Forum #2: Book 1 and 2: Humor

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  • #9613
    missloock
    Keymaster

    T.H. White uses quite a bit of humor in “The Once and Future King”. While entertaining, this humor also fulfills a different function. Discuss humor in the novel thus far and identify the uses to which White puts it. Cite your examples from both Book 1 and II to support your answers. Why do you think T.H. White decided to use humor in an otherwise very serious story? How does it affect your overall impression of the classic legend? And, does humor have a place in classic literature?

    #9622

    White uses humor through the jokesters of the story. For example, he has King Pellinore, Sir Grummor, and Palamidies. These three knights are a trio and make light of dark situations. In every story, there is bound to be the jokesters who make light of the sad or dark moments. When Grummor and Palamidies tried to cheer up King Pellinore by dressing as the questing beast and their plan backfires on them in chapters 10 and eleven. White used humor in this serious story to lighten up the mood. Although this is a fanatical story it can become serious and very dark with the knights and war. This seriousness gets heavy and I forget that I’m reading a fanatical novel. So by adding the humor that White uses lightens up the mood. The humor, which White places in the novel, uplifts the seriousness of the books. It makes me laugh and enjoy the book more. The comebacks the characters have to each other are sarcastic and very amusing to me. Humor has always been a part of literature even in classics. It’s in Shakespeare’s poems and even though it’s not our humor it was the humor back then.
    Do you think White should’ve made the book less dark and be lighter?

    #9628

    T.H. White uses humor throughout this story. White gives the character’s humor to make this quite serious story, even more entertaining. For example, in Book I chapter VII, Sir Grummore challenges King Pellinore to a joust. Their battle is a humorous one. They insult and try to fight each other but it doesn’t work out. They charge at each other and they miss and hit a tree. They wake up and soon become friends. This example of White using humor in the characters bring a little fun into this serious story. Even though White made this story serious, he put humor here and there to lighten up the mood. I like that White brought humor into the story because it made me want to keep reading it. I think stories should have a little humor in it, even in serious or sad stories, so that it can lighten up the mood. Yes, humor takes place in classic literature, even if it is not the humor now, it may have been the humor then. Humor is a great aspect in a story that can connect and engage people into the book.
    Why do you think the tone of the story changes from humorous to more serious?

    #9630

    @amelia52016, no I think he made it dark for a reason. In some instances maybe he should have made it “lighter” to bring up the mood. But I think he made it dark to set the tone and the story that he was going to tell.

    #9633
    alexharakas
    Member

    Humor is quite prevalent throughout The Once and Future King. In Chapter 3 of Book I, Arthur is introduced to Merlin’s talking owl, Archimedes. He is very sensitive and Arthur often offends him. Because Merlin is very passionate, Arthur also offends him frequently. Merlin has great difficulty remembering whether events occurred in the past or are going to occur in the future, and is very passionate. The personalities of these characters are quirky and add depth to the plot. In Chapter 9 of Book II, Sir Palomides and Sir Grummore decide to dress up as the Questing Beast in effort to cheer up their lovesick friend, King Pellinore. A contrast to the serious novel, these three lighten the tone of the story and preserve its fantastical element. Furthermore, I think their humorous antics also show the true life of aristocracy. These three titled men always have shenanigans and do not fulfill many duties. T.H. White also uses humorous idiosyncrasies of Merlin as a tool for foreshadowing.In Chapter 10 of Book II, Merlin informs Arthur that there is something vital about which he must warn him. Arthur intently listens, but deeply frustrated Merlin cannot seem to remember what he needed to tell him. This lack of admonishment led to King Arthur unknowingly conceiving with his half-sister. Humor is a prized literary device in classic literature, and is timeless. Although dialects may change, humor is relatable to all generations and aids the author in conveying a tone. I feel that this book is more engaging and identifiable for the reader because of the role of humor.
    Although humor is present throughout eras, does humor from the past convey different meanings in today’s culture? How does this affect T.H. White’s story?

    #9634
    alexharakas
    Member

    @angelicacastaneda
    The tone of Book I is quite humorous because it focused on boyhood. As Book I ends and Book II begins, Arthur is faced with kingship and endures more stress. A more serious tone is adopted to emphasize this change. Towards the middle of the book, the reintroduction of King Pellinore, Sir Grummore and Sir Palomides adds the element of lightheartedness into the story. Book II ends on a serious note with Arthur’s family tree because suspense is needed to draw the reader into the next book. This use of suspense was effective, as I was left wondering what secrets will unfold in Book III and eager to flip the next page.

