The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman

Author:Lev Grossman [Grossman, Lev]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2024-07-16T00:00:00+00:00

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Dagonet often wondered what Arthur thought he was doing by knighting him. It was an uncharacteristically awkward gesture, with a cruel edge to it, a whiff of mockery, which was strange because even Dagonet had to admit that Arthur was not a cruel man. But he did not do things by halves either. He had Dagonet swear the real oaths, got him a sword and a shield and armor and a horse and a squire. His arms were a silver cloud on a deep blue background. More shapes in more clouds. Any knight who forgot or refused to accord Dagonet full knightly honors received a hilarious public spanking.

Meanwhile Arthur got a new and much funnier fool, a man with a genuine lust for foolery. Not much of a juggler, but he could walk on his hands while farting actual musical notes.

Perhaps Arthur was poking fun at the knights of the Table, to teach them humility. Perhaps he saw—as no one else did, not even Dagonet himself—that Dagonet was fighting as hard as any knight ever had just to stay alive and sane. Perhaps, too, Arthur saw a bit of himself in Sir Dagonet. They’d both begun life at the lowest of stations, only to be raised on a divine whim to dizzying heights. Did Arthur, too, not feel a bit ridiculous at times? Something of a fraud? A bit of a fool, perhaps?

The sword in the stone had made a fool a king, and the king had made a fool a knight. But the Grail would make fools of them all.

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