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The Fisher King is a figure in
Arthurian legend
The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Wester ...
, the last in a long line of British kings tasked with guarding the
Holy Grail
The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracu ...
. The Fisher King is both the protector and physical embodiment of his lands, but a wound renders him incapable and his kingdom barren. Unable to walk or ride a horse, he is sometimes depicted as spending his time fishing while he awaits a "chosen one" who can heal him. Versions of the story vary widely, but the Fisher King is typically depicted as being wounded in the groin, legs or thigh, rendering him infertile. The healing of these wounds always depends upon the completion of a hero-knight's task.
Most versions of the story contain the
Holy Grail
The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracu ...
and the
Lance of Longinus as plot elements. In some versions, a third character is introduced. This individual, unlike the hero-knight archetype, is ignorant of the King's power, but has the ability to save the king and land, or to doom it. Variations of this third party give us divergent legends.
As a literary character, the Fisher King originates in
Chrétien de Troyes' unfinished writings of the adventures of
Perceval
Percival (, also spelled Perceval, Parzival), alternatively called Peredur (), was one of King Arthur's legendary Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Troyes in the tale ''Perceval, the Story of the Gra ...
.
Many authors have endeavoured to complete and extend the work, resulting in various continuations. Major sources of the legend include Chrétien's
''Li'' ''Contes del Graal; Perceval, ou Le Conte du Graal'' (c. 1160-1180),
Wauchier de Denain's ''First Continuation'' (c. 1180-1200),
Robert de Boron's ''Didot-Perceval'' (c. 1191-1202), ''
Peredur son of Efrawg
''Peredur son of Efrawg'' is one of the Three Welsh Romances associated with the ''Mabinogion''. It tells a story roughly analogous to Chrétien de Troyes' unfinished romance ''Perceval, the Story of the Grail'', but it contains many striking di ...
'' (c. 1200), ''
Perlesvaus
''Perlesvaus'', also called ''Li Hauz Livres du Graal'' (''The High Book of the Grail''), is an Old French Arthurian romance dating to the first decade of the 13th century. It purports to be a continuation of Chrétien de Troyes' unfinished ''Perc ...
'' (c. 1200),
Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.
Life
Little is known of Wolfram's life. There ar ...
's ''
Parzival
''Parzival'' is a medieval romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Parzival (Percival in English) and his long ...
'' (c. 1217), and
Thomas Malory
Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author of ''Le Morte d'Arthur'', the classic English-language chronicle of the Arthurian legend, compiled and in most cases translated from French sources. The most popular version of ''Le Morte d'Ar ...
's ''
Morte D'Arthur
' (originally written as '; inaccurate Middle French for "The Death of Arthur") is a 15th-century Middle English prose reworking by Sir Thomas Malory of tales about the legendary King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, Merlin and the Knights of the Rou ...
'' (c. 1400).
Character history
Celtic mythology
The Fisher King first appears in
Chrétien de Troyes' ''
Perceval, the Story of the Grail
''Perceval, the Story of the Grail'' (french: Perceval ou le Conte du Graal) is the unfinished fifth verse romance by Chrétien de Troyes, written by him in Old French in the late 12th century. Later authors added 54,000 more lines in what are kn ...
'' in the late 12th century, but the character's roots may lie in
Celtic mythology.
[Matthew Annis,"The Fisher King", from: The Camelot Project, 2007](_blank)
/ref> He may be derived from the figure of Brân the Blessed
Brân the Blessed ( cy, Bendigeidfran or ''Brân Fendigaidd'', literally "Blessed Crow") is a giant and king of Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Second Branch of ...
in the '' Mabinogion''. In the Second Branch, Bran has a cauldron
A cauldron (or caldron) is a large pot ( kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in religion, mythology, and ...
that can resurrect the dead, albeit imperfectly; those thus revived cannot speak. He gives this cauldron to the king of Ireland as a wedding gift for him and Bran's sister Branwen
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the ''Mabinogi'', which is sometimes called the "Mabinogi of Branwen" after her.
Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun. She is married to Matholwch, King of Ireland, ...
. Later, Bran wages war on the Irish and is wounded in the foot or leg, and the cauldron is destroyed. He asks his followers to sever his head and take it back to Britain, and his head continues talking and keeps them company on their trip. The group lands on the island of Gwales
Grassholm ( cy, Gwales or ) or Grassholm Island is a small uninhabited island situated off the southwestern Pembrokeshire coast in Wales, lying west of Skomer, in the community of Marloes and St Brides. It is the westernmost point in Wales ot ...
