#brangien

[naumaxia-art]

A couple more lil Arthuriana designs (For those of you who know about the comic I still do intend to finish it eventually... I think it just needs a bit of a rewrite and I need more time XD)

[gellavonhamster]

on Brangaine, Constance Bonacieux, and devotion

La Tavola Ritonda / The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas / Iseult and Brangaine (1970) by Salvador Dalí / Tristan and Isolde discovered by King Mark (1883) by August Spiess (detail) / The Musketeers (2014-2016) / Prose Tristan / Warming Her Pearls by Carol Ann Duffy / Detail of the illustration for Richard Wagner's Tristan and Isolde in The Victrola Book of the Opera: Stories of One Hundred and Twenty Operas with Seven-Hundred Illustrations and Descriptions of Twelve-Hundred Victor Opera Records (1917) by Samuel Holland Rous

[talesfromtheenchantedforest]

[itsacruelsummerwithyou2]

so i just finished reading “The Guinevere Deception” by Kiersten White, basically a feminist Camelot adaptation and i loved it (spoilers below)

“Guinevere” (quotes because it’s her false identity) was a fantastic character. she was powerful and intelligent while still being flawed in ways actually acknowledged by the story

Guinevere’s female friends, specifically Brangien, Dindrane, and Lancelot (who of course may become more than a friend in the sequels) were interesting and compelling in their own right. each had their own personality and strengths, and were vital to her both in fighting and magic and in structure and society

i thought all 3 potential love interests were really interesting, and i loved how Guinevere had a different relationship with all of them. there was little of her and Lancelot, but enough to get me excited to see it develop in the sequels.

Arthur, as the “good” option, could have easily been boring or unlikable as many characters of his type tend to be, but he, like every other character, had a balance of good and bad and seeing him reconcile his relationship with Guinevere and with his kingdom was interesting

tied with Guinevere, Mordred was my favorite character. despite being the “bad” option, he wasn’t really a YA “bad boy”. he was genuinely caring and often felt like Guinevere’s closest ally, which i think is what made their chemistry so amazing. i also think being caring is what made him “evil”, he simply cared about nature over Camelot, unlike Guinevere and Arthur. i could see him becoming more fully villainous throughout the series, but i really liked his character

i appreciate the book not falling into the “shaming women who do feminine work” period piece trap, as well as all of the love interests being genuinely good to Guinevere and having faults without actually mistreating her

ok who do we think Guinevere really is (don’t tell me if it’s revealed in the second book for sure tho)? basically all i know about the versions of the characters outside this book comes from Once Upon A Time and the season and a half i watched of Merlin, but i’m thinking maybe she’s Nimue? again all i know about Nimue is that she’s a sorceress with some type of connection to Merlin and is evil in both of those versions, and this character clearly has some darkness in her. i also think the Lady of the Lake is Guinevere’s mother, obviously they have some type of history together and Merlin referred to the Lady of the Lake as “my love” in their scene together

to sum up: this was a GREAT book and i’ll probably buy the sequel this weekend

[gellavonhamster]

If one can set aside, for just a moment, the major objection that Christine de Pizan would have had to Isode’s and Guinevere’s adultery, it is worth observing how they both in fact possess many of the traits she believed made a good queen. Christine advises queens to gain support of powerful people, and both Isode and Guinevere appear to be politically adept, as they secure the support of allies: the barons defend Isode when she drinks from Morgan’s horn, and Guinevere reclaims support after the poisoned apple incident, re-establishing her allies in the roll call that signals her Maying expedition. Christine also promotes charity, and warns princesses not to overindulge in their wealth, one of the main ‘temptacions’ that can plague the rich; while the day-to-day accounting and practical affairs of a queen are rarely, if ever, recorded in romance, Isode demonstrates that she is no slave to wealth when she offers to live with Tristram in poverty, and Guinevere is willing to spend a small fortune on the recovery of Lancelot following his madness. Christine suggests that a sensible queen will ‘tendra discrete maniere meismement vers ceulx que elle saura bien qui ne l’aimeront pas, et qui aront envie sur elle’ [maintain a discreet bearing even towards those who do not like her very much, and who will be jealous of her]. While Christine warns against those who envy queens for their power rather than beauty, her advice might still work as a relevant backdrop for Malory’s two queens, who show no signs of jealousy at all despite being constantly compared to each other by their admirers. The solidarity of women in Le Morte Darthur is also extended between women of different social status: Isode has a good relationship with Brangwain, as well as Guinevere, again adhering to Christine’s advice for ladies, for she stresses the importance of having the favour ‘de tous les estaz de ses subgiez’ [of all the estates/classes of subjects], and, in particular, of ladies in waiting and female companions. While the French Iseut plots against her maid and contemplates killing her at one point, Malory omits this entire episode completely, strengthening my claim that his women may be positioned as much-needed models of civility and empathy for the envy-ridden knights.

— Women of Words in Le Morte Darthur: The Autonomy of Speech in Malory’s Female Characters by Siobhán M. Wyatt

[blog-de-brangien]

Le meilleur compagnon contre l'ennui est un bon livre.

Le livre des proverbes français (1859)

[micromermaid]

But on the wedding night, Brangien to conceal the Queen's dishonor and save her from death, took her place in the nuptial couch. The loyal maid sacrificed the purity of her body to her friend, in remorse of the poor watch she had kept at sea, and out of love of Iseult. The darkness of the night hid her trick and her shame from the king.

-The Romance of Tristan and Iseult, atb Joseph Bedier

this is an incredible and emotional display of loyalty by a servant on behalf of her queen. It's such a moving act of love, and it makes me condemn Iseult for later ordering to have Brangien killed and her tongue cut out. Of course Iseult's position is a desperate one, but when someone throws down for you like Brangien did, you owe them that kind of loyalty back. Having them killed is the exact opposite of that. This is probably the bitchiest moment I can think of from any book I've ever read.