Ryan ChartrandPublished in 1939, “The Sword in the Stone” is the first and most famous book in Terence Hanbury (T.H.) White’s “The Once and Future King” series which details the life of King Arthur. The novels provided inspiration for the Disney movie “The Sword in the Stone,” as well as the musical “Camelot.”
The young Arthur (called “Wart”) is an ordinary child in many ways, but is already displaying the level-headedness, sensitivity and courage that will one day set him apart as a leader. Unfortunately, he is not Sir Ector’s legitimate son, so instead of being trained as a knight like his step-brother Kay (a position he desperately desires), he must resign himself to being Kay’s squire.
When the mysterious magician Merlyn shows up to be the boys’ tutor, strange and exciting things begin happening to Wart. His boyhood is linked by the lessons he learns from Merlyn, each providing training for his future sovereignty. These lessons consist of Merlyn turning Wart into various different animals, including a fish, an owl, a goose, an ant and a badger. Each transformation fosters the courage and worldview Wart will someday need to be king.
I was surprised to find a strong antiwar message in the lessons Wart learns. When he becomes an ant, he learns the dangers of thoughtless submission to authority, and his time spent as a goose teaches him about pacifism. I later discovered that much of “The Sword in the Stone” was written in the pre-WWII years when trouble was bubbling in Europe.
One of my favorite aspects of the book was White’s uncanny imagination. He includes the type of specific details that normally inspire a reader to think he must be writing from experience. However, considering many of these details relate to daily life in the Middle Ages, White is either older than he looks or has an incredible imagination (combined with a exhaustive knowledge of the era).
He delves into topics undoubtedly few of his readers will be familiar with (including falconry, jousting, and archery), so that the reader emerges feeling thoroughly educated. His description of the clothing, furniture, buildings and customs of the time period (regardless of how accurate they may be) immerse the reader in the world of the book.
Unfortunately, this total immersion in the time period is frequently broken by 20th-century references. White often uses similes between ancient and contemporary objects, which the reader would be more familiar with (for instance, he compares the jousting pit with a football arena). These suggestions occasionally break the focus and deny the story its timeless quality, but the author’s intention is simply to help a 20th-century audience visualize the scene he is describing.
Although inconsistent at times, White writes with humor, enthusiasm, and depth, making “The Sword in the Stone” a well-crafted masterpiece and classic.
Haley Stocking is an English senior with a minor in theater. E-mail any comments, questions or suggestions to hstockin@calpoly.edu.