s him which is the greatest quality of a knight. Merlin imparts his final words of wisdom upon Arthur. He tells him the greatest quality is truth above all. When a man lies, he murders some part of the world.Confident in the validity of Merlins words, Arthurs devastation is intensified when he sees for himself the secret love affair between his wife and his best friend.This, for Arthur, is an instant realization of his naivete. His willingness to trust without reserve made it easy for others to fool and take advantage of him.Merlin leaves Arthur, and Arthur soon finds himself an old man incapable of being king on his own. His body and soul are weakened by the realization of his powerlessness. His land deteriorates and his people become at war with one another. He describes himself as wasting away. [He] cannot die and [he] cannot live.He is unable to pass away because he is not yet at peace with himself. Great difficulty is found in living because he must be witness to his failures every day as he watches his once prosperous kingdom fall to ruins.A grail containing healing fluids is presented to Arthur. The fluid succeeds in replenishing Arthurs strength. It is with this renewal of life and the second chance to make right of all his wrongs that Arthur realizes the faults in the way he chose to carry out his life. Percival, I didnt know how empty was my soul until it was full. Lancelot carried my honor and Guinevere my guilt. My knights fought my causes.Arthur for the first time in his life is able to stand tall on his own to feet with out the accompaniment of any other. He at last finds himself confident in his beliefs and thus his identity. Transformed by the strength of his realizations, Arthur proclaims now I shall be king.Fighting his final battle, Arthur meets his long lost best friend and betrayer, Lancelot. Unable to save the wounded Lancelots life, Arthur displays the nobility in his character by forgiving Lanc...