, where they spend 80 years in a castle of joy and abundance, but finally, they leave and bury Bran's head in London. This story has analogues in two other important Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
texts: the ''Mabinogion'' tale "Culhwch and Olwen
''Culhwch and Olwen'' ( cy, Culhwch ac Olwen) is a Welsh tale that survives in only two manuscripts about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors: a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, c. 1400, and a fragmented version in the Whi ...
", in which King Arthur's men must travel to Ireland to retrieve a magical cauldron, and the poem ''The Spoils of Annwn
''Preiddeu Annwfn'' or ''Preiddeu Annwn'' ( en, The Spoils of Annwfn) is a cryptic poem of sixty lines in Middle Welsh, found in the Book of Taliesin. The text recounts an expedition with King Arthur to Annwfn or Annwn, the Welsh name for the Ce ...
'', which speaks of a similar mystical cauldron sought by Arthur in the otherworldly land of Annwn
Annwn, Annwfn, or Annwfyn (in Middle Welsh, ''Annwvn'', ''Annwyn'', ''Annwyfn'', ''Annwvyn'', or ''Annwfyn'') is the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn (or, in Arthurian literature, by Gwyn ap Nudd), it was essentially a world of de ...
.
The Welsh Romance
The Three Welsh Romances (Welsh: ') are three Middle Welsh tales associated with the ''Mabinogion''. They are versions of Arthurian tales that also appear in the work of Chrétien de Troyes. Critics have debated whether the Welsh Romances are bas ...
''Peredur son of Efrawg
''Peredur son of Efrawg'' is one of the Three Welsh Romances associated with the ''Mabinogion''. It tells a story roughly analogous to Chrétien de Troyes' unfinished romance ''Perceval, the Story of the Grail'', but it contains many striking di ...
'' is based on Chrétien or derived from a common original, but it contains several prominent deviations and lacks a Grail. The character of the Fisher King appears (though he is not called such) and presents Peredur with a severed head on a platter. Peredur later learns that he was related to that king, and that the severed head was that of his cousin, whose death he must avenge by defeating the Nine Witches.
Later medieval works
The Fisher King is a character in Chrétien's ''Perceval'' (1180) which is the first of a series of stories and texts on the subject of Perceval
Percival (, also spelled Perceval, Parzival), alternatively called Peredur (), was one of King Arthur's legendary Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Troyes in the tale ''Perceval, the Story of the Gra ...
and the Grail.
''Parzival
''Parzival'' is a medieval romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Parzival (Percival in English) and his long ...
'' was written in 1210 by Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.
Life
Little is known of Wolfram's life. There ar ...
, thirty years after ''Perceval''. Although a different work, it is strikingly similar to ''Perceval''. The story revolves around the Grail Quest and once again the main character is Percival or Parzival. Similar to ''Perceval'', Eschenbach kept the storyline of Parzival not asking the healing question, which results in him Questing for years. Eschenbach's ''Parzival'' differs from Chrétien's ''Perceval'' in three major ways. Firstly, the Fisher King is no longer nameless and is called Anfortas. Secondly, Eschenbach thoroughly describes the nature of the wound. The wound is a punishment for wooing a woman who is not meant for him (every Grail keeper is to marry the woman the Grail determines for him), causing the King immense pain. Then lastly, Parzival comes back to cure the Fisher King. ''Parzival'', unlike its predecessor ''Perceval'', has a definitive ending.
Further medieval development
The Fisher King's next development occurred around the end of the 13th century in Robert de Boron's ''Joseph d'Arimathie'', the first work to connect the Grail with Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...
. Here, the “Rich Fisher” is called Bron, a name similar enough to Bran to suggest a relationship, and said to be the brother-in-law of Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to all four canonical gospels, the man who assumed responsibility for the burial of Jesus after his crucifixion. The historical location of Arimathea is uncertain, although it has been identified with several ...
, who had used the Grail to catch Christ's blood before laying him in the sepulchre. Joseph founds a religious community that travels eventually to Britain and entrusts the Grail to Bron (who is called the “Rich Fisher” because he catches a fish eaten at the Grail table). Bron founds the line of Grail keepers that eventually includes Perceval.
