T.H. White: Lancelot's Character

T.H. White's interpretation of Lancelot reminded me somewhat of Tennyson's interpretation of Queen Guinevere--not because the two characters are similar, but because of the spectrum of emotions that both White and Tennyson introduce that did not exist in Malory, or even really in De Troyes. White's version of Lancelot is extremely interesting. He seems to resemble both an arrogant "man's man" and a weepy, emotional teenager at the same time. However, White consistently makes Lancelot's character seem somewhat ludicrous throughout this section, aptly titled "The Ill-Made Knight."
 White clearly diverges from Malory's perfect Lancelot. In Malory, Lancelot is dedicated to King Arthur, dedicated to the Queen, and despite his stained sexual history that is revealed on the search for the grail, he is honorable and kind. In De Troyes, Lancelot is much more introspective--possibly even depressed--over the Queen, but his love for her seems so true and pure that his character is redeemed. White diverges from these traditional Lancelots, as he does with many of his other characters. Lancelot is extremely flawed, in White's version. First, White opens the section on the Ill-Made Knight with Lancelot in his room "holding dumb-bells as if they were posies." This image of Lancelot is very critical of his masculinity, something that is essential of his success as a knight (at least, Malory's version of success). White takes the question of Lancelot's masculinity even further, outright stating Lancelot's love for Arthur, rather than disguising it in the language of "bromance" as Malory does. He writes, "Lancelot, swinging his dumb-bells fiercely and making his wordless noise, had been thinking of King Arthur with all his might. He was in love with him." (White 311). Again, this outright acknowledgement of the "love" between Lancelot and King Arthur seems to be somewhat mocking Malory's version of the text. While Malory navigated the subtleties of the relationships between the knights, White makes statements such as these that counteract any possible coyness.
 Lancelot's treatment of women is also vastly different from what we have seen. His treatment of them reveals his internal state of turmoil over whether he wants to be "good" or "bad." For example, White has Lancelot say to the weeping woman: "'Go away,' said Lancelot to the gentlewoman. 'Stop howling. Your husband was a fool and you are a bore. I am not sorry I killed him.' But he was sorry." (White 354). This is certainly not how Malory's--or even De Troyes'--Lancelot would talk to a woman. But White has Lancelot say things like this almost as a coverup to his true feelings. As White explains later on: "He felt in his heart cruelty and cowardice, the things which made him brave and kind." (White 356). This statement gives real insight to readers who are questioning Lancelot's actions and psyche. It shows that Lancelot's emotions are inconsistent, and that he is fighting to be on the outside something which he is not on the inside. This is extremely different from Malory's version, in which Lancelot was thought to be honestly dedicated to all women, as well as to his fellow knights.