Mask and Performance in Greek Tragedy: From Ancient Festival to Modern Experimentation Book

It's medieval France, a time before TV, movies, sports. What did one do for entertainment? Tell stories of course!

Bards and entertainers traveled the courts plying their trade, and in the 1200's the story of the Holy Grail was one of the favourites. Each one took the basic pagan tale, Christianized it of course, and made it his own, changing it freely to suit his audience. Several have passed down to us in written form, and the author attempts here to trace the connections back to the pagan tales for each. For example, the bloody spear which pierced the Lord perhaps arose from a spear that paralyzed an Irish chieftain which appears in older Irish stories. The name Pelles could be a derivation of the Welsh king Beli. That sort of thing.

It is one historian's opinion of course, and I'm certain other equally scholarly types would disagree with certain points. But it is an interesting read, weaving the actual text with the analysis. Recommend it.