The Lancelot-Grail
The ''Lancelot-Grail'', also known as the Vulgate Cycle or the Pseudo-Map Cycle, is an early 13th-century French Arthurian literary cycle consisting of interconnected prose episodes of chivalric romance in Old French. The cycle of unknown author ...
(Vulgate) prose cycle includes a more elaborate history of the Fisher King. Many in his line are wounded for their failings, and the only two that survived to Arthur's day are the Wounded King, named Pellehan (Pellam of Listeneise in Malory), and the Fisher King, Pelles. Pelles engineers the birth of Galahad
Sir Galahad (), sometimes referred to as Galeas () or Galath (), among other versions of his name, is a knight of King Arthur's Round Table and one of the three achievers of the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. He is the illegitimate son of Si ...
by tricking Lancelot into bed with his daughter Elaine, and it is prophesied that Galahad will achieve the Grail and heal the Wasteland
Wasteland or waste land may refer to:
* Desert or barren area
* an uncultivated area of land, whether wooded or not, whether common land or not
Art, entertainment, and media Comics
* ''Wasteland'' (DC Comics), 1987–1989 anthology-style horror/ ...
. Galahad, the knight prophesied to achieve the Holy Grail and heal the Maimed King, is conceived when Elaine gets Dame Brisen to use magic to trick Lancelot into thinking that he is coming to visit Guinevere. So Lancelot sleeps with Elaine, thinking her Guinevere, but flees when he realizes what he has done. Galahad is raised by his aunt in a convent, and when he is eighteen, comes to King Arthur's court and begins the Grail Quest. Only he, Percival, and Bors are virtuous enough to achieve the Grail and restore Pelles.
In the Post-Vulgate
The ''Post-Vulgate Cycle'', also known as the Post-Vulgate Arthuriad, the Post-Vulgate ''Roman du Graal'' (''Romance of the Grail'') or the Pseudo-Robert de Boron Cycle, is one of the major Old French prose cycles of Arthurian literature from the ...
cycle and Thomas Malory
Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author of ''Le Morte d'Arthur'', the classic English-language chronicle of the Arthurian legend, compiled and in most cases translated from French sources. The most popular version of ''Le Morte d'Ar ...
's '' Le Morte d'Arthur'', the Fisher King's wound was given to him by Sir Balin
Sir Balin le Savage , also known as the Knight with the Two Swords, is a character in the Arthurian legend. Like Sir Galahad, Sir Balin is a late addition to the medieval Arthurian world. His story, as told by Thomas Malory in ''Le Morte d'Arth ...
in the " Dolorous Strok”, when Balin grabs a spear and stabs Pellam in self-defense. However, the spear is the Spear of Longinus
The Holy Lance, also known as the Lance of Longinus (named after Saint Longinus), the Spear of Destiny, or the Holy Spear, is the lance that pierced the side of Jesus as he hung on the cross during his crucifixion.
Biblical references
The l ...
, the lance that pierced Christ's side, and Pellam and his land must suffer for its misuse until the coming of Galahad. The Dolorous Stroke is typically represented as divine vengeance for a sin on the part of its recipient. The nature of Pellam's sin is not stated explicitly, though he at least tolerates his murderous brother Garlon, who slays knights while under cover of invisibility, apparently at random.
King Pelles is the Maimed King, one of a line of Grail keepers established by Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to all four canonical gospels, the man who assumed responsibility for the burial of Jesus after his crucifixion. The historical location of Arimathea is uncertain, although it has been identified with several ...
, and the father of Eliazer and Elaine (the mother of Galahad
Sir Galahad (), sometimes referred to as Galeas () or Galath (), among other versions of his name, is a knight of King Arthur's Round Table and one of the three achievers of the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. He is the illegitimate son of Si ...
). He resides in the castle of Corbinec in Listenois. Pelles and his relative Pellehan appear in both the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate cycles and in later works, such as Malory's ''Le Morte d'Arthur'' (in which Pellehan is called Pellam). In the Vulgate, Pelles is the son of Pellehan, but the Post-Vulgate is less clear about their relationship. It is even murkier in Malory's work: one passage explicitly identifies them (book XIII, chapter 5), though this is contradicted elsewhere.
In all, there are four characters (some of whom can probably be identified with each other) who fill the role of Fisher King or Wounded King in Malory's ''Le Morte d'Arthur''.
