Bulfinch’s Mythology · Chapter
Sir Bohort explained
Sir Bohort departs from Camelot on the quest for the Sangreal, confesses to a religious hermit, and faces a moral dilemma when he must choose between rescuing his brother Sir Lionel from two knights or saving a distressed gentlewoman.
What happens
Sir Bohort departs from Camelot on the quest for the Sangreal, confesses to a religious hermit, and faces a moral dilemma when he must choose between rescuing his brother Sir Lionel from two knights or saving a distressed gentlewoman. He chooses to help the maid, but later believes his brother has been killed. After burying a body he thinks is Sir Lionel's, he discovers his brother alive but wrathful. Sir Lionel attacks him, and Sir Colgrevance intervenes, only to be slain. A divine voice prevents fratricide, and Sir Bohort is directed to the sea, where he meets Sir Perceval and learns they await Sir Galahad.
Themes in this chapter
Heroism and the Quest
Sir Bohort's journey is part of the Sangreal quest, and his actions—choosing to rescue a maiden over his own brother—demonstrate the heroic ideals of self-sacrifice and duty.
Fate and Free Will
Bohort's moral dilemma and the divine intervention that prevents him from killing his brother highlight the tension between human choice and providential guidance.
Characters to notice
- Sir Bohort
The protagonist of the chapter; a knight of the Round Table on the Sangreal quest who faces a painful choice between rescuing his brother and a maiden.
- Sir Lionel
Sir Bohort's elder brother, who is beaten by two knights and later becomes enraged, seeking to kill Bohort for abandoning him.
- Sir Colgrevance
A knight of the Round Table who intervenes to save Sir Bohort from Sir Lionel's wrath and is slain in the process.
- Sir Perceval
Appears at the end of the chapter; Sir Bohort meets him aboard a ship, and they await Sir Galahad.
Key passages
“For if I let my brother be he must be slain, and that would I not for all the earth; and if I help not the maid I am shamed forever.”
If I abandon my brother, he will surely be killed, which I cannot bear; but if I do not aid the maiden, I will be dishonored forever.
Sir Bohort articulates the central moral conflict of the chapter.
“Fair brother, have mercy upon me and slay me not.”
Dear brother, please show mercy and do not kill me.
Sir Bohort pleads with his enraged brother, Sir Lionel, for forgiveness and mercy.
“Flee, Sir Bohort, and touch him not.”
Run away, Sir Bohort, and do not strike him.
A divine voice commands Sir Bohort to refrain from attacking his brother, preventing fratricide.