Baseball The Natural and a Modern Day Arthurian Myth
Baseball, "The Natural" and a Modern Day Arthurian Myth
Once upon a time, a hero would be seen courageously riding on his magnificent steed into the cave of a fearsome dragon, clad with his shinning helmet, his enormous gauntlets, his breastplate displaying his coat of arms, and in his hands, a magnificent broad sword, prepared to strike at an instant. Today, that hero is seen confidently walking to home plate, his shinning helmet replaced by a dusty cap, his gauntlets replaced by batting gloves, his breastplate replaced by a simple jersey bearing the name and colors of his team, his broad sword replaced by a Louisville Slugger, primed to pummel any pitch with which the looming hurler might challenge him with.
Bernard Malamud’s novel The Natural is the tale of a young man’s quest for love and greatness in early twentieth century baseball. Roy Hobbs is thirty-four years old when he joins the baseball team the New York Knights. When he was nineteen years old and an unknown prospect, he vowed to a woman that he would be the best in the game, and she shot him with a silver bullet. Everyone who watches Roy play is amazed at his intrinsic ability to crush all pitches that are thrown to him. The lovely Memo Paris, niece of the team’s manager Pop Fisher, soon catches Roy’s eye, and he pursues her love vehemently. His desire for her eventually hospitalizes him when he eats until his stomach ruptures. Roy’s downfall comes when the teams owner, The Judge, offers him a bribe which he accepts and forces him to attempt to lose the championship game. After the game, Roy lives the remainder of his life in utter shame. The novel contains many events that actually happened, which enhances the mythic significance of the novel, as baseball is the foundation of contemporary American folklore (Wasserman 45-46). The characters are rich with mythological similarities, another element that enhances its mythical aspect. In addition, many elements of mythology enhance the story. It is the modern-day embodiment of the Arthurian myth (Hershinow 21).
Baseball is the basis of contemporary mythology. The entire survival of baseball relies on its mythology, for without it, the game would crumble into a jumble of meaningless facts and statistics (Turner 118). Stories of Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Lou Gehrig,...