    #9636

    @angelicacastaneda Oh yes, that’s actually very true.

    #9637

    @alexharakassince that time humor can change but there are also different types of humor such as sarcasm, flippancy or just goofing off. I believe the humor which White uses in this book is just silly so I believe it has the same meaning which he wanted to portray in the past. I don’t understand the second part of your question. How would a judgment of humor affect the story?

    #9638
    alexharakas
    Member

    @amelia152016
    I had not considered the different types of humor. I like the way you think! Here, let me elaborate on my second question a bit.You mentioned flippancy as a type of humor. Flippancy was seen as disrespectful by older generations, whereas in today’s culture it is widely accepted as funny. In the same way, can you see any kind of humor in the book that has a different meaning today than it meant at the book’s time? Or funny references that our generation might not immediately understand?

    #9640
    dchin
    Member

    White does not use humor just to make the reader laugh, but he uses it to add variety to the Arthurian legend. As other authors have told the Legend of King Arthur, they have a more dark and realistic way of telling it. T.H. White’s way makes it easier to digest downfall of King Arthur. In book one, White uses humor during the encounter of King Pellinore and Sir Grummore Grummersom. White amusingly writes, “[They stood] opposite each other for about half an hour, and walloped each other on the helm” (White 67). White uses this comic relief to lighten up the situation. In book two, White uses humor as well. During King Pellinore’s trial of depression over the questing beast, Sir Grummore Grummersom and Palamedes decide to dress up as said beast. They create a costume which was very hard to make and learned how to move as one creature. In the end, the real questing beast falls in love with the fabricated one the knights had created. It is quite humorous and leaves us with a very odd image in our head. I believe White used humor to lighten up the mood of the serious and sad Arthurian legend. He also probably added it to have variation within his novel. The jokes made me admire the book even more because it made me smile. I believe everything has a place in literature, especially humor. Which book, in your opinion, had more humor and was more light hearted? Why?

    #9641
    dchin
    Member

    @amelia152016 I believe T.H. White balanced out the humor and the seriousness within his novel very well. Book one was more humorous than book two, but I believe that T.H. did that on purpose.

    #9642
    dchin
    Member

    @alexharakas I believe that some jokes in the book would have made more sense if we grew up in that era. A lot of humor is new and would not be understood by the older generation. Some jokes are universal and will always be funny. T.H. might have had to incorporate some modern and old jokes into the book to convey to both younger and older readers.

    #9643

    @alexharakas Oh okay. Now that I recall, most of the jokes were similar to our humor today. It wasn’t complicated, it was easy to laugh at. This made the novel relatable in a way where I could understand it and go along with the joke.

    #9644

    @dchin What was T.H White’s reason to balance this out do you think?

    #9645
    alexharakas
    Member

    @amelia152016

    @dchin

    I agree with both of you, you have good points. Overall, I think Book I had the most humor. It was a very lighthearted story with prevalent fantastical elements.There were not many signs of impending danger. I got the feeling of boyhood,blissful to an extent,with inklings of more complications ahead.

    One reason for White implementing different styles of humor is his desire to appeal to the most readers. I hate to think he wanted to do anything but give us a delightful tale, but making money was probably a motive for White. He needed to appeal to many markets to have the most monetary gain.

    #9650
    dchin
    Member

    @amelia152016
    I believe he wanted to balance out the serious and the humorous so that one would not over take the other. If the book was too humorous it would not portray the Arthurian legend correctly. Too serious and it would cause the book to become boring and monotonous.

    #9651

    @dchin, I think Book I had more humor. Because Book I emphasized on their childhood. So it was more fun, light hearted, and less stressful. Arthur was not king yet, he was just a young boy. Book I was kind of an intro leading on to Arthur’s position as king. After Book I it got more serious and dark.

    #9661

    @dchin @angelicacastaneda So not only did Arthur mature in the second book but also the humor did too mirroring the level of his maturity. In some way, I feel this gradually led us to understand maybe the adult humor? correct me if I’m wrong

    #9671

    @angelicacastenada @dchin I agree with what Angelica said, book 1 was more light hearted for sure.

    #9672

    @alexharakas I think that the humor was there and if I thought it was funny then the humors’ expiration date hasn’t come yet.

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