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    Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
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    Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
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    Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
    Ebook113 pages1 hour

    Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

    By Dover Publications

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    About this ebook

    This prose rendering of a poem from the late fourteenth century (or earlier) recounts an adventure undertaken by King Arthur's famous nephew, Sir Gawain. Brave and chivalrous, faithful to his word and ever-mindful of his honor, as well as others', Gawain represents the model of knightly grace. When a gigantic stranger clad in green armor bursts in on the Round Table assembly to issue a challenge, the gallant Gawain volunteers to do battle for his king. This parable blends paganistic elements and Christian ethics to celebrate the virtue of forgiveness, and it is frequently assigned to classes in literature and history because of its short length and its excellent representation of chivalric tradition. Unabridged republication of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A Middle-English Arthurian Romance Retold in Modern Prose, originally published by Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1909.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDover Publications
    Release dateMar 5, 2012
    ISBN9780486113715
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

    4/5

    1,288 ratings41 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Excellent.
    • 5/5
      The meter on this thing is pretty impressive: a strict alliterative pattern of two stresses, a pause, and two more stresses, with a five-line rhyming stanza (a short line followed by four with an ABAB scheme) at the end of each passage. It should be terribly constrictive, but the Gawain poet flows through it like it's nothing.

      Not that I can read the original, of course, so I have to take Armitage's word for it that it's as good as his translation, which I did like. This edition has the original on the left side and the translation on the right, though, which allows you to see how close he's hewing and also lets you play the "How well could I understand this?" game. (Answer: not at all. Those people talked funny.)

      The intro here has an interesting point: Anglo languages, Armitage says, stress the beginnings of words, whereas Romantic ones stress the ends. For this reason, Anglo epic poetry tends to focus on alliteration, while Romantic ones focus on rhyme. Get it? It had never occurred to me before. That's kindof cool.

      This isn't a long book; I blazed through it in a single night over a couple glasses of wine while Kirsten was out getting blasted at some company event.
    • 4/5
      One of the best of the 'classic' Arthurian tales. Gawain is presented a bit differently here from many of the other ones. Usually he's a bit of a braggart and kind of a jerk, especially to women, but here he is presented as the perfect exemplar of courtoisie. He's also a bit young and still untried, so maybe that explains it for those who want to be able to have a grand unified theory of Arthuriana.

      Anyway, you probably all know the story: Arthur is about to have a New Year's feast, but according to tradition is waiting for some marvel to occur. Right on cue in trots the Green Knight on his horse, a giant of a man who proceeds to trash the reputation of the entire court and dare someone to cut off his head as long as he gets to return the favour. No one makes a move and Arthur decides he better do something about this until Gawain steps up and asks to take on this quest himself. Everyone agrees and Gawain proceeds to smite the green head from the Knight's body. Everyone is fairly pleased with the result until the Green Knight gets up, picks up his smiling head, and says: "See you next year, G. Don't forget that it's my turn then." (I paraphrase, the middle english of the poet is far superior.) Needless to say everyone is a bit nonplussed by this.

      The year passes and Gawain doesn't seem to do much of anything until he finally decides it's time to get out and find this green fellow and fulfill his obligation...hopefully something will come up along the way to improve his prospects. What follows is a journey to the borders of the Otherworld as well as a detailed primer on just how one ought to act in order to follow the dictates of courtliness. Gawain ends up being the guest of Sir Bertilak, a generous knight who says that the Green Chapel, the destination of Gawain's quest, is close by and Gawain should stay with them for the duration of the holidays. We are treated to some coy (and mostly chaste) loveplay on the part of Bertilak's wife from which Gawain mostly manages to extricate himself without contravening the dictates of politeness, as well as the details of a medieval deer, boar and fox hunt with nary a point missing.

      In the end Gawain goes to the chapel and finds that his erstwhile host Bertilak was in fact the Green Knight. Gawain submits himself and is left, after three swings, with only a scratch as a reward for his courteous behaviour in Bertilak's castle. Despite the apparent success of Gawain, he views the adventure as a failure since he did not come off completely unscathed and he wears a girdle he was gifted by Bertilak's wife as a mark of shame to remind himself of this. Harsh much?

