When Small World by David Lodge was published, in 1984, not many seemed to realise that one of the texts used as a basis for this story was Ariosto’s chivalric romance Orlando Furioso.
A clever move by Lodge was to substitute an American Express credit card for the magic ring in Orlando Furioso that allowed the wearer to fly around the world, just as the card bought airline tickets. The major theme of Small World was the Holy Grail tale, a significant story when combined with Ariosto’s so skilfully.
