Social Concerns
Arthurian legend, perhaps more so than any other long-lasting myth spawned in the Middle Ages, has adopted the medieval attitude toward sexuality and religion as an integral part of the stories themselves. After all, Camelot falls in the end due to Arthur's participation in what Christians would call the most diabolic sin— incest. Mordred, conceived incestuously by Morgaine and Arthur, must come back to destroy the golden city. A land ruled by a king with such a grave sin on his conscience cannot possibly survive; Camelot cannot survive because the sins of its king have become the sins of the land (the notion of the land carrying the sins of its king is also seen in Tennyson's Idylls of the King and the Fisher King stories of this century). Marion Zimmer Bradley's feminist publication The Mists of Avalon introduces Camelot to its reader by recreating the female characters associated with the mythical kingdom. In so doing, Bradley moves radically away from traditional male-centered plots and instead puts at the forefront the women of Camelot. Bradley portrays Avalon as a matriarchal island ruled by woman. Further, the politics and social history of Avalon are dominated by a long heritage of powerful and aggressive women. While Bradley addresses some of the same motifs as her predecessors (religion, temptation, adventure, loyalty, and kinship), it is clear from both the perspective of the narrator and the treatment of these themes that contemporary attitudes toward these issues have radically changed. Although Bradley's story takes place in a medieval period and her characters are part of a medieval society, she consistently invokes modern attitudes and social concerns (specifically regarding religion, sexuality, and gender). She introduces a new voice and a new experience that has not yet been heard in this legend— that of woman. Her text supports a strong opposition to social and political hierarchy and patriarchy, she confronts issues of power and sexuality, and she challenges negative female sexual stereotypes and offers a matriarchal arena for the women in the text.
Moreover, The Mists of Avalon intersects with a growing interest in the cultural phenomenon of goddess worship in contemporary society. In depicting the influence and power of pagan women, the text attempts to reconstruct medieval pagan religious practices through its fiction.
In The Mists of Avalon the social perception of the court and life in Camelot is juxtaposed with sexuality, evil, and religious freedom. The lack of choices given to women within the period and the legend itself may be attributed to the code of gender roles and labels during the Middle Ages.
The Mists of Avalon challenges these labels as they give voice to the women who have previously been unheard or misunderstood in Arthurian legend. Bradley does this primarily by providing the option of a matriarchal society within the text. Avalon is juxtaposed with Camelot just as Christianity is juxtaposed with paganism; Christianity is equated with patriarchy as paganism is equated with matriarchy. In providing this option of a matriarchal society within the fiction, Bradley creates a vehicle by which the silence of women ends.
Building upon the ideas of feminism and speculating about early Celtic and pagan religions, Bradley uses The Mists of Avalon and the legend of King Arthur to bring feminist ideals to the forefront. She advocates anti-Christian religions, arguing for paganism, female spirituality, and sexual freedom. The text sees Christianity itself as the oppressor of women—it is the source of patriarchy in Britain and is thus used to impose oppressive social structures.
Christianity in the Middle Ages had strict rules for the conduct of women. Woman as a sexual being was viewed as sinful and filthy, while the image of a nonsexual woman (the Virgin Mary) was revered.
Medieval attitudes toward sex were colored by feelings of guilt and anxiety as original sin permeated a woman's existence. These views are clearly seen in the teachings of St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) and St. Jerome (c. 340-420). Consequently, women who rejected this Christian attitude toward sex were viewed as evil. Quite simply, according to popular opinion at the time, no self-respecting medieval Christian woman should be interested in sex beyond the purpose of procreation.
Marion Zimmer Bradley challenges the view that female sexuality is something to be ashamed of, and that aggressive or nonChristian women are socially unacceptable.
The Mists of Avalon is unique, and perhaps revolutionary, in its treatment of Arthurian legend because it presents a dynamic reconfiguration of matriarchal versus patriarchal agis in the two religions; the notion of goddess worship is central to the plot of The Mists of Avalon. We are presented with a story told from the perspective of woman, and even more unusual, narrated by Morgan le Fay (Morgaine) herself. Yet all of the main female characters in the text who reject their expected female roles are rejected by the world of Camelot: Viviane, Lady of the Lake, and later Morgaine, are seen by society as devil-worshiping sinners for their refusal to be silent in social and political arenas. Morgause, sister to Morgaine and Queen of Orkney, is similarly shunned by society for expressing her sexual freedom, speaking out against patriarchal reign, and ruling the kingdom of Orkney equally by her husband's side. Significantly, all of these women also reject Christianity and God in favor of paganism and the Mother Goddess.
Moreover, The Mists of Avalon intersects with a growing interest in the cultural phenomenon of goddess worship in contemporary society. In depicting the influence and power of pagan women, the text attempts to reconstruct medieval pagan religious practices through its fiction.
In The Mists of Avalon the social perception of the court and life in Camelot is juxtaposed with sexuality, evil, and religious freedom. The lack of choices given to women within the period and the legend itself may be attributed to the code of gender roles and labels during the Middle Ages.
The Mists of Avalon challenges these labels as they give voice to the women who have previously been unheard or misunderstood in Arthurian legend. Bradley does this primarily by providing the option of a matriarchal society within the text. Avalon is juxtaposed with Camelot just as Christianity is juxtaposed with paganism; Christianity is equated with patriarchy as paganism is equated with matriarchy. In providing this option of a matriarchal society within the fiction, Bradley creates a vehicle by which the silence of women ends.
Building upon the ideas of feminism and speculating about early Celtic and pagan religions, Bradley uses The Mists of Avalon and the legend of King Arthur to bring feminist ideals to the forefront. She advocates anti-Christian religions, arguing for paganism, female spirituality, and sexual freedom. The text sees Christianity itself as the oppressor of women—it is the source of patriarchy in Britain and is thus used to impose oppressive social structures.
Christianity in the Middle Ages had strict rules for the conduct of women. Woman as a sexual being was viewed as sinful and filthy, while the image of a nonsexual woman (the Virgin Mary) was revered.
Medieval attitudes toward sex were colored by feelings of guilt and anxiety as original sin permeated a woman's existence. These views are clearly seen in the teachings of St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430) and St. Jerome (c. 340-420). Consequently, women who rejected this Christian attitude toward sex were viewed as evil. Quite simply, according to popular opinion at the time, no self-respecting medieval Christian woman should be interested in sex beyond the purpose of procreation.
Marion Zimmer Bradley challenges the view that female sexuality is something to be ashamed of, and that aggressive or nonChristian women are socially unacceptable.
The Mists of Avalon is unique, and perhaps revolutionary, in its treatment of Arthurian legend because it presents a dynamic reconfiguration of matriarchal versus patriarchal agis in the two religions; the notion of goddess worship is central to the plot of The Mists of Avalon. We are presented with a story told from the perspective of woman, and even more unusual, narrated by Morgan le Fay (Morgaine) herself. Yet all of the main female characters in the text who reject their expected female roles are rejected by the world of Camelot: Viviane, Lady of the Lake, and later Morgaine, are seen by society as devil-worshiping sinners for their refusal to be silent in social and political arenas. Morgause, sister to Morgaine and Queen of Orkney, is similarly shunned by society for expressing her sexual freedom, speaking out against patriarchal reign, and ruling the kingdom of Orkney equally by her husband's side. Significantly, all of these women also reject Christianity and God in favor of paganism and the Mother Goddess.