Stranger Things & Arthurian Myth - Part 2:
(Love Wins Gate) Mike & His Sorceror
Stranger Things shares parallels with world mythology. One of them is the legend of Camelot, King Arthur, and the Knights of the Round Table. I'll also expand on @ode_to_icarus' theory from Twitter/X about Eleven being the avatar of Tharizdun from DND.
"Uther and Igraine" by Warwick Deeping, illustration by Władysław T. Benda.
Igraine, Gorlois, and Uther (Karen, Ted, and Henry)
The noble Duchess Igraine (Karen) was married to the loyal Duke Gorlois (Ted) of Cornwall. Together, they had three to nine daughters. In later adaptations, their unit is a royal family.
The militaristic King Uther (Henry) Pendragon of Britain, whose surname translates to “Chief-Dragon” or “Head of Dragons,” became obsessed with Igraine and even waged war against Gorlois for Igraine’s hand.
Merlin was a wise and manipulative sorcerer, wizard, and prophet, who took horrific actions to fulfill the prophecy of Britain’s future leader. One night, Merlin magically disguised Uther as Gorlois, allowing him to rape Igraine without her knowledge. Right as Gorlois was killed in battle, Igraine and Uther conceived a son. Igraine was forced to marry King Uther and gave birth to Arthur. Merlin, with the intent to protect Arthur from Uther’s unstable reign, kidnapped Arthur and raised him.
Is Henry Mike's real father?
"The Beguiling of Merlin" by Edward Burne Jones
Merlin was a campion or half-demon (Is Lonnie really his father?) who represented the bridge between realms, possessing the ability to see into the past and time and look into Earth’s depths. (Connection to the Upside Down, time, and building tunnels). Merlin was also a shapeshifter who transformed into a deer, a bird, or a dragon. He commonly appeared as a stag. (Will parallels Harry Potter, whose patronous is a stag. Finn Wolfhard's new music album also has deer imagery). Merlin also helped King Arthur realize his true identity (Will to Mike).
"King Arthur" By Charles Ernest Butler
Arthur was the idealistic ruler of Camelot (Mike is the Dungeon Master) who led the knights of the Round Table, a chivalric order devoted to Camelot. (Mike leads the Party). He considered his knights equal to him, as demonstrated at the literal round table where they congregated together.
Arthur was depicted as a superhuman warrior with incredible strength, capable of killing a legion on his own. He could wield the magical sword, Excalibur, and its scabbard protected him from losing blood in battle (Mike will likely use a sword). He was married to Queen Guinevere, and Merlin acted as his trusted advisor and assisted him in battle (Will to Mike).
"Morgan Le Fay" by John R. Spencer Stanhope
Morgause & Morgen Le Fay (Eleven/Jane)
In the original story, Morgen Le Fay and Morgause are separate characters. In later adaptations, they were combined into one character. (Could Eleven's two names represent a dualistic nature?)
Morgen Le Fay and Morgause were the daughters of Igraine and Gorlois and the half-sisters of King Arthur. In other versions, Morgause was portrayed as Uther’s sister, making her Arthur’s aunt. (Is Eleven siblings with Mike or possibly his aunt?)
Morgen Le Fay was a compassionate woman, a magical healer, and King Arthur’s half-sister and protector (Mike’s protector). In later myths, she’s a villain plotting against King Arthur and Camelot (Tharizdun Gate). She could heal, resurrect the dead, and travel across time-space and dimensions.
Morgause was a politically strategic and manipulative woman. She visited Camelot, exploiting her resemblance to Guinevere. She raped Arthur, conceiving their son Mordred, who was destined to bring about Arthur’s downfall and destroy Camelot.
@Emgamble1989, from Love Wins Gate on Twitter/X, believes that Mordred represents the general audience, as they were the ones who shoved Mike back into the closet. Mike thinks he doesn’t deserve Will’s love, and it’s killing his spirit like Mordred kills Arthur in the end.
After all, forced conformity is killing the kids.
The legend of King Arthur likely influenced Stranger Things. These stories share warriors, magic, missing persons, and star-crossed lovers. Could they hint at the future of the story?
