Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Penguin Classics)
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Composed during the fourteenth century in the English Midlands, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight describes the events that follow when a mysterious green-coloured knight rides into King Arthur's Camelot in deep mid-winter. The mighty knight presents a challenge to the court: he will allow himself to be struck by one blow, on the condition that he will be allowed to return the strike on the following New Year's Eve. Sir Gawain takes up the challenge, decapitating the stranger - only to see the Green Knight seize up his own severed head and ride away, leaving Gawain to seek him out and honour their pact. Blending Celtic myth and Christian faith, Gawain is among the greatest Middle English poems: a tale of magic, chivalry and seduction.
About the Author
We know the "Gawain Poet" was a contemporary of Geofrey Chaucer's. He appears to have been the author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Patience, and Cleanness; "he" may also have composed Saint Erkenwald.
Bernard O'Donoghue is a Fellow in English at Wadham College and a noted Irish poet
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When the war and the siege of Troy were all over and the city flattened to smoking rubble, the man who'd betrayed it was brought to trial, most certainly guilty of terrible crimes. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
When the war and the siege of Troy were all over and the city flattened to smoking rubble, the man who'd betrayed it was brought to trial, most certainly guilty of terrible crimes. Read the first page
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Middle English is a diverse collection of different dialects and styles, when it comes to literature. At the same time that Chaucer was writing in the southeast of England, with good command of French and Italian poetic sensibilities, there was a strong tradition in the north and west country of alliterative poetry, the kind that owed as much to the Old English forms of verse and use of language as to the new influences post-Norman Conquest-wise. Among the products of this time and place, the anonymously composed 'Sir Gawain and Green Knight' is one of the most outstanding.
This poem has all the hallmarks of being a work of many influences - it has the heroic aspects that one might expect from Old English epics such as Beowulf; it has a decided romantic streak reminiscent of French and Norman influences; it has virtue and church/Christian overlaying influences that come from Latin and ecclesial sources; it has magical and mystical ideas that are most likely Celtic in origin. Perhaps more like a tapestry, the various strands of influence are woven together into a glorious pattern that stands as a towerig achievement of the synthesis of language that Middle English achieved between its Germanic and Latinate streams.
Gawain's story is a very popular one. The most virtuous of the Round Table knights, his bravery and his resourcefulness at seeking the Green Knight, the annual challenger at the court of Arthur, is legendary. Gawain's small fault (and indeed, Gawain was portrayed as a virtuous human, but human nonetheless) warrants a very small penalty, but he is deemed upon reporting back to Camelot that he has brought honour upon the whole fellowship of knights. There is something magical about the Green Knight, however, and this can be seen as metaphor for the way in which temptation seems to have a magical power over humanity.
This is a great edition for those who want the original language text side by side with a good modern translation. There are also good notes and resources, too.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Sir Gawain is a C14th poem written by an unknown contemporary of Chaucer. Unlike Chaucer, who is influenced by Latin, French and Italian literature, this poem recalls the old Norse and Viking sagas although it is set, at least initially, at Camelot.
Combining elements of chivalric epic, romance, and morality tales it tells of Gawain's challenge by the Green Knight, and the moral testing of his knightly valour and virtue.
Vivid, lyrical, funny and moral all at the same time, it had a profound influence on later poets, specifically Spenser in his Faerie Queene.
This Brian Stone translation into modern English is old but still my favourite for anyone not comfortable with the original old English.
Combining elements of chivalric epic, romance, and morality tales it tells of Gawain's challenge by the Green Knight, and the moral testing of his knightly valour and virtue.
Vivid, lyrical, funny and moral all at the same time, it had a profound influence on later poets, specifically Spenser in his Faerie Queene.
This Brian Stone translation into modern English is old but still my favourite for anyone not comfortable with the original old English.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The author of this little masterpiece is unknown. This story - or 'romance' if you like - was found in a little manuscript that was written in c.1380. There are three other stories in that manuscript presumably by the same author.
King Arthur, his wife Guinevere, and the Knights of The Round Table are celebrating Christmas and New Year at the famous castle 'Camelot'. One evening a huge knight on horseback bursts into the Hall during dinner, brandishing a large and fearsome battle-axe. Everything about him is green, not only his armor - as one might expect - but also his face, his hair, and even his horse. He has come in peace as he is advertising more than once. In short he says: who is bold enough to step forward and try to chop my head off with this battle-axe? But after one year and a day it will be my turn to deal a blow. Gawain, one of the Knights of The Round Table, steps forward, takes the axe and beheads the Green Knight. As if nothing happened the Green Knight picks up his head, takes it under his arm and the head says: a year and one day from now it will be my turn to give you a blow. You have to promise that you will come looking for me. You can find me at the Green Chapel ( It's almost a joke but who knows? Maybe this is all just a joke ). If you survive my blow I will give you a great reward. The Knight doesn't want to say where the Green Chapel can be found. It's far away from here but you will find people who can show you the way. And remember, you promised. And so the adventure begins for Gawain. He has to go without a companion. He stands on his own for that was a part of the deal.
