Songs and Satires
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Masters, Edgar Lee. Songs and Satires. New York: Macmillan, 1916.
American poet Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950) published two Arthurian ballads in his collection Songs and Satires. In 'The Ballad of Launcelot and Elaine' he recounts the begetting of Galahad; and in 'The Death of Sir Launcelot' he describes Launcelot's final days and holy death. Both poems contain touches that are worthy of the form they imitate. The former describes Elaine's maid Dame Brisen as 'the subtlest witch / That was that time in life; / She was as if Beelzebub / Had taken her to wife.' And in the latter, after Launcelot turns to religion, there is an evocative description of his armor: 'His shield went clattering on the wall / To a dolorous wail or wind; / His casque was rust, his mantle dust / With spider webs entwined.'