Page:Journal of American Folklore vol. 12.djvu/292

 2 So yonmal of American Folk-Lore.

the aid of an astrologer, she builds a manor ; in Wolfram, the magician, who receives the name Clinschor, is represented as an evil-minded enchanter, whose spells have made the inmates of the castle his prisoners, but who has no connection with Parzival or with the Grail ; Wagner, following the artistic impulse tending toward unity, already noted as characteristic of reconstructors, makes Klinsor the adversary of the knights of the Grail, while Kundry is described as his agent in the task of seduction, to whom Amfortas has fallen victim. Opportunity is taken to bring Parsifal to the enchanted castle of Klinsor, containing the flower-maidens, where he himself is subject to the temptations of Kundry, and by experience becomes able to sympathize with the tempted Amfortas. Wagner, like Tennyson, was led by his artist's instinct to identify the Grail with the chalice of the eucharist. For the psychologic meaning, he accepted suggestions taken from Christian and Bud- dhist story ; he set forth the conception that the generous pity of a simple heart is the best remedy for human suffering. Beyond this general idea, it would be idle to seek in the drama for philosophic lessons ; the action is to be taken, not as mystical symbolism, but as fancy which pleases to move in a faery world, and is emancipated from necessary adherence either to fact, probability, or tradition. Of the musical and poetic genius with which the theme is developed, there is here no need to speak.

We are now in a position to take a comprehensive view of the evolution. One of the most universal themes of folk-tales consists in presenting the fortunes of a simple youth, who from a despised and indigent position attains success and honor. In the middle of the twelfth century, when romantic histories were commonly re- ferred to the heroic age of Britain, it was natural that a story of this nature should receive Arthurian setting. Current jests set forth the ridiculous mistakes of a lad suddenly introduced into the great world, with whose usages he is unacquainted ; the repute of barbarism attaching to Wales led to the designation of this tyro as belonging to this race. Hence the hero of the Arthurian narration was called Perceval the Welshman, not as really belonging to the country, but only as unjustly identified with a Welsh rustic. The title indicates that the tale, which from the first dealt with the education of simplicity, must have been in the nature of literary invention, not of traditional currency. This history came to the knowledge of the most celebrated of French trouveres ; that Cres- tien at an early time had marked it out for future treatment may be concluded from his mention, in previous works, of Perceval li galois as among the chief knights of the Round Table. What may have been the nature of this antecedent story it is impossible to conjee-

�� �