      The language of the Gawain poet's middle english is beautiful and I highly recommend reading it in the original with a good translation at hand to catch the nuances of meaning. The poem is replete with an almost dreamlike quality that is made real by all of the exquisite details of medieval life that are interspersed throughout the text. This is a great book to read at Christmas time.
    • 4/5
      It's not at all what I was expecting. I'm not sure what I -was- expecting, but Sir Gawain and the Green Knight wasn't quite as epic and noble as I was thinking. Perhaps I was envisioning too modern a version of an arthurian knight.I got really into the beginning, even reading it aloud at times because the translation is just so pretty, but then the middle lost me. When Gawain started just sitting around the castle dodging the seductive lady (who is freaky), I grew very disappointed in him.But the ending makes up for it. I was -not- expecting a twist from a classic epic poem!
    • 3/5
      Something of a slog. Whilst the archaic English form is in many ways delightful, it contains at least two letters which just don't come up in modern usage, which is at the very least a challenge. However, persistence is rewarded, as the story of the Green Knight is pleasantly odd and offers a real window into the early medieval mind-set. The descriptions of hunting are particularly vividly brought to life, which makes a sharp contrast to the motivations and drives of Sir Gawain - who remains utterly an enigma (if incorruptible).
    • 4/5
      I love this Edition of the book. Some say the Simon Armitage translation has too many modern inclusions, however that is what makes it approachable to the modern reader. The flow of the metre and the language is so rich you can just feel the heavy air in the ancient halls or the spring-fresh breezes and tang of new growth. All is enhanced by this Folio Society edition which Diana Sudyka presents us a mixture of a modern minimalist style (bold outline-stroke outlines) enriched with the classic medieval styling of vibrant color accents.A Beautiful and certainly collectable classic.
    • 4/5
      The poet of this poem (and a few others) is unknown, and scholars have been guessing and debating for decades. In any case, this poet was a contemporary of Chaucer, but his poems are much more accessible. I can only imagine how difficult the translating is, as this poem is alliterative, with clear cadences throughout. I actually read about half of it out loud, simply because it sounds good.Gawain is a well-known character in Arthurian circles, though I am unfamiliar with him. In this poem he takes on a challenge given by the Green Knight--and fulfills it. No spoilers, but a quest of sorts is involved, as well as honesty. There are also some short essays on the manuscript, the poet, the pentangle, Arthurian themes, and there are a few pages of original text (which is almost readable but not quite).Very much worth reading!
    • 5/5
       I adore this. I have to admit to cheating slightly, in that it was in translation and not in the original middle English, but I think that's allowed.



      Poetry of this vintage is very different to that we're used to - there's nothing even resembling the usual iambic pentameter, and the end of the lines don't even begin to rhyme. Instead the rhythm comes from the alliteration of the stressed sylables within a line. It seems to lend itself to being read aloud - maybe an indication of the transition from an aural to a written tradition.



      The poem itself is a tale of king Arthur's court, with a challenge being issued by a stranger at the Christmas court, and the bulk of story being played out at the following year's end. It has everything - chivalrous knights, the splendour of court, lovely ladies, but it also has dark overtones - there's sex, blood and gore of the hunt (both beast and man). There's also the threat of nature to the ordered life of the court and to an individual against it. It's not very long, no more than 115 pages, but it has so much packed into it that it goes by in a flash.
    • 4/5
      A very readable version of the poem. Armitage retains the verve of the original story as well as the beat,alliteration and bob-and wheel sections (two syllable lines followed by a quatrain) of the original poetry.

      'And they danced and they sang til the sun went down
      that day
      But mind your mood, Gawain,
      keep blacker thoughts at bay,
      or lose this lethal game
      you've promised you will play.'

