The Mists of Avalon: Difference between revisions
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A 1983 novel by [[Marion Zimmer Bradley]] that [[retelling|retold]] the [[Arthurian legend]] from the perspective of the women in his life, particularly Morgan. | {{Infobox-BookFirstEd | ||
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| author = [[Marion Zimmer Bradley]] | |||
| orig_lang = English | |||
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A 1983 novel by [[Marion Zimmer Bradley]] that [[retelling|retold]] the [[Arthurian legend]] from the perspective of the women in his life, particularly [[Morgaine]] (aka [[Morgan Le Fay]] in Arthurian works). | |||
The novel was a bestseller, breaking out of the SF ghetto and landing on the NYT best seller list. It also received critical acclaim, winning the 1984 [[Locus Award]] for Best Fantasy Novel. | The novel was a bestseller, breaking out of the SF ghetto and landing on the NYT best seller list. It also received critical acclaim, winning the 1984 [[Locus Award]] for Best Fantasy Novel. | ||
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The novel also offered a critical turning point in fantasy and feminist SF alike. The reclamation of the Arthurian legend reintroduced a new generation to the material, spawning a flood of Arthurian cycle works. | The novel also offered a critical turning point in fantasy and feminist SF alike. The reclamation of the Arthurian legend reintroduced a new generation to the material, spawning a flood of Arthurian cycle works. | ||
Within the history of feminist SF, the novel followed in the tradition of various short stories in "retelling" traditional stories from a feminist perspective. But it broke open that tradition in several ways. First, it was a serious work, not a light parody. Second, its length and depth were considerable. Third, its approach -- to retell the same story, but from the eyes of the women -- was a major advance in feminist techniques. And last, the novel introduced and popularized a theme that has influenced many other feminist SF works since: the idea of patriarchal religion, particularly Christianity, supplanting an older, egalitarian, woman-centered pagan religion. While historians, ethnologists, archaeologists, and other scholars had speculated on a pre-Christian matriarchal society,<ref>See, e.g., Jane Ellen Harrison; Johann Jakob Bachofen, ''Mother Right: An Investigation of the Religious and Juridical Character of Matriarchy in the Ancient World'' (1861); Robert Graves, ''The White Goddess''; Marija Gimbutas; and J.F. del Giorgio, ''The Oldest Europeans''.</ref> ''The Mists of Avalon'' dramatized the idea, and brought it to wide popularity. | Within the history of feminist SF, the novel followed in the tradition of various short stories in "retelling" traditional stories from a feminist perspective. But it broke open that tradition in several ways. First, it was a serious work, not a light parody. Second, its length and depth were considerable. Third, its approach -- to retell the same story, but from the eyes of the women -- was a major advance in feminist techniques. And last, the novel introduced and popularized a theme that has influenced many other feminist SF works since: the idea of patriarchal religion, particularly Christianity, supplanting an older, egalitarian, woman-centered pagan [[goddess|goddess-oriented religion]]. While historians, ethnologists, archaeologists, and other scholars had speculated on a pre-Christian matriarchal society,<ref>See, e.g., Jane Ellen Harrison; Johann Jakob Bachofen, ''Mother Right: An Investigation of the Religious and Juridical Character of Matriarchy in the Ancient World'' (1861); Robert Graves, ''The White Goddess'' (1948; rev. 1966); Marija Gimbutas; and J.F. del Giorgio, ''The Oldest Europeans''.</ref> ''The Mists of Avalon'' dramatized the idea, and brought it to wide popularity. | ||
The novel was made into a [[The Mists of Avalon (TV)|TV miniseries]] in 2001. | |||
==Further reading== | |||
* [http://bdg.feministsf.net/archives/bdg_mistsofavalon.txt Feminist SF book discussion group] (July 1998) | |||
==Works with similar themes== | |||
* Gael Baudino, [[Strands Series]] | |||
* Marion Zimmer Bradley, ''[[The Mists of Avalon]]'' | |||
* Marie Jakober, ''[[The Black Chalice]]'' | |||
* Marie Jakober, ''[[High Kamilan]]'' (aka ''Even the Stones'') | |||
* Guy Gavriel Kay, ''[[A Song for Arbonne]]'' | |||
* Katherine Kurtz, [[Deryni series]] | |||
* Judith Tarr, ''[[The Hound and the Falcon]]'' | |||
==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
{{reflist}} | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mists of Avalon, The}} | |||
[[Category:1983 | [[Category:1983 publications]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Mists of Avalon]] | ||
[[Category:Reinterpretive works]] | |||
[[Category:Novels]] | |||
[[category:Arthurian cycle]] | |||
Latest revision as of 10:43, 30 August 2010
| The Mists of Avalon | |
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| Original language | English |
| Author(s) | Marion Zimmer Bradley |
| Publisher | |
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| Media type | print / paper |
| Series chronology | |
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A 1983 novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley that retold the Arthurian legend from the perspective of the women in his life, particularly Morgaine (aka Morgan Le Fay in Arthurian works).
The novel was a bestseller, breaking out of the SF ghetto and landing on the NYT best seller list. It also received critical acclaim, winning the 1984 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel.
The novel also offered a critical turning point in fantasy and feminist SF alike. The reclamation of the Arthurian legend reintroduced a new generation to the material, spawning a flood of Arthurian cycle works.
Within the history of feminist SF, the novel followed in the tradition of various short stories in "retelling" traditional stories from a feminist perspective. But it broke open that tradition in several ways. First, it was a serious work, not a light parody. Second, its length and depth were considerable. Third, its approach -- to retell the same story, but from the eyes of the women -- was a major advance in feminist techniques. And last, the novel introduced and popularized a theme that has influenced many other feminist SF works since: the idea of patriarchal religion, particularly Christianity, supplanting an older, egalitarian, woman-centered pagan goddess-oriented religion. While historians, ethnologists, archaeologists, and other scholars had speculated on a pre-Christian matriarchal society,[1] The Mists of Avalon dramatized the idea, and brought it to wide popularity.
The novel was made into a TV miniseries in 2001.
Further reading
- Feminist SF book discussion group (July 1998)
Works with similar themes
- Gael Baudino, Strands Series
- Marion Zimmer Bradley, The Mists of Avalon
- Marie Jakober, The Black Chalice
- Marie Jakober, High Kamilan (aka Even the Stones)
- Guy Gavriel Kay, A Song for Arbonne
- Katherine Kurtz, Deryni series
- Judith Tarr, The Hound and the Falcon
Notes
- ↑ See, e.g., Jane Ellen Harrison; Johann Jakob Bachofen, Mother Right: An Investigation of the Religious and Juridical Character of Matriarchy in the Ancient World (1861); Robert Graves, The White Goddess (1948; rev. 1966); Marija Gimbutas; and J.F. del Giorgio, The Oldest Europeans.