The Evolution of Merlin

I want to go back a few classes now, and discuss Merlin one more time. We had a class discussion about why Merlin has changed over time. In Geoffrey of Monmouth’s story of Merlin, he is a old man who goes out of way to isolate him probably because of the weight that knowledge put on him. The power he possesses is seeing the past and future. In the Once and Future King, Merlin still is an old man, but seems more of laughable character in his old age. He’s wise, but also a quirky old man. Then moving on in time, we now have the Merlin television show where he is a young man, who is still figuring out his path and can be odd, but he also mischievous, clever, and compassionate. He has a sense of duty and honor towards Prince Arthur. He uses his magic to move things, and protect those he cares about. He is part of a community.

Why has Merlin changed from old to young? Why has he become more clumsy? Why do his powers change? My feeling on this is that Merlin’s character meets the need of the times. In the past old men were considered wise and respected for their age, which is why Geoffrey of Monmouth created a character who is older and wise to the point that it was a burden for him. In today’s time however, society finds the old more useless, and are more concerned about the life that young people will create, which is essentially what the television Merlin does.

While observing the evolution of Merlin, a consistent idea of him being a little foolish sticks out, which makes me think of The Sword in the Stone’s Merlin. (He also says a good lesson in magic)

http://youtu.be/xZ9fixoPBPk

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