![]() ' To make the link more obvious, Steinbeck added chapter headings that imitated those in the Caxton edition of Malory. The form is that of the Malory version, the coming of Arthur and the mystic quality of owning a house, the forming of the round table, the adventure of the knights and finally, the mystic translation of Danny. Even the incident of the Sangreal in the search in the forest is not clear enough I guess. I have expected that the plan of the Arthurian cycle would be recognized, that my Gawaine and my Launcelot, my Arthur and Galahad would be recognized. Steinbeck himself said in a letter written in 1934 that Tortilla Flat, 'has a very definite theme. In Tortilla Flat, Steinbeck translates the Arthurian realm into the modern world by creating an overlay of Arthurian allusion to ennoble the lower-class characters of the novel. As he noted in the Introduction to the Acts of King Arthur, it was a version of Malory designed for youngsters from which he developed 'my sense of right and wrong, my feeling of noblesse oblige, and any thought I may have against the oppressor and for the oppressed.' Thus Malory's Morte helped to shape all of Steinbeck's work, even his novels of social concern. ![]() Nobel Prize winning novelist John Steinbeck (1902-1968) had been fascinated by Malory's tale since childhood. You may click on the thumbnail images to view them full screen
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