Elaine of Corbenic

"How at the Castle of Corbin a maiden bare in the Sangreal and foretold the achievements of Galahad" by Arthur Rackham

Elaine of Corbenic (also known as Amite, Heliaebel, Helaine, Perevida or Helizabel; identified as "The Grail Maiden" or "Grail Bearer"),[1] is a character in the Arthurian legend. She is the daughter of King Pelles and the mother of Sir Galahad by Sir Lancelot. She first appears in The Prose Lancelot (The Vulgate Cycle),[1] but fully emerges as a character in Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur.[2] She is described as "passing fair and young".[3] Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail to Sir Lancelot.

Story

Elaine's father, King Pelles, knew that Sir Lancelot would sire a son with Elaine, and that that child would be Sir Galahad, described as "the most noblest [sic] knight in the world".[4] Moreover, King Pelles claims that Galahad will lead a "foreign country...out of danger" and "achieve...the Holy Grail".[3] The source of King Pelles' knowledge is undisclosed.

The sorceress Morgan le Fay is jealous of Elaine's beauty, and magically traps her in a boiling bath. After Sir Lancelot rescues her, Elaine falls in love with him, only to find he is already in love with Queen Guinevere and would not knowingly sleep with another woman. In order to seduce Lancelot, Elaine goes to her serving woman, Dame Brusen, for help. Dame Brusen gives Lancelot wine and Elaine a ring of Guinevere's in order to trick Lancelot into thinking Elaine is Guinevere.[5]

The next morning, Lancelot is most displeased to discover that the woman he slept with was not Guinevere. He draws his sword and threatens to kill Elaine, but she tells him that she is pregnant with Galahad and he agrees not to kill her, but instead kisses her.[6] Lancelot departs, and Elaine remains in her father's castle and gives birth to Galahad.

Thereafter, there is a feast at King Arthur's court, and Elaine goes to it. Lancelot ignores her when he sees her, and she is sad because she loves him. She complains of this to Dame Brusen, and Dame Brusen tells her that she will "undertake that this night he [Lancelot] shall lie with [her]".[7] That night, Dame Brusen brings Lancelot to Elaine, pretending that it is Guinevere that summons him. He goes along, and once again sleeps with Elaine. At the same time, however, Guinevere herself actually summons Lancelot, and is enraged to discover that he is not in his bedchamber.[8] She hears him talking in his sleep, and finds him in bed with Elaine. She is furious with him and tells him she never wants to see him again. Lancelot goes mad with grief and, naked, jumps out a window and runs away.[4]

Elaine confronts Guinevere as to her treatment of Lancelot. She accuses Guinevere of causing Lancelot’s madness and tells her that she is being unnecessarily cruel. After this, she leaves court. Time passes in the story, and Elaine next appears when she finds Lancelot insane in her garden.[9] She brings him to the Holy Grail, which cures him. When he regains his mental facilities, he decides to live with Elaine, and they live together for several years as man and wife.[10]

Elaine appears in the 1939 novel The Once and Future King, by T.H. White. The basic character does not change, however, there are several key differences. Time is more specifically enumerated in this version, for instance, when Elaine finds Lancelot in the garden, Galahad is three years old. Additionally, Elaine and Lancelot live together as husband and wife for ten years and actively raise Galahad while Lancelot bears a pseudonym to hide from the court at Camelot.[11]

Another key difference between White and Malory is that in White, Lancelot is cured of his insanity by seeing Elaine, but becomes physically sick and is nursed back to health by Elaine. White also chronicles Elaine's final fate, having her commit suicide when it becomes clear that Lancelot will never truly love her or end his obsession with Guinevere. This creates a parallel with the character of Elaine of Astolat, who is also referenced in the novel.[11]

A more contemporary novel is Elaine of Corbenic by Tima Z. Newman. [12] Based on Malory's account in Le Morte d’Arthur of the three brief encounters of Launcelot and Elaine, it chronicles Elaine’s journey through abandonment to the finding of inner strength and deepening wisdom.

Modern analysis

Elaine of Carbonek (or Corbenic, Corbin, etc.) is often passed over in favor of Elaine of Astolat. Like the more famous Elaine, Elaine of Carbonek is in love with Lancelot. Yet unlike Astolat, Carbonek is successful in both bedding and marrying Lancelot. Despite this, she has been overlooked by most literary analysts. One theory for why she has been so ignored is because of the moral ambiguities of her actions.[13] She does not fit into a neat category of female characters; she is neither good nor evil, but something in between. Another fact is that modern films will combine the two women into one.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Arthurian Women. www.timelessmyths.com. Jimmy Joe, 1999.
  2. ↑ Malory, Sir Thomas. Le Morte d'Arthur. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.
  3. 1 2 Malory, p.283.
  4. 1 2 Malory, p.288.
  5. ↑ Malory, p.283-284.
  6. ↑ Malory, p.285.
  7. ↑ Malory, p.286.
  8. ↑ Malory, p.287.
  9. ↑ Malory, p.297.
  10. ↑ Malory, p.299.
  11. 1 2 White, Terence Hanbury. The Once and Future King. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1958.
  12. ↑ Newman, Tima Z. Elaine of Corbenic. Honolulu: Savant Books, 2015.
  13. ↑ Sklar, Elizabeth S. "Malory’s Other(ed) Elaine". On Arthurian Women: Essays in Memory of Maureen Fries. Bonnie Wheeler and Fiona Tolhurst. Dallas: Scriptorium Press, 2001. pp.59-70.

Further reading

External sources

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