      The poem was fastened to the page in the late 14thc, in the "alliteration revival" style : it was a style of verse that keeps to an Anglo-Saxon literary style and was almost certainly orally transmitted before. The use of repetition and alliteration are characteristic of the oral tradition: think about how fabulous the rhythm of lines like these sound spoken aloud

      'Then they riled the creature with their rowdy ruckus
      and suddenly he breaks the barrier of beaters -
      the biggest of wild boars has bolted from his cover'

      I love that Simon Armitage has let the poem breathe and remain a living thing rather than a dry academic exercise. The loss of a star is due to the fact that occasionally there is a choice of a word that jars, that sounds a bit too modern, chosen for the sake of the alliteration but can feel a bit shoe- horned in. I also prefer a side by side translation, but that is being a bit nit picky as the original is readily available .




    • 4/5
      During holiday festivities in King Arthur's court, a mysterious green knight appears with a challenge: any knight of Arthur's court may strike the green knight a blow, and the green knight will return the strike in a year's time. The only knight brave enough to face the challenge is young Gawain, who indeed strikes the green knight, chopping off his head. Unperturbed, the green knight picks up his head and tells Gawain to find him in a year's time in order to receive the return blow. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, written by an unknown fourteenth-century poet, is my favorite of the classic Arthurian tales (so far). The story is vivid and full of gorgeous contrasts, love and death and trust and renewal. The story unfolds with good pacing and entertaining adventures with true courtly manners, all without being redundant or dull (as some unnamed fourteenth-century Arthurian romances can be).Armitage's translation from the Middle English focuses on the alliterative and poetic structure of the original, rather than being a literal translation. The Middle English version appears on the left hand page with the Modern version on the right, so the reader can compare and see the differences. For the most part his version is surprisingly readable with beautiful phrases and imagery, though in some cases it strays into being a bit too modern (at one point Arthur is described as "keeping his cool"), which can be jarring. My second reading was just as enjoyable as the first, and I would love to add it to my library.However, since Arimitage's is only the only translation I've read, I'm very curious about trying a more literal translation. Apparently, even J.R.R. Tolkien did a translation, and I'd love to read that. For audio book lovers, I highly recommend the audio version of Armitage's translation, which is read by Bill Wallis. He does an amazing job highlighting the alliterative aspects of the text, while making it easy to follow. Once the Modern English translation is finished, Wallis then does an amazing reading of the original Middle English version of the book. It's amazing to hear and I found myself understanding more than I thought I would. Fantastic.
    • 4/5
      I read the untranslated version in college, and thanks to a linguistics class and a history of the english language class, my elitist English scholar self can now cringe whenever Armitage takes liberties with the original text. However, he explains why he does so in the introduction, in order to keep the original sound of the poem and in order to preserve the meaning of the original text. In the end, I agree with his choices and I feel he has done the modern reader a great service with this translation. There were a few times he chose alliteration over meaning, resulting in a few phrases that I considered to be anachronistic. But overall, Armitage's translation is beautiful and digs up the exciting story that has been buried under elitist/scholarly translations and from heavily footnoted untranslated versions for years and years
    • 5/5
      A splendid translation of the best of the English Arthurian romances. Armitage has made this classic readable and exciting for the 21st century. SGGK is a gorgeously crafted tale full of games, laughter, human foibles, tragedy averted and humanity triumphant .
    • 2/5
      Interesting story, well executed compellingly told, excellent and sometimes beautiful use of language and good moral messages. Would give a higher rating but for the ending.

      When everything is done, and Gawain completes his quest, and the moral aspects of the story are dealt with (truth, honour, keeping word, resisting temptation etc), the Green Knight reveals the identity of the Old Woman in his castle as none other than Morgana le Fey, Arthur's mortal enemy and practitioner of Black Magic- who put him up to challenging Arthur's knights.

      Said Green Knight seems to have no problem Morgana living in his manor, and doing what she says, and asks dear Gawain to come in and say hello to her because she is his Aunt-- so apparently he has no problem with her association with 'the black arts' and thinks it is perfectly acceptable for a 'good Christian' to be involved with such.

