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Genre, Gender and Nation: Ideological and Intertextual Representation in Contemporary Arthurian Fiction for Children Adele Cook This is a digitised version of a dissertation submitted to the University of Bedfordshire. It is available to view only. This item is subject to copyright. Genre, Gender and Nation: Ideological and Intertextual Representations in Contemporary Arthurian Fiction for Children A. M. COOK Ph.D. 2014 UNIVERSITY OF BEDFORDSHIRE GENRE, GENDER AND NATION: IDEOLOGICAL AND INTERTEXTUAL REPRESENTATIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ARTHURIAN FICTION FOR CHILDREN by Adèle Cook A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy December 2014 GENRE, GENDER AND NATION: IDEOLOGICAL AND INTERTEXTUAL REPRESENTATIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ARTHURIAN FICTION FOR CHILDREN Adèle Cook Abstract Within late twentieth and early twenty-first century children’s literature there is a significant interest amongst authors and readers for material which recreates the Arthurian myth. Many of these draw on medieval texts, and the canonical texts of the English tradition have been particularly influential. Yet within this intertextual discourse the influence of the Victorian works is noticeable. This thesis explores the relationship between contemporary children’s Arthuriana and the gendered and national ideologies of these earlier works. Using feminist critical discourse analysis, it discusses the evolution of Arthuriana for the child reader, with a particular focus on four contemporary texts: Michael Morpurgo’s (1994) Arthur, High King of Britain, Mary Hoffman’s (2000) Women of Camelot: Queens and Enchantresses at the Court of King Arthur, Diana Wynne Jones’ (1993) Hexwood and the BBC series Merlin (2008-2012). Exploring the historicist and fantasy genres opens up a discourse surrounding the psychology of myth which within the context of Arthurian literature creates a sense of a universal ‘truth’. This work reveals that authorial intent, in both historicist and fantasy narratives, is often undercut by implicit ideologies which reveal unconscious cultural assumptions. The cultural context at the time of textual production and consumption affects the representations of both the ideologies of gender and nation and yet the authority of myth and history combine to create a regressive depiction more in keeping with literature from the Victorian and post-World War II eras. This is explored through a review of the literature for children available since the Age of Reason, and the didactic model which has been prevalent throughout the Arthurian genre. This thesis explores why a regressive representation is appealing within a twenty-first century discourse through an engagement with theories of feminism(s) and postfeminism. This thesis ascertains why the psychology of myth affects the reimagining of Arthuriana, and explores the retrospective nature of intertextuality in order to reflect on the trend for regressive representations in children’s Arthurian literature. I would like to dedicate this work to Terry Cook and Alison Commander for their unwavering support, and to Dr Clare Walsh and Dr Nicola Darwood for their invaluable advice. Contents Abstract. Dedication. 1. Introduction: Theoretical Approaches. 1 1.1. Interrogating Myth and the Transhistorical Nature of Arthuriana. 3 1.2. Theoretical Approaches. 6 1.2.1.Gender: Feminism and Postfeminism. 6 1.2.2.Nation. 9 1.2.3.Genre. 10 1.3. Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis. 12 1.3.1.The Implied Reader and the Implied Author. 16 61.3.2.Psychology of Myth. 19 1.3.3.Intertextuality. 21 1.4. Rationale. 24 2. Geoffrey of Monmouth, Malory, and Tennyson: Women, Nation 28 and Ideology in the English Canon. 2.1. Introduction. 28 2.2. Geoffrey of Monmouth. 29 2.3. Sir Thomas Malory and Le Morte Darthur. 42 2.4. Tennyson. 52 3. The Emergence of an Arthur for the Child Reader. 63 3.1. Introduction. 63 3.2. Arthur and the Enlightenment: Jack the Giant Killer and Tom Thumb. 65 3.3. Arthur in the Nineteenth Century. 72 3.4. Twentieth Century Children’s Arthuriana. 73 i 3.4.1.Roger Lancelyn Green (1953). 73 3.4.2.T. H. White (1958). 75 3.4.3.Susan Cooper (1965-1977). 77 3.4.4.Rosemary Sutcliff (1979). 79 3.5. Twenty First Century Children’s Arthuriana. 81 3.5.1.Kevin Crossley-Holland (2001). 82 3.5.2.Phillip Reeve (2007). 84 3.6. Conclusion. 86 4. The Implied Reader and Intertextual Ideology: Michael 87 Morpurgo’s Arthur, High King of Britain. 34.1. Introduction. 87 4.2. Genre. 89 4.3. The Implied Reader. 92 4.4. National and Christian Symbolism. 94 4.4.1.Christian Symbolism. 94 4.5. Intertextuality. 97 4.6. Gender. 101 4.7. The Motherhood Narrative. 104 4.7.1.Maternity and Nation. 106 4.8. Conclusion. 113 5. Pseudo-feminist Revision and the Psychology and Myth: Mary 114 Hoffman’s Women of Camelot: Queens and Enchantresses at the Court of King Arthur. 5.1. Introduction. 114 5.2. Feminist Children’s Literature. 