# King Pellam, wounded by Balin (as in the Post-Vulgate). In the Vulgate's clearer Grail lineage, Pelles is the son of Pellehan and is wounded in a separate accident, while in the Post-Vulgate Pelles and Pellehan are brothers. The further step of mistaking them as the same character is understandable; Malory confuses the brothers Ywain
Sir Ywain , also known as Yvain and Owain among other spellings (''Ewaine'', ''Ivain'', ''Ivan'', ''Iwain'', ''Iwein'', ''Uwain'', ''Uwaine'', etc.), is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, wherein he is often the son of King Urie ...
and Ywain the Bastard
The Knights of the Round Table ( cy, Marchogion y Ford Gron, kw, Marghekyon an Moos Krenn, br, Marc'hegien an Daol Grenn) are the knights of the fellowship of King Arthur in the literary cycle of the Matter of Britain. First appearing in lit ...
, whom he eventually regards as the same character, after treating them as separate.
# King Pelles, grandfather of Galahad, described as "the maimed king”. In one passage, he is explicitly identified with Pellam; in another, he is said to have suffered his wound under different circumstances.
# King Pescheour (or Petchere), lord of the Grail Castle, who never appears (at least, not under that name). He owes his existence to a mistake by Malory, who took the Old French
Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intellig ...
''roy Peschour'' ("Fisher King", a phrase that Malory never otherwise uses) for a name rather than an epithet. Nevertheless, Malory treats him as distinct from Pelles.
# An anonymous, bedridden Maimed King, healed by Galahad at the climax of the Grail Quest. He is distinct from Pelles, who has just been sent out of the room, and who is, anyway, at least mobile.
In addition, there is King Pellinore
King Pellinore (alternatively ''Pellinor'', ''Pellynore'' and other variants) is the king of Listenoise (possibly the Lake District) or of "the Isles" (possibly Anglesey, or perhaps the medieval kingdom of the same name) in Arthurian legend. In ...
, who is Percival's father. (In other versions of the legend, Percival is related to the Pelles family). It appears that Malory intended to have one Maimed King who was wounded by Balin and suffered until healed by his grandson Galahad, but he never successfully reconciled his sources.
Themes
Fisher King's injury
The injury is a common theme in the telling of the Grail Quest. While the details and location of the injury vary, the injury ultimately represents the inability of the Fisher King to produce an heir. Although some iterations have two kings present, one or both are injured, most commonly in the thigh. The wound is sometimes presented as a punishment, usually for philandering. In ''Parzival
''Parzival'' is a medieval romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Parzival (Percival in English) and his long ...
'', specifically, the king is injured by the bleeding lance as punishment for taking a wife, which was against the code of the “Grail Guardians”. In some early storylines Percival asks the Fisher King the healing question, which cures the wound. The nature of the question differs between ''Perceval'' and ''Parzival'', but the central theme is that the Fisher King can be healed only if Percival asks, “the question”.
The location of the wound is significant to the legend. In most medieval stories, the mention of a wound in the groin or more commonly the “thigh” (such as the wounding of the ineffective suitor in '' Lanval'' from the ''Lais of Marie de France
The ''lais'' of Marie de France are a series of twelve short narrative Breton lais by the poet Marie de France. They are written in Anglo-Norman and were probably composed in the late 12th century, most likely between 1155-1170. The short, narra ...
'') is a euphemism for the physical loss of or grave injury to one's genitalia. In medieval times, acknowledging the actual type of wound was considered to rob a man of his dignity, thus the use of the substitute terms “groin” or “thigh”, although any informed medieval listener or reader would have known exactly the real nature of the wound. Such a wound was considered worse than actual death because it signaled the end of a man's ability to function in his primary purpose: to propagate his line. In the instance of the Fisher King, the wound negates his ability to honor his sacred charge.
Christianized forms
Most of the Grail romances do not differ much from ''Parzival'' and ''Perceval''. That being said, there are two interesting exceptions to this case. The two pieces that hold particularly stronger Christian themed deviations than prior works are the ''Quested del Saint Graal'' and the ''Sone de Nausay''.[Stone, Alby (1989). "Bran, Odin, and the Fisher King: Norse Tradition and the Grail Legends." Folklore (Folklore) 100 (1): 25–38: 27.] The ''Queste del Saint Graal'' is heavily Christianized not only in terms of the tone but also the characters and significant objects. The Grail maidens become angels, there is a constant relationship between the knights and religious symbolism; most importantly, the Fisher King is replicated as a priest-like figure. In the case of ''Sone de Nausay'', Bron (the Fisher King) is part of a tale in which the story makes a constant correlation between the Gospel narrative and the history of the Grail.