This Fantasy element is the only one in the story. Everything else is realistic. That could be an indication that some scholars are right when they say that the Green Knight is a symbol for the reviving of Nature after the winter. There is a parallel between this symbolism and Gawain who's becoming more mature as the story unfolds. Throughout the story he's tempted in many ways to betray his vow of chastity and loyalty to the Virgin Mary, and near the end of the story he's tempted into cowardice. After all is said and done Gawain has a more realistic view on knighthood. He becomes adult and reaches a new stage in his life just like the revival of Nature by the Green Knight.
One of the things I like in this medieval romance are the hunting scenes described very vividly and in great detail. It starts with a description of the animal they want to hunt down: its strong and weak points. During the chase it is as if you can hear the horns blow and the shouts of the hunters, the barking of the hounds and the grunting of the wounded animal and it ends with the cutting of the meat after the bowels are given to the hounds as a reward.
Bernard O' Donoghue has done a very fine job in translating this little masterpiece of medieval literature. It's a vivid and a very readable verse translation of this engrossing adventure.
King Arthur, his wife Guinevere, and the Knights of The Round Table are celebrating Christmas and New Year at the famous castle 'Camelot'. One evening a huge knight on horseback bursts into the Hall during dinner, brandishing a large and fearsome battle-axe. Everything about him is green, not only his armor - as one might expect - but also his face, his hair, and even his horse. He has come in peace as he is advertising more than once. In short he says: who is bold enough to step forward and try to chop my head off with this battle-axe? But after one year and a day it will be my turn to deal a blow. Gawain, one of the Knights of The Round Table, steps forward, takes the axe and beheads the Green Knight. As if nothing happened the Green Knight picks up his head, takes it under his arm and the head says: a year and one day from now it will be my turn to give you a blow. You have to promise that you will come looking for me. You can find me at the Green Chapel ( It's almost a joke but who knows? Maybe this is all just a joke ). If you survive my blow I will give you a great reward. The Knight doesn't want to say where the Green Chapel can be found. It's far away from here but you will find people who can show you the way. And remember, you promised. And so the adventure begins for Gawain. He has to go without a companion. He stands on his own for that was a part of the deal.
This Fantasy element is the only one in the story. Everything else is realistic. That could be an indication that some scholars are right when they say that the Green Knight is a symbol for the reviving of Nature after the winter. There is a parallel between this symbolism and Gawain who's becoming more mature as the story unfolds. Throughout the story he's tempted in many ways to betray his vow of chastity and loyalty to the Virgin Mary, and near the end of the story he's tempted into cowardice. After all is said and done Gawain has a more realistic view on knighthood. He becomes adult and reaches a new stage in his life just like the revival of Nature by the Green Knight.
One of the things I like in this medieval romance are the hunting scenes described very vividly and in great detail. It starts with a description of the animal they want to hunt down: its strong and weak points. During the chase it is as if you can hear the horns blow and the shouts of the hunters, the barking of the hounds and the grunting of the wounded animal and it ends with the cutting of the meat after the bowels are given to the hounds as a reward.
Bernard O' Donoghue has done a very fine job in translating this little masterpiece of medieval literature. It's a vivid and a very readable verse translation of this engrossing adventure.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Good but not best
The book is very interesting. There are a lot of notes that help us to understand everything. Sadly, I do not understand the author's choice to get all the olden letters (yogh,... Read more
Published 16 months ago by The Judge
A good reading copy
My Gordon/Tolkien edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is nearly a quarter of a century old now, covered with pencil notes and getting a bit brown and dog-eared. Read more
Published 21 months ago by E. L. Wisty
A good edition
This edition is probably the most useful one I've come across for study. The actual Middle English text is left pretty much untouched, but the facing (prose) translation makes it... Read more
Published on 9 Sep 2007 by an confused future undergraduate
A brilliant translation, full of life
Anyone who thinks reading medieval texts (in translation) is daunting, should dip into this book.
Brian Stone has translated 'Sir Gawain' brilliantly, keeping the alliteration... Read more
Brian Stone has translated 'Sir Gawain' brilliantly, keeping the alliteration... Read more
Published on 3 April 2006 by Peacock Wings
Magical and human
Middle English is a diverse collection of different dialects and styles, when it comes to literature. Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2006 by Kurt Messick
Definitely worth a read
Having had an english teacher obsessed with medieval literature we all thought we would be forced to plough through Chaucer in old english. Read more
Published on 23 Oct 2003
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