Parminder Matharu         English

The effects of conflict within power and society throughout the two texts?

        This essay will examine and analyse the effects of conflict within power and society throughout the two texts.  The texts, which have been studied, are “The Mabinogion” which is an anthology of tales and consists of a flow form, tale to tale throughout the texts, where as “Metamorphoses” taken from its name, meaning change has a poetic flow of text. There are some similarities yet a lot of differences between the two texts i.e. both texts come from the Celtic background but there is a different time line between them, where “the Mabinogion” is set in the 15th century, however “Metamorphoses” is set in the beginning of time itself.

        In regarding to both of the texts, the beginnings are totally different where in “The Mabinogion” because of its Celtic traditions and ethnicity to society and power it always begins with the introduction of a “King” or a “Prince” where all is well i.e. “Pwyll prince of Dyved was the lord of the seven cantrevs of Dyved” or “Bendigeid Vran the son of Llyr” this means that every tale or myth has a happy and wonderful beginning. However when it come towards the middle of the tale we can see havoc, conflict, death of innocence “before any one could seize hold of him he thrust the boy headlong into the blazing flame” This quote illustrates that people who wanted war got war because of their spiteful actions, although when conflict and havoc come across their lands the conflict that was there would have been settled and therefore the person who created the destruction will pay the penalty of the life. Towards the ending of each tale there seems to be a celebration or a “feast” as they “meat” and drink and once again happiness is brought to their lives. Every tale that ends, the flow of texts makes it seem like a never-ending cycle.  

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In contrast in the “Metamorphoses” there are a lot of differences in the opening where conflict and chaos moulds the creation of the earth as destructive to life its self”Chaos, a raw and undivided mass, naught a lifeless bulk, with warring seeds of ill- joined elements compressed together” this illustrates that the world was not made peacefully by the gods but was moulded to form a perfect orb, known as the earth.         Conversely when the reader gets to the middle of the tale it becomes settled and normal “earth the Prometheus moulded, mixed with water in likeness of the gods ...

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