Bleeding lance
The bleeding lance has taken numerous forms throughout the Arthurian literature chronology. In the earlier appearances of the lance, it is not represented as a Christian symbol, but morphs into one over time. In ''Perceval'' and ''Parzival'', the lance is described as having “barbaric properties” which are difficult to associate with Christian influence.[Brown, Arthur (1910). "The Bleeding Lance". ''PMLA'' (PMLA) 25 (1): 1–59. 6] Chretien describes his lance with “marvelous destructive powers", which holds a closer connection to the malignant weapons of Celtic origin.[Brown, Arthur (1910). "The Bleeding Lance". ''PMLA'' (PMLA) 25 (1): 1–59. 2] In Chretien's ''Perceval'', the lance takes on a dark and almost evil persona and also seems to overshadow the Grail, which if this was a Christian story would be rather odd. Wolfram's tale also treated the lance in a similar dark manner. In ''Parzival'', the lance is “poisonous” which contrasts sharply with the general trend of healing Christian themes. This lance is plunged into the Fisher King's wound at different times to continue his pain, for having sought forbidden love. This lance is considered significant because it is most often associated directly with the wound of the Fisher King, which is demonstrated both in Chretien's and Eschenbach's versions of the tale.
The more recent writings have the lance presented in the Fisher King's castle with Christian theology. More specifically, it is supposed to be the lance that pierced Jesus Christ while on the cross. This is seen in Malory's ''Le Morte d'Arthur''. In Malory's version, the Fisher King is healed with the blood from the lance, signifying it as a good, holy, Christian object. In ''Corbenic'' we see the procession at the Fisher King's feast, featuring heavily on the Holy Grail, which is a strong Christian artifact. It can be extrapolated that in the same procession, the accompanying lance is the lance that pierced Jesus Christ.
Sword
The sword is commonly thought to be a gift from the Fisher King to Perceval. This is then followed by Perceval's cousin's prophecy that the sword will break at a crucial moment. In two cases, the writers tell us that Perceval broke the sword: in Eschenbach, it fails him in his battle against his half-brother at the end of ''Parzival''; and Gerbert de Montreuil
Gerbert de Montreuil was a 13th-century French poet from the north of France.
He wrote ''Le Roman de la violette'' or ''Gérard de Nevers'',Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, French, 1553, f. 288r-325v one of the most outstanding medieval ...
describes how he shatters it on the gates of the “Earthly Paradise”. The adventure of the broken sword is a theme originally introduced by Chretien, who intended it as a symbol of Perceval's imperfections as a knight. The major example for his imperfection is that Perceval refused to ask about the Grail. This concept of punishment is also seen in Eschenbach's tale where Perceval is told: "your uncle gave you a sword, too, by which you have been granted since your eloquent mouth unfortunately voiced no question there.” The sword remains as a plot device to both remind Perceval of how he failed to ask the healing question and as a physical reminder of the existence of "Munsalvaesche" (Eschenbach's name for Corbenic).
Modern culture
* In Richard Wagner's 1882 opera ''Parsifal
''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival ...
'', loosely based on Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.
Life
Little is known of Wolfram's life. There ar ...
's epic poem '' Parzifal'', Amfortas, King of the Grail Knights, is the Fisher King figure who suffers an unhealable wound.
* The 1922 poem ''The Waste Land
''The Waste Land'' is a poem by T. S. Eliot, widely regarded as one of the most important poems of the 20th century and a central work of modernist poetry. Published in 1922, the 434-line poem first appeared in the United Kingdom in the Octob ...
'' by T. S. Eliot loosely follows the legend of the Fisher King.
* In the 1945 novel ''That Hideous Strength
''That Hideous Strength: A Modern Fairy-Tale for Grown-Ups'' is a 1945 novel by C. S. Lewis, the final book in Lewis's theological science fiction Space Trilogy. The events of this novel follow those of ''Out of the Silent Planet'' and '' Perel ...
'' by C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univers ...
, the third book of ''The Space Trilogy
''The Space Trilogy'' or ''Cosmic Trilogy'' is a series of science fiction novels by C. S. Lewis. The trilogy consists of ''Out of the Silent Planet'' (1938), '' Perelandra'' (1943), and '' That Hideous Strength'' (1945). A philologist named ...
