Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

"Oh yes, were I less likely to be eclipsed by my pious King and father, I'd say my tale contains fine grist for the legend-makers once I'm safely dead. Which is my point, really. I'm less interested in what I did than what I felt, and they never get that part right. I'm no paragon, surely, weighed down with flaws and more than half a fool, but my own self just the same, and not another star in Arthur's heroic firmament. At six centuries and a continent's remove, I can read Catullus and briefly think: I know the man, he died long ago, but I know him now; I've shared the sharp-edged particulars of his daily life. Maybe someday some unimagined you will read these words and think that you know me, and then I'll be reborn inside your head. Everyone has his or her own scheme for cheating death; this poor testament is mine." -- Mordred (yes, that Mordred, of course), protagonist and narrator of Mordred's Curse by Ian McDowell (1996, Avon Books, New York; ISBN: 0-380-78195-6). [Underlined word is italic in the original; bold emphasis added by me to distinguish the bit I most wanted to quote from the bit I thought probably ought to come along for the ride.]