The following represent the offerings related to Arthurian villains at the upcoming Popular Culture Association and American Culture Association Annual Meeting to be held next week in St. Louis. The complete program (and addendum) can be accessed at: http://pcaaca.org/conference/national.php.
THURS., 12:30-2:00 PM
Lucas (21st Floor)
2148 Arthurian Legends: Morgan, Mordred, and Magic: Arthuriana out in Left Field
Session Chair: Michele D. Braun, Northeastern University
“‘Sympathy for the Devil’: The Dichotomy of Mordred in Popular Fiction”
Diana M. Vecchio, Widener University
“Reining in Morgaine: Revising Feminist Possibilities out of The Mists of Avalon”
Deidra Donmoyer, Wesleyan College
“Magic and the Feminine in the BBC's Merlin”
Christina Francis, Bloomsbury University
“Saving Baseball, Saving Arthur: Morganna the Kissing Bandit Resurrects Morgan le Fay”
Jill Hebert, University of St. Mary
Showing posts with label Lady/Ladies of the Lake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lady/Ladies of the Lake. Show all posts
Friday, March 26, 2010
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
BBC's MERLIN
In case you've missed it, the BBC series Merlin now airing on NBC offers some innovative takes on the traditional villains of Camelot. The series revolves around the lives of Uther Pendragon, king of Camelot, and youthful versions of Arthur, his son; Morgana, his ward; Guinevere, Morgana's lady in waiting; and Merlin, a newcomer to Camelot and a powerful magic-user. The basic premise of the series is that Uther, following the death of Igraine de Bois in childbirth twenty one years ago (more below), began a crusade to extinguish magic in his kingdom. This crusade continues in the present day of the series; Merlin and Morgana, a latent magic user, must hide their talents, while other magic-users, including series villain Nimueh, employ magic against Uther. (More details at Wikipedia.)
Morgana:
The daughter of Gorlois, a faithful ally of UtherPendragon, Morgana was raised in Camelot following his father's death and is Uther's ward. Morgana, like Merlin, is attuned to the magical world, but she has yet to work any magic. Instead, Morgana's dreams are prophetic. Also, contrary to more traditional representations of the character, the Morgana of Merlin is benevolent (at least so far), and it seems likely (or so the writer want us to believe) that Arthur and Morgana might someday fall in love.
Mordred:
Mordred, a young druid boy with magical abilities, is featured in "The Beginning of the End," where Merlin, Arthur, and Morgana work together to protect the boy from Uther. The Great Dragon, Merlin's adviser, warns him that Mordred should not be saved, but the young mage refuses to let the boy die. There is no suggestion that Mordred is either Arthur or Morgana's son, but the Great Dragon does warn Merlin that the boy, at some point in the future, will turn evil and cause Arthur's death, as in traditional accounts of the character.
Nimueh: Nimueh, a composite of the various Ladies of the Lake and Morgan le Fay, is a powerful magic-user who uses her powers in several episodes in various attempts to kill Uther. In "Excalbur," the most recent episode to air in the US it is revealed that Nimuh (as opposed to traditional accounts linking Merlin to the act) used magic to help Uther and Igraine conceive a child, but the forces of magic dictated that Igraine had to die so their child, Arthur, might live. As a result, Uther began his war against magic, killing Nimueh's friends and family, and she continues to seek her revenge on the king. Later episodes explain that Nimueh, like her analogues in other Arthurian stories, was high priestess of the Old Religion.
Morgana:
The daughter of Gorlois, a faithful ally of UtherPendragon, Morgana was raised in Camelot following his father's death and is Uther's ward. Morgana, like Merlin, is attuned to the magical world, but she has yet to work any magic. Instead, Morgana's dreams are prophetic. Also, contrary to more traditional representations of the character, the Morgana of Merlin is benevolent (at least so far), and it seems likely (or so the writer want us to believe) that Arthur and Morgana might someday fall in love.Mordred:
Mordred, a young druid boy with magical abilities, is featured in "The Beginning of the End," where Merlin, Arthur, and Morgana work together to protect the boy from Uther. The Great Dragon, Merlin's adviser, warns him that Mordred should not be saved, but the young mage refuses to let the boy die. There is no suggestion that Mordred is either Arthur or Morgana's son, but the Great Dragon does warn Merlin that the boy, at some point in the future, will turn evil and cause Arthur's death, as in traditional accounts of the character.
Nimueh: Nimueh, a composite of the various Ladies of the Lake and Morgan le Fay, is a powerful magic-user who uses her powers in several episodes in various attempts to kill Uther. In "Excalbur," the most recent episode to air in the US it is revealed that Nimuh (as opposed to traditional accounts linking Merlin to the act) used magic to help Uther and Igraine conceive a child, but the forces of magic dictated that Igraine had to die so their child, Arthur, might live. As a result, Uther began his war against magic, killing Nimueh's friends and family, and she continues to seek her revenge on the king. Later episodes explain that Nimueh, like her analogues in other Arthurian stories, was high priestess of the Old Religion.
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