Question 4

The is sort of difficult to pin mythologically, partly because there were other objects, that I've read about in various locations, that pre-dated the grail. It is also difficult to pinpoint because the meaning of the Grail can change for the individual--what would make their paradise on earth. In the case of Percival I think it becomes a standard he is trying to achieve. Once his view of knighthood reaches a more mature level--after he avenges Blanechflor, reconciles the problems he created with the tent maiden and avenged the maid that Kay slapped--it seems he is more concerned with performing chivalrous acts as opposed being eager to battle and engage in violence. So, for Perceval the Grail becomes a proof of his becoming the ultimate knight--the strongest, wisest, and most compassionate as well as a proof that he has made up for past sins, such as the death of his mother.

Perceval Day 1

Perceval still has a lot to learn about being a knight. Mainly he needs to learn how to listen and be sensitive to the feelings and needs of others. He will never learn to become a knight until he learns this lesson. Look at the way he treats his mother, for example. He is about leave hoe for the very first time and doesn’t even bother to pay attention to what she has to get off her chest. And as he is leaving, she faints and he does not even think to take care of her until much later.

And in battle, he is too eager to kill—the knight he battles with for the sake of Blancheflor must remind him of the code of chivalry, which maintains that he must not remain beyond mercy or to strike a fallen knight. On the other hand, it seems that Blancheflor has caused him to partially open the doors to being sensitive, so with her help and with Arthur’s wisdom that will later guide him, he will be one of the only knights who will go on a quest for the grail.