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| | ==Explanation== | | ==Explanation== |
| − | In this comic, [[Megan]] pulls a sword out of a stone. A flash of light comes down and music plays, and a heavenly voice tells her she has ascended to the {{w|throne of England}}. Megan then pulls out her phone and searches on Wikipedia for {{w|England}}. After having read for a while, she decides she does not want the throne of England and slowly places the sword into back the rock, without taking her eyes off the text.
| + | {{incomplete|Is this Megan (she is always drawn this way) or is it a long haired boy drawn like Megan? Why should it not be a girl (Megan) - the current ruler of England is a Queen. And it is modern days since there is a smartphone and Wikipedia, thus it is not in Arthur's days. On explain xkcd any stick character with long hair, like here, is usually referred to as Megan...}} |
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| − | The comic references the fables of {{w|King Arthur}} and the {{w|Knights of the Round Table}}. In Arthurian legend, whoever can remove {{w|Excalibur#Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone|The Sword in the Stone}} is the lawful king of Britain (although this comic, as some versions of the legend, refers incorrectly to England). Arthur is an orphan being raised in secret; he notices the sword, removes it, and is proclaimed king. The sword is sometimes identified as {{w|Excalibur}}, although in other versions Excalibur was acquired by King Arthur from the {{w|Lady of the Lake}}. The most familiar version of this story is {{w|The Sword in the Stone (novel)|The Sword in the Stone}} by {{w|T. H. White}} which is based on {{w|Le Morte d'Arthur}} by {{w|Sir Thomas Malory}}. The animated {{w|The Sword in the Stone (film)|musical}} by Walt Disney is a well-known version of this fairytale based on White's book.
| + | This comic references the fables of {{w|King Arthur}} and the {{w|Knights of the Round Table}}. In Arthurian legend, whoever can remove the Sword in the Stone is the lawful king of {{w|England}}. Arthur is an orphan being raised in secret; he notices the sword, removes it, and is proclaimed king. The sword is sometimes identified as Excalibur, although in other versions Excalibur was acquired by King Arthur from the {{w|Lady of the Lake}}. The most familiar version of this story is {{w|The Sword in the Stone}} by {{w|T. H. White}} which is based on {{w|Le Morte d'Arthur}} by {{w|Sir Thomas Malory}}. {{w|The_Sword_in_the_Stone_(film)|The musical animated film by Walt Disney}} is also well known. |
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| − | A key element in the joke is that as Megan begins to read about England, especially information concerning being an English ruler, she quickly thinks better of this and begins to put the sword back in its place. The punchline that Megan puts the sword back after reading about England suggests that the "gift" of being the leader of England is not worth the risk and/or work associated. British history is rife with monarchic strife, and a brief inquiry into their {{w|List of monarchs of the British Isles by cause of death|causes of death}} will show that almost one in three {{w|British rulers}} have died either in battle or from murder, etc: Queen Elizabeth II, who was alive at the time of the comic's release, is the only English monarch to die of (exclusively) old age. This would quickly lead most people to conclude that the risks associated with ruling England far outweigh the benefits.
| + | Arthur (a long haired boy) pulls out {{w|Excalibur#Excalibur_and_the_Sword_in_the_Stone|The Sword in the Stone}}. A flash of light comes down and music plays, and a heavenly voice tells him he is heir to the throne of England. Arthur then pulls out his phone, which is very much unlike the Medieval King Arthur and searches on Wikipedia for England and begins to replace the sword into the rock. The title text furthers this plot, having Arthur comment on the hassle when the only thing he was interested in was the sword. Apparently Arthur is not enthusiastic about power, and his choice is made when he sees how problematic it could be to reign over the country of England. |
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| − | The title text furthers this plot, having Megan comment on the hassle when the only thing she was interested in was the cool sword. Apparently, Megan is not enthusiastic about power, and her choice is made when she sees how problematic it could be to reign over the country of England. There is also a subtle play on the fact that in the T. H. White version, Arthur likewise is unaware of the significance of pulling the sword from the stone - he is simply looking for a sword to replace the one belonging to his step-brother Kay that was stolen under his watch, to avoid embarrassment and reproach.