'', the philologist Elwin Ransom
Elwin Ransom is the main character in the first two books of C.S. Lewis' ''The Space Trilogy'', namely ''Out of the Silent Planet'' and ''Perelandra''. In the final book, ''That Hideous Strength'', he is a lesser character (the main characters b ...
is, among other roles, the Fisher King.
* The 1952 novel ''The Natural
''The Natural'' is a 1952 novel about baseball by Bernard Malamud, and is his debut novel. The story follows Roy Hobbs, a baseball prodigy whose career is sidetracked after being shot by a woman whose motivation remains mysterious. The story mo ...
'' by Bernard Malamud (and the 1984 movie) are structured around the basic legend. Pop Fisher is the Fisher King and Roy Hobbs the Percival figure.
* The 1979 novel ''The Drawing of the Dark
''The Drawing of the Dark'' is a historical fantasy novel by Tim Powers published in 1979 by Del Rey Books.
Plot summary
The year is 1529, and Brian Duffy, a world-weary Irish mercenary soldier, is hired in Venice by the mysterious Aurelianus to ...
'' by Tim Powers has the Fisher King as the driving force behind the major plot, and his 1992 novel ''Last Call
In a bar, a last call (last orders) is an announcement made shortly before the bar closes for the night, informing patrons of their last chance to buy alcoholic beverages. There are various means to make the signal, like ringing a bell, flash ...
'' relates the Fisher King legend to the Tarot
The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots ...
and viticulture
Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ...
, among other things.
* The 1981 film ''Excalibur
Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...
'' by John Boorman largely bases its version of the Grail Quest upon the mythological pattern of the Fisher King tale, with its wounded Arthur wasting away and Percival healing him by discovering the truth of the Grail mystery.
* The 1984 comic series ''Mage
Mage most commonly refers to:
* Mage (paranormal) or magician, a practitioner of magic derived from supernatural or occult sources
* Mage (fantasy) or magician, a type of character in mythology, folklore, and fiction
*Mage, a character class in s ...
: The Hero Discovered'' revolves around Kevin Matchstick, a character charged with protecting the mysterious Fisher King, as he is the modern Arthur.
* The second movement of the 1985 orchestral piece ''Harmonielehre
''Harmonielehre'' is a forty-minute orchestral composition by the American composer John Adams, composed in 1985. In his memoir, Adams stated that the piece "was a statement of belief in the power of tonality at a time when I was uncertain about ...
'' by John Adams (composer) is titled ''The Anfortas Wound''.
* The 1986 novel ''The Fisher King'' by Anthony Powell
Anthony Dymoke Powell ( ; 21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was an English novelist best known for his 12-volume work ''A Dance to the Music of Time'', published between 1951 and 1975. It is on the list of longest novels in English.
Powell' ...
draws parallels between a major character, Saul Henchman, and the legendary figure.
* The 1991 film ''The Fisher King
''The Fisher King'' is a 1991 American fantasy comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. Starring Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges, with Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer, and Michael Jeter in supporting role ...
'' by Terry Gilliam
Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe.
Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including '' Time Bandits'' (1981), '' ...
retells the story of trauma and quest in New York City.
* The 1993 novel '' Hexwood'' by Diana Wynne Jones include several Arthurian characters, including two that represent different aspects of the Fisher King.
* Rand Al'Thor, the main protagonist in Robert Jordan's ''Wheel of Time
The wheel of time or wheel of history (also known as ''Kalachakra'') is a concept found in several religious traditions and philosophies, notably religions of Indian origin such as Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism, which regard time as c ...
'' book series, is portrayed as an instance of the Fisher King by virtue of his authority as Dragon reborn, by the ever-present injury in his side, and, more explicitly, by being identified with a chess-like piece known as 'the Fisher'.
* The 2001 book ''Parsifal's Page'' (the fourth book in author Gerald Morris's Arthurian series for young adults) is based on the story of Perceval and the Fisher King.
* The 2001 game RuneScape
''RuneScape'' is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Jagex, released in January 2001. ''RuneScape'' was originally a browser game built with the Java programming language; it was lar ...
features a quest called “Holy Grail,” where the player must help King Arthur find the Holy Grail by traveling to the realm of the Fisher King.
* An episode of '' Midsomer Murders'' aired January 2004 with the title
The Fisher King
' featuring a Celtic spear and chalice from Midsomer Barrow. The spear is the murder weapon.
