Trouble In Camelot

T.H. White’s classic, The Once and Future King, is a retelling of the Arthurian legend.  It is 64,183 words long.  Here’s my attempt to tell the same story in rhyme with 225 words.  I may have left out a few details.

 

Young Arthur, who pulls sword from stone

Is destined then to hold the throne

Gets seduced by his half-sister

Bears a child, a twisted mister

Ascends the throne and picks a spot

To build idyllic Camelot

Where the rule is: Do what’s right

To quest is better than to fight

To aid him in this noble dream

Pure Art must build a righteous team

His knights, the finest of the lot

The first among them, Lancelot

But shame on young, disloyal Lance

He cannot keep it in his pants

Alas, Art’s wife’s no gem I fear

The Lance-a-lusting Guinevere

Oh, our boy, Lance is quite the swain

He’s also doing young Elaine

They have a kid, but that’s not bad

It’s fair and perfect Galahad

Adding luster to the fable

Art says they must have a table

To keep their hearts so just, so true

Well, only one that’s round will do

Then there’s Merlin, clever wizard

Victim of his trouser lizard

He gets seduced and locked away

By sexy, sultry Nimue

That’s quite shame for all concerned

Without his help, poor Art gets burned

When Mordred, Arthur’s nephew-son

Rat’s out young Lance…all comes undone

It’s hard to live life pure and true

When you don’t know who’s doing who

The dream of Camelot was gone

Just too much lancing going on

This post is linked to One Stop Poetry and Big Tent Poetry