      The other issue was with the translation whilst generally good, the use of some overtly modern terms and phrases could be questionable.

    • 5/5
      It seems strange giving a book like this a rating in stars, because it's so ancient and it's not like it's the latest Dan Brown novel or something. ;)I studied this book, and I write an essay or two on it, and I loved it mostly because of where it came from.
    • 5/5
      I'm so glad I got a chance to read this one. It took a while, but it was totally worth it. I love this story!
    • 4/5
      I've always liked the story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, but I never enjoyed reading it before. I first encountered this tale in a survey course of British Literature early in my college career (first semester--Beowulf to Sheridan; second semester--Blake to the Present Day...I still have the texts), in which we were exhorted to remember that the knight's name was pronounced GOWan. With apologies to the late Mr. Graham (who I believe preferred the 18th century to the 14th), I'm all in favor of Armitage's approach---let the rhythm and the alliterative requirements of the text dictate which consonant or syllable gets the stress. This version is so read-out-loudable that I feel it banishes any objection that might be raised to liberties Armitage took with literalness. (I'm not much of a purist that way when it comes to translating poetry anyway. I mean...it needs to remain poetic, above all.) I later had some exposure to the medieval language of the poem in a more advanced course; I may even have been expected to claw some of it into modern English myself, an effort best lost to time. This edition places the ancient version side-by-side with the new translation. It's interesting to compare, and to try to remember the sounds of the good old Anglo-Saxon, a clankier language by far. I counted four different spellings of our valiant knight's name in that text--Gawan, Gawayne, Gawen and Gauan. Surely that isn't just sloppiness or inconsistency, but suggestive of varying pronunciation in the original? In any case, if you're inclined to visit this classic tale, I commend you to Armitage's translation. It's just plain fun.
    • 5/5
      This is the book to get your poetry-resistant friend this #Booksgiving 2017. I read it on a dare. I don't like poetry very much, it's so snooty and at the same time so pit-sniffingly self-absorbed that I'd far rather stab my hands with a fork repeatedly than be condescended to in rhyming couplets.This tale is fabulous in every sense of the word, which is no surprise since it's survived for so many centuries. But poet and translator Simon Armitage has made the old world new again. He sucked me right in and never let me come up for air with his gorgeous words and his carefully chosen words and his alliterative rhythmical phrases.If the idea of a Norton Critical Edition is keeping you far away from this delightful read, rest assured it's not stodgy or dry or just plain boring. It's vibrant, alive, shimmering with an inner power, waiting for you to open its covers and fall utterly under its spell. Become happily ensorcelled, gentle reader, relax into the sure and strong embrace of a centuries-old knight and his spectacular tale.
    • 4/5
      Let me tell you, then, a tale of adventure,A most striking one among the marvels of ArthurWhich some will consider a wonder to hear.If you listen closely to my words a little whileI'll tell it to you now as I heard it toldin town;A bold story, well proven,And everywhere well known,The letters all interwoven,As custom sets it down.During a New Year's feast at Arthur's court, Sir Gawain takes up a challenge issued by a strange green-skinned knight, and must find his way to the Green Chapel a year later to meet the mysterious knight again. On the way he stays at a castle for Christmas, whose lord and lady, while very hospitable, seem to be playing games with him. There were detailed descriptions of later fourteenth century armour, hospitality, hunting and also the traditional way of butchering deer and boar at the end of the hunt, which was fascinating. This poem about a quest by one of King Arthur's nephews, was written by an unknown poet in the late fourteenth century, in the dialect of the Cheshire/Staffordshire border. The Oxford World's Classics version contains an interesting introduction and useful notes alongside a verse translation by Keith Harrison. He has used an alliterative style to echo the pattern of the original Middle English poem, which was meant to be spoken aloud rather than read.
    • 4/5