117 5.3. Genre. 119 5.4. The Intertextual Relationship Between Hoffman, Malory and 120 Tennyson. ii 5.4.1.The Sexualised Female. 121 5.4.2.The Motherhood Narrative. 128 5.4.3.Peritext. 135 5.5. Gender and Nation. 137 5.7. Conclusion. 141 6. Liminal Spaces, Kristevan Timelines, and Interrogative 143 Intertextuality in Diana Wynne Jones’ Hexwood. 6.1. Introduction. 143 6.2. Fantasy Fiction. 144 6.3. Intertextuality. 147 6.4. Liminal Spaces. 153 6.5. Kristevan Timelines. 158 6.6. Reimagining the Psychology of Myth. 163 6.7. The Motherhood Rejection and the Embracing of the ‘Princess’. 165 6.8. Reimaging the ‘other’ and Ideas of Nation. 170 6.9. Conclusion. 172 7. Abjection and the Femme Castratrice in Merlin. 173 7.1. Introduction. 173 7.2. The changing Faces of Morgana La Fey. 175 7.3. The Femme Castratrice and Images of Nation. 178 7.4. Abjection and Agency. 185 7.5. The Psychodynamic Representation of Gender. 191 7.5.1.The Anti-Motherhood Narrative. 192 7.5.2.Homosocial Bonds. 196 iii 7.6. The Psychology of Myth. 198 7.7. Guinevere and the End. 200 7.8. Conclusion. 202 8. Conclusion. 204 9. Appendices. 210 A. Model of Textual Interaction and the Production of Meaning. 210 B. Model of the Components of Narrative Communication. 210 C. Model of Mythical Semiological System. 211 D. Image from Morpurgo’s Arthur, High King of Britain. 211 E. Cover Illustration of Mary Hoffman’s Women of Camelot. 212 F.i. ‘Lady Lilith’ 213 F.ii. ‘Guinevere’ 213 G. The Temporal as Experienced in Hexwood. 214 H. Model of A-series-relative and B-series-absolute Time. 214 I. The Characters in Hexwood. 215 J. Merlin: The Heroes. 215 K. Merlin: The Villains. 216 L. Morgana on her way to the Druids. 217 M. The Changing Faces of Morgana La Fey. 217 N. The Stand-off Between Morgana and Arthur. 218 O. Guinevere during her time with Helios. 218 P. Guinevere as Arthur’s Death is Announced. 219 10. References. 220 iv 1. Introduction: Theoretical Approaches The aim of this thesis is to examine ideology within Arthurian literature, and to explore whether ideologies of gender and nation have become associated with a medievalism which conforms to a dominant historical metanarrative which is culturally desirable within a twenty-first century discourse. Late twentieth and twenty-first century texts appear to embrace a faux-medievalism which embraces the Victorian model of national and gender representations. This thesis will examine the ideological and intertextual use of the English canon within children’s literature, drawing on the theories of Kristeva and Bakhtin, which suggest that the medieval and Victorian texts have the potential to reveal retro-sexist ideologies in contemporary culture. It will examine the extent to which contemporary fictions for children are directly indebted to Malorian influences as many authors claim, and to what extent the ideology of these texts is mediated by Victorian Arthuriana. This is of significant interest if scholars are to understand possible future directions in Arthurian literature and the potential wider implications such representations have for the development of cultures and ideologies which fall outside of the dominant paradigm. Much like Wood’s (2008: 4-5) work, which focuses on the motif of the Holy Grail, this exploration of children’s Arthuriana is ‘concerned with how a tale, which developed in the feudal world of Western Europe, has been transformed into a myth of global proportions’. While the transhistorical nature of the mythical form is of interest, and the shifting ideology within the seemingly eternal nature of the tales allows an insight into the current dominant ideological paradigm with regard to gender and nation, this study will focus specifically on the way the tale has been adapted and appropriated from within the English tradition, hence the emphasis on ideologies of Englishness. 1 The earliest origins of the Arthuriad have been located in Britain, and while some scraps of manuscript remain from the earliest Welsh traditions it is Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Brittaniae (1136) that is the basis for much of the literature produced in England within the last nine hundred years. 1 In Norman-ruled England it mattered that Arthur was seen as English, as he provided a stability to the newly conquered nation, and Arthur was later written into the genealogies of subsequent monarchs to strengthen their claim to the English throne.2 While Arthur would have been a Briton, and consequently not English,3 the historical accuracy of many facets of Arthuriana have been subverted for ideological purposes. This thesis will investigate whether Arthurian literature has been ideological in function since its inception, and whether, while this ideology has shifted to reflect the changing dominant political discourses throughout the centuries, it remains a prominent and essential feature of the tales and underpins their continued appeal.

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