Le Morte Darthur Book 14
Contents
Capitulum i
While visiting his aunt Parcival finds about the death of his mother and about the red knight who "worcheth alle by myracle" and "shall never be overcome of none erthely mans hand" (predetermination).
Capitulum ii
His aunt even tells him (predetermination) about the emblematic meaning of the round table, about the manifestation of the holy grail (christianity) and about the knight who "shalle passe alle other knyghtes" (reference to Sir Galahad (?)). After that Parcival leaves his aunt's castle to find Galahad (evidence: Castel of Carbonek).
Capitulum iii
Parcival arrives at a monastery and knocks at its gates. In the morning he hears the mass and comes to know about king Evelake's fate who was dismissed from serving Ioseph of Armathye and the holy grail (maybe a key scene: christianity) and chastised by God.
predetermination/foreshadowing, christianity:
King's prayer: "Faire lord lete me never dye tyl the good knyghte of my blood of the ix degree be come that I may see him openly that he shal encheve the Sancgreal that I may kysse him."
Capitulum iv
The narration about king Evelake's past continues and we find out that his imploration was answered by God for there shall come a knight who will heal him from suffering (predetermination). After Parcival has left the monastery he is attacked by twenty knights and saved by Sir Galahad. Unfortunately Parcival is not able to follow him and to "doo thankynges" to Galahad (knighthood) because his horse was slain in the fight and the "yoman" he meets denies his request to lean him the "black stede" of his master.
Capitulum v
In the next chapter Parcival is persecuting a strange knight who has stolen the "black stede" from the "yoman". Refusing to fight the knight kills Parcival's "hakney" and departs. A few hours later Parcival meets a mysterious woman offering him her horse if he will "fulfylle" her "wyll". He accepts her offer and leaves her in order to continue his quest.
Capitulum vi
Parcvival arrives at a stretch of water "so boystous he doubted to overpasse it" and makes the sign of the cross "in his forheed" in order to protect himself from danger. Without delay he is bucked off by his horse, thrown into the raging water and finally saved from near-drowning as a result of his prayers. After that Parcival sees himself being confronted with two beasts, a lion an a serpent brawling over the lion's young. Parcival kills the serpent and finds himself protected and accompanied by the lion. Parcival then dreams about to ladies riding on a lion and on a serpent. The lady riding on the lion tells him that he will be challenged to a fight with the "strongest champion" and "the grettest lord" "of the world" the following day.
christianity: "And soo syre Parcival comforted hymself in our lord Ihesu and besoughte god no temptacyon shold brynge hym oute of goddes servyse but to endure as his true champyon".
Capitulum vi
The lady riding on the serpent demands Parcival as her paramour because he has slain the serpent serving her but Parcival refuses to do so. Later he meets with an old man "in lykenes of a preest" arriving on a ship and the identities of the two different ladies are revealed (young lady riding on the lion: representing "fayth", "good hope", "byleve" --> christianity; old lady riding on the serpent: representing devil's temptation).
foreshadowing:
Old man: "[...] and ye be soo true a knyghte as the ordre of chyvalry requyreth and of herte as ye oughte to be ye shold not doubte that none enemy shold slay yow."