      This is a longish narrative poem in Middle English, here translated into modern English by the well-known British poet Simon Armitage. It recounts one of the legends of King Arthur and his nephew Gawain. It starts on New Year's Day at an elaborate banquet celebration at Arthur's court. In the first few stanzas, the company is invaded by a green giant who rides his green horse right into the banqueting hall, and demands a trial of fortitude with any one of the knights. Gawain volunteers, and the giant directs him to take one swing with the giant's axe at the giant's neck, unresisted. Gawain complies and chops off the giant's head. The giant picks up his head, gets back on his horse, and bids Gawain to show up at the giant's place, The Green Chapel, in one year to the day to suffer the giant's return blow. Then off he goes. The rest of the story tells of Gawain's search for The Green Chapel and his adventures when he gets there.The narrative approach throughout is light-hearted and lyrical. Suspense is maintained by a series of delays, but without any of the tiresome digressions that plague medieval romance. The poet excels in describing the scenes of nature and daily life (of the aristocracy) that surround the main action. The scenes of hunting particularly impressed me with their realism and detail. The poem takes a slightly humorous, ironic view of the conventions of courtly romance. The author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a contemporary of Chaucer, is thought also to be the author of three other poems, The Pearl, Patience, and Cleanness. He or she is often referred to as The Gawain Poet or The Pearl Poet. The poem is written in stanzas of varying lengths consisting of unrhymed lines of alliterative verse terminated by a five-line section of short rhymed lines. It has a nice sort of swing to it, both in the original and in Armitage's translation, which duplicates the original stanza form. I read mostly the translation (the original is on facing pages) since I am not very good at Middle English, and this is particularly hard, being a northwest midlands dialect with a vocabulary quite different from Chaucer's London dialect. But I could read enough to sense the musicality that Armitage preserves. I infer from reviews that Armitage's translation is more informal than the well-known translation by J. R. R. Tolkien. I haven't read that one but will try to do so soon. Recommended to fans of Arthurian legends, descriptive poetry, and good yarns.
    • 4/5
      Wow. This is good stuff, but not written for a modern audience. I found myself trying to figure out what the motivation of Gawain is. Once I figured exactly what chivalry is, everything became much clearer.As for the other stuff in this book, namely the translators notes and essays, I found myself enjoying them. Mr. Stone has a tone that is very English, very polite, and very condescending. I love how he can agree with one scholar while dismissing another in the the next sentence. Best of all, he knows what he is talking about. I found the extra stuff to be very illuminating although a bit wordy.
    • 4/5
      While perhaps not the most accurate translation, it remains one of the more readable by the general reader, and maintains a sense of vitality and flow throughout. My main complaint would be a few too modern, or too slang-y phrasing choices of the sort that feel forced and dated a mere handful of years later.
    • 3/5
      This relatively short medieval poem is written in lyrical verse with interesting structure that is quite readable. A take on Arthurian legend that is often light-hearted, but there is some blood. The main plot device is a beheading, after all. Not to mention Sir Gawain's temptation by the Lady of the castle in which he takes in lodging over the Christmas holiday. Juicy.
    • 4/5
      A great translation- I thought the endnotes were especially helpful. I had to read the book for English, but it made me interested in the genre as a whole. I want to read more now about Arthur and Camelot. I never realized that there were these intricate stories that went deeper into the legend of King Arthur.  
    • 4/5
      I love Sir Gawain and The Green Knight; it is interesting not only because of its expansive picture of what chivalry is (and what people pretend it is), but also for the fact that it can be read from many perspectives (try giving it a feminist reading, for instance, and see what you come up with!). I want to commend Borroff's translation in particular; she reproduces the alliterative meter and verse structure superbly, adding much to the reading. This work is captivating and entrancing; I highly recommend it.
    • 5/5