| + | A key element of the joke is what Randall implies Arthur would see when he searched for information on England, especially information concerning being an English ruler. English history is rife with monarchic strife, and a brief inquiry into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_monarchs_of_the_British_Isles_by_cause_of_death the percentage of British rulers who died in battle or as a result of political intrigue vs those who died of natural causes] would quickly lead most sane people to conclude that the risks associated with ruling England far outweigh the benefits. From the time of the Roman Empire all the way up to Charles II's reclamation of the throne, England was one of the most contested and most difficult to hold chunks of real estate on Earth. Besides the constant threat of usurpation, as evidenced by the numerous wars for the crown, such as the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_conquest_of_England Norman Conquest] and the [http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wars_of_the_Roses War of the Roses], there were also constant difficulties in managing the frontier regions. This can be seen in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadrian's_Wall Hadrian's Wall], a creation of the titular Roman Emperor designed to keep the ever difficult Scots out of the areas of Roman control (the Scots would be a constant problem for England up until the reign of King James; think of Braveheart for a good example of the regular headaches they caused, seen from the English point of view), as well as the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Anglo-Welsh_Wars Welsh uprisings] that occurred with such consistency that you could set your watch to them. |
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| − | From the time of the {{w|Roman Empire}} all the way up to {{w|Charles II of England|Charles II's}} reclamation of the throne, the area now known as England has seen {{w|Invasions of the British Isles|several migration waves, Viking raids, invasions}} and fierce power struggles among aristocratic families. Besides the constant threat of usurpation, as evidenced by the numerous wars for the crown, such as the {{w|Norman conquest of England|Norman conquest}} and the {{w|War of the Roses}}, there were also constant difficulties in managing the frontier regions. This can be seen from {{w|Hadrian's Wall}}, a creation of the titular Roman Emperor designed to keep the ever difficult Scots out of the areas of Roman control (the Scots would be a {{w|Anglo-Scottish Wars|constant problem}} for England up until the reign of King {{w|James VI and I}}; think of the movie {{w|Braveheart}} for a good example of the regular headaches they caused, seen from the English point of view), as well as the {{w|List of Anglo-Welsh Wars|Welsh uprisings}} that occurred with such consistency that you could set your watch by them.
| + | It should be noted that in Arthurian Legend, it is stated that Arthur would return when England most needed him. It is possible that the Arthur in this comic is a 21st century person (a reincarnation of the old Arthur). |
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| − | It is worth emphasizing that the term "England" is anachronistic in this context. At the time Arthur supposedly existed, there was no England — England was formed by Germanic tribes who {{w|Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain|settled in Britain between the fifth and seventh centuries}}. In many of the stories, including the earliest, Arthur was in fact depicted as a leader of the native Romano-Britons in their attempts to repel these invaders. England would not exist had Arthur succeeded. The anachronism is not new; it entered Arthurian legend in the Middle Ages. (Thomas Malory's ''Le Morte d'Arthur'', for example, refers to Arthur as King of England.) In Arthurian legend, it was stated that Arthur would return when needed (in some versions he was explicitly associated with the {{w|Mab Darogan}}, a Welsh Messianic figure who would finally drive the English out of Britain and reclaim it for the native Britons). It is possible that Megan in this comic is a 21st-century reincarnation of Arthur.
| + | The timing of this comic might relate to the excitement of the yellow press about the birth of princess {{w|Princess_Charlotte_of_Cambridge|Charlotte Elizabeth Diana}} this week and the burden of a royal of having a whole life in public shaking hands of strangers. It is also probably not a coincidence that this comic was published the day before the UK General Election, which took place on May 7, 2015. This election decides the modern day leader of England and the rest of the UK. |
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| − | The timing of this comic might relate to the birth of princess {{w|Princess Charlotte of Cambridge|Charlotte Elizabeth Diana}} on May 2, 2015, just four days before this comic, and the burden of a royal of having a whole life in public shaking hands of strangers. Since {{w|Succession to the Throne Act, 2013|2013}} the {{w|Line of succession to the British throne|line of succession}} was changed to {{w|Primogeniture#Absolute primogeniture|absolute primogeniture}}, meaning that she will keep her current position in the line (4th after her {{w|Prince George of Cambridge|older brother}}) even if she later gets baby brothers. Before this year, that would not have been the case, as the male gender took rank over birth order. | |
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| − | It is also probably not a coincidence that this comic was published the day before the {{w|United Kingdom general election, 2015|UK General Election}}, occurring on May 7, 2015. This election decides the modern-day leader of the UK. And the problems they face today may even be more likely to cause Megan to give away the throne, than the risk of untimely death she would have faced in Arthur's days. | |
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| − | A similar Wikipedia gag appears in [[911: Magic School Bus]].
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| − | The sword in the stone also appears in [[2578: Sword Pull]].
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| | ==Transcript== | | ==Transcript== |
| − | :[Megan walks up to a sword in a stone.]
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| − | :[Megan attempts to pull the sword out of the stone.] | + | :[Arthur walks up to The Sword in the Stone] |
| | + | :[Arthur tries to pull out The Sword in the Stone] |
| | + | :[A flash of light and music plays as he removes The Sword in the Stone] |
| | + | :Heavenly voice: The Throne of England is yours |
| | + | :Writing on smart phone: Wikipedia. England. |
| | + | :[Arthur starts to place The Sword of the Stone back into the stone] |
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| − | :[A beam of light and music plays as she removes the sword.]
| + | {{comic discussion}} |
| − | | + | <!-- Include any categories below this line. --> |
| − | :[While standing with the swords a voice from the sky speaks in gray shaky letters:]
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| − | :Celestial voice: ''The Throne of England is yours''
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| − | :[Megan takes out her smart phone and searches:]
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| − | :Wikipedia
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| − | :England
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| − | :[Megan reads on her phone.]
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| − | :[Megan, still reading from her phone, starts to replace the sword back into the stone.]
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| − | {{comic discussion}}
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| − | [[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
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| | [[Category:Wikipedia]] | | [[Category:Wikipedia]] |
| − | [[Category:Fiction]]
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