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"Confusion and illusion and relation": The function of utopian vision in Tennyson's "Idylls of the King"
Abstract
Tennyson uses the Arthurian legend in Idylls of the King to explore the conflict between the King's utopian vision of society and the diverse inner visions of truth held by those individuals who must work to attain it. Dreaming of utopia inspires his kingdom to swear allegiance to his ideal, yet his view also places in the individual's inner vision the ultimate authority for truth. Arthur's utopia is never realized because his knights never fully see as he has seen and so never fully realize his vision. Each individual's vision of Camelot is limited by that character's personality, context, and abilities, and few visions harmonize with Arthur's. Paradoxically, Arthur's dream of utopia is both noble and impossible because it is based on the inner vision of men. In "The Coming of Arthur," Tennyson presents a variety of visions of Arthur's birth as the foundation upon which characters rely to construct Camelot. "Gareth and Lynette" and "Pelleas and Ettarre" demonstrate the interdependence of circumstances and inner visions in forging character within this construct. The Geraint idylls, "Merlin and Vivien," and "Lancelot and Elaine" explore the intricacies of love and issues such as communication, compromise, shared vision, and balance which strengthen or destroy relationships. "The Holy Grail" investigates how people construct truth based on inner vision and the interdependence of those constructs and visions. "Balin and Balan" and "The Last Tournament" demonstrate that the vows of the Round Table are an unworkable necessity that measures failures and inspires successes. "Guinevere" and "The Passing of Arthur" offer redemption in the face of Camelot's disintegration through striving for perfection. The Idylls becomes an optimistic affirmation of humanity's ability to dream and aspire despite the knowledge that perfection is unattainable. Human limitations and imperfections provide the basis for beginning the redemptive process through searching for the divine. Discovering, not discoveries, exploring, not exploits, process, not product, are the focus of the Idylls of the King.
Subject Area
British and Irish literature
Recommended Citation
Lyons, Karen Virginia Knapp, ""Confusion and illusion and relation": The function of utopian vision in Tennyson's "Idylls of the King"" (1992). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9314576.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9314576