      I have a hard copy of Simon Armitage's "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight". Unfortunately, I haven't had time to read it, so when the CD of the audio book fell into my hands, I was over the moon. I really enjoy listening to Simon Armitage's voice and the idea of listening to him read his own translation of this poem, whilst commuting, was exciting. I have recently discovered the pleasures of listening to audio books when driving, especially along the highways, when you have time to actually absorb what is being read, so this audiobook fit the bill perfectly. I'm so glad I have it on my iPod now, so I can listen and re-listen. The poem recounts the story of Sir Gawain, a knight in King Arthur’s court, who offers to take the sovereign’s place in a challenge set by a visitor to Camelot on New Year’s Eve. The stranger asks that a blow be struck against him with an axe and, in exchange, he will be allowed to do the same one year later to his challenger. It is a mediaeval tale of the chivalry and virtues, with lavish descriptions and more than a hint at (pagan) magic.Simon Armitage possesses a warm voice, that is soft without being soporific and somehow it gave the reading of this poem more atmosphere. The lilt in his voice added a slightly magical air to the words, especially when describing the rich costumes of the characters. I realise his accent may not appeal to all, but given he was raised in the area from where the original author was said to hail, it lends itself to the authenticity of the tale.I highly recommend this audio version and I am more anxious than ever to read the book for myself. Now all I have to do is find the time.
    • 4/5
      I like this translation because the introduction is long enough to get me started, but not so long that it feels like work to read. And there is a great appendix that explains the poetical form, which I really enjoyed learning about and that helped me to appreciate the poem more. The poem itself is surprisingly vivid. The images are rich and the story is detailed and even brutal at times. I also liked the moral message - even the "best" of us had better beware of pride!
    • 3/5
      Some passages of this book were unexpectedly droll. It might come fromSimon Armitage's translation, which makes use of many words and expressions which I didn't know, and which are marked as familiar in my dictionary. It doesn't bother me too much that he uses these terms, because they do not sound familiar to my French ear anyway. But native English speakers will maybe find it somewhat jarring.A few examples gathered haphazardly (with the line number):'He leaps from where he lies at a heck of a lick,' (1309)heck and at a lick are referred by dictionaries as familiar or informal. My Harrap's Unabridged translates at a tremendous lick as à fond la caisse, à fond de train, which is indeed familiar.'so that many grew timid and retreated a tad.' (1463)a tad is again familiar or informal. As un peu wouldn't sound informal in French, a tad is translated by un chouïa, un tantinet. The 1st expression comes from North Africa and is indeed very familiar (I wouldn't write it in a French translation of Sir Gawain!), the second, though familiar too, is very old-fashioned and could suit a text on chivalry.'If someone were so snooty as to snub your advance,' (1496)snooty is again informal.There are many more similar examples—much more than one in each page. At least, they allowed me to increase my familiar and informal vocabulary. Let alone the jointing scenes, whose vocabulary is however much harder to place in conversation. But Simon Armitage's choices of informal terms perhaps makes the tale more entertaining finally. It might be the reason why I was surprised by this book and eventually liked it.
    • 5/5
      The changing of the seasons, the clothing of the characters, and the bloody battles and hunt scenes are all described with such vivid detail. I love the expression of the struggle that Gawain faces between chivalry and what he knows to be right.
    • 4/5
      An epic poem about Sir Gawain from Arthur's court.
    • 4/5
      This Folio Society Edition is very nice with huge thick pages and some lovely illustrations. It is Simon Armitage’s translation but it does not have the dual language format, just the new verse. The story is good, at least for being centuries and centuries old. There are some misogynistic themes in the end unfortunately, but the overall message of cowardice and valor was rewarding in my opinion. I do not know much about old English translation, but I enjoyed the work that Mr. Armitage did with the alliterations. I'm sure it must have been difficult to compose while staying to true to the meter and meaning of the original. I was also interested in this story's contribution to the Arthurthian myth. Armitage's translation posits Uther as Arthur's father and Morgan as his mother but also as the wife of the Green Knight. There are strong Christian words used to describe the green chapel where the Green Knight abides: Satan, evil, ect. But once the ruse is up, Morgan's witchcraft seems tolerable and almost necessary as Gawain's test. I wonder if this tolerance is so apparent in the original text. If so, how indicative of the times when it was written. Was “magic”, despite its non Christian origins, tolerable or maybe even just something to be reckoned with?This was book was pleasure to hold, admire, and read aloud. It might become one of those Christmas books that gets read every year to the family.