GUINEVERE

     When reading this passage the whole deal of the scandal between Lancelot and Guinevere seems to be much more stressed as an emotional tragedy rather than the fall of the kingdom. The focus on Guinevere's guilt over what she has done was a welcome addition to how she has been portrayed by other authors until now. In Mallory for example her inner motives are never fully explored, and in the narrative she fits as more of a set piece than a fully fleshed out character. While Guinevere is properly resentful of what she has done, her opinion of Arthur as a cold perfectionist gives reason to the affair more than the fact that Lancelot just happens to be good looking. In showing of this her interaction with Arthur in the abbey shows his grief in a sense it goes to break his cold manner that has been shown up until now. This final conversation gives closure to their relationship between each other that Mallory never explored in any detail. I feel that Guinevere was made to represent more of a human character in Tennyson's narrative that while loved by a king never felt that she could truly live around or live up to the staunch perfection that he assumes she must have also upheld as queen.