* The 2006 two-episode sequence to end season 1 and start season 2 of the television series ''Criminal Minds
''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was revived in 2022. It ...
'' features an antagonist who calls himself the Fisher King.
* In a 2010 episode of the television series '' Merlin'', Prince Arthur goes on a quest for the trident of the Fisher King, who asks for a magical bracelet in return, which will allow him to finally die.
* In the 2012 arc of the ''Fables
Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular moral ...
'' comics, the story of the Fisher King is a plot device driving one of the young protagonists.
* On the 2013 album '' Tape Deck Heart'' by Frank Turner
Francis Edward Turner (born 28 December 1981), is an English punk and folk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Hampshire. He began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primarily acoustic-based sol ...
there is a song called 'The Fisher King Blues'.
* The 2015 '' Doctor Who'' episode “ Before the Flood” features a villain called the Fisher King, a supposedly dead alien warlord who is waiting for his people to come and save him.
* A character called the Fisher King can be found in ''The Witcher
''The Witcher'' ( pl, Wiedźmin ) is a series of six fantasy novels and 15 short stories written by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The series revolves around the eponymous "witcher", Geralt of Rivia. In Sapkowski's works, "witchers" are be ...
'' books and video games. He appears as the lover of the Lady of the Lake, who bequeaths a powerful sword to the title character.
* The 2011-2019 series '' Game of Thrones'' features a character named Brandon Stark who is injured in his leg and groin area and is unable to walk but is able to foretell the future. In the final episode of the series, " The Iron Throne", Bran is made lord over six of the kingdoms of Westeros
The fictional world in which the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents, known collectively as The Known World.
Most of the story takes place on the continent of Westeros and in ...
as “Bran the Broken”.
* Patricia A. McKillip
Patricia Anne McKillip (February 29, 1948 – May 6, 2022) was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. She has been called "one of the most accomplished prose stylists in the fantasy genre", and wrote predominantly standalone fantasy n ...
's book ''Kingfisher'', published in 2016, is an Arthurian grail quest type of story set in a world “in which the modern lives side-by-side with the mythical”,[De Lint, Charles. Review in ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' v. 131, no. 1/2, July/August 2016, p. 60-61.] featuring a certain mysterious Kingfisher Inn, the owner of which was wounded in an accident that caused his Inn to lose its once great prosperity.
* The 2016 video game ''Dark Souls III
is a 2016 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. The third and final entry in the ''Dark Souls'' series, it is played in a Virtual camera system# ...
'' features the character Ludleth of Courland, whose design and story are based on the legend of the Fisher King.
* A 2019 collection of poetry entitled ''The Fisher Queen: New & Selected Poems'' written by Dr. Kathryn Kirkpatrick, explores themes of womanhood, class stratification, and environmental destruction through the perspective of the fictitious wife of the Fisher King, the Fisher Queen.[kathrynkirkpatrick.org]
* The Fisher King appears as a fictional king of Anglesey
Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...
in British author Giles Kristian
Giles Kristian (born 1975) is an English novelist, known for his action adventure novels in the historical fiction genre. He is best known for his ''Raven'' series, about a young man's coming of age amongst a band of Viking warriors. His first no ...
's 2020 novel ''Camelot'', in which he is the protagonist Galahad
Sir Galahad (), sometimes referred to as Galeas () or Galath (), among other versions of his name, is a knight of King Arthur's Round Table and one of the three achievers of the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. He is the illegitimate son of Si ...
's maternal grandfather.
See also
* Oedipus, a king wounded in the feet, presiding over a cursed land.
References
Bibliography
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Further reading
* ''Bran the Blessed in Arthurian Romance'' by Helaine Newstead
Helaine H. Newstead (1906–1981) was an American scholar of medieval literature. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1948 for her work. She was the first American and the first woman to serve as president of the International Arthurian So ...
. Columbia University Press 1939.
* ''The Grail: From Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol'' by Roger Sherman Loomis
Roger Sherman Loomis (1887–1966) was an American scholar and one of the foremost authorities on medieval and Arthurian literature. Loomis is perhaps best known for showing the roots of Arthurian legend, in particular the Holy Grail, in native ...
. .
*
From Ritual to Romance
' by Jessie Weston.
External links
*
The Fisher King
at The Camelot Project
{{Arthurian Legend
Arthurian characters
Holy Grail
Mythological kings