found time in prison to exercise his literary talent.
But every so often newcomers appear, as if generated right out of the epic itself instead of being added in from another outside source. One of those works of literature that added new characters was the Prose Tristram. Almost everyone agrees that the story itself is turgidly written, unnecessary complex to the point of confusion, and generally pretty boring. Even Sir Thomas gave up on trying to improve it, ending the Book XII with the note, “But here is no rehearsal of third book,” meaning “I’m not going to bother with the last part of the >i>Prose Tristram.
Nonetheless, some of the most colorful characters originate within it.
Sir Tristram of Lyonesse, the protagonist, is not new to this work. He’s from a very much older work, probably an Irish love story. He suffers and suffers for his True Love, and as we all know, triumphs despite the illegality, immorality and horrible disloyalty to his liege lord and kinsman. And for all those years when he lived in open adultery, defying custom, church and kin—how much suffering was that really, to sleep in the arms (oh let’s just say it—paw and pant over and sweat on and have and own and love, love, love) of the 2nd most beautiful woman in the world?
King Mark of Cornwall is not new to this work, coming from that old Irish (though possibly British) love story. He is the wicked husband of Tristram’s lover, though who can really blame him? Romance, even full blown in its most torrid heat of True Love, does not require or even expect the cuckold to acquiesce to his horns. Indeed, it requires his unwillingness and subsequent rage to intensify the danger, and thus intensify the passion.
Sir Dinadan is a knight who appeals tremendously to the modern sensibilities. He’s a primary foil to his good friend and companion Tristram, for Dinadan scorns love as being not just trivial but downright foolish, and maybe even just stupid. Nonetheless his loyalty to Tristram is flawless, a perfect example of the virtue of loyal companionship. Perhaps even more important to us modern folk, Dinadan is pretty funny. Malory pretty clearly didn’t like his japes and jests and largely removed him from scenes where he is prominent in the Prose Tristram, with the result that his roles is sometime confused when he does appear (for instance, just what was the joke about the wolf and the fish, and what was the real story of the cross dressing at the Surluse tournament?)
Sir Lamorak is another foil. His presence indicates on one hand the fracturing of Arthur’s great ream along the lines of ancient family blood feuding, but Lamorak is also a great lover, not of a sweet young wife but of the older widowed mother of his worst enemies’ own mother. Perhaps his death I supposed to point to folly, though of course the theory of Romance is that all Life is folly, and Love is always fraught with danger.
Sir Palomides makes his first appearance in the PT. He’s an example of the besotted lover, inspired by Isult even though unrequited and driven to weeping melancholy by it more than once. Yet he is utterly admirable, for he is a great fighter, chivalrous and he respects Tristram. But Palomide’s real story is around his heathenism, which he clings to for most of the long, long story because he will not convert until he has proven himself worthy. After his great fight with Sir Tristram he is finally converted, and afterwards he dies in sanctity of his new and hard-won faith.
The Questing Beast is another fascinating character from the Prose Tristram. This weird critter, part of this and part of that; always seemingly close but impossible to capture, is the object first of Sir Pellinore, then Sir Palomides. It’s an apt symbol of Palomide’s personal quest—impossible of shape and form, impossible to capture, yet sought with unending passion. I think it’s important that Lamorak, Pellinore’s rightful heir, abandoned or never even took up the quest for the beast, and it is a sign of his weakness and promised failure that he preferred dangerous Romance to the ultimate spiritual quest.
Full disclosure: The Prose Tristram is one of the works that I’ve never read. All the above is from what I have read about it. I’ve never really found a translation of the whole thing, although even when I do I will likely just skim through if it’s as bad as is said!
