Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

By Digireads.com Publishing

Arthurian legends have long been the source of countless popular tales. “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is one of the best known and most widely read. During King Arthur’s New Year’s celebration, a mysterious knight, with green clothes and horse, arrives with a challenge to the knights of the round table—any one of them may swing at the Green Knight with an axe if he too is willing to take a blow one year and one day after. Gawain, one of Arthur’s most noble knights, steps up and easily beheads the Green Knight. Yet the knight magically picks up his head and tells Gawain he will see him in one year and one day. Gawain must go through many tribulations during this year as he upholds the values of the chivalric code, approaching reunion with the enigmatic character. Jessie L. Weston, a noted medieval scholar and folklorist, provides a skilled prose rendition staying true to the original while maintaining readability. “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” continues to resonate and captivate readers today.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Digireads.com Publishing
• Release date: May 31, 2020
• ISBN: 9781420968576

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SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT

By ANONYMOUS

Translated by JESSIE L. WESTON

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

By Anonymous

Translated by Jessie L. Weston

Print ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-6856-9

eBook ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-6857-6

This edition copyright © 2020. Digireads.com Publishing.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Cover Image: a detail of Green Knight’s Wife and Gawain, illustration from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight / (vellum) / © British Library Board. All Rights Reserved / Bridgeman Images.

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CONTENTS

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION

SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

The poem of which the following pages offer a prose rendering is contained in a MS., believed to be unique, of the Cottonian Collection, Nero A.X., preserved in the British Museum. The MS. is of the end of the fourteenth century, but it is possible that the composition of the poem is somewhat earlier; the subject-matter is certainly of very old date. There has been a considerable divergence of opinion among scholars on the question of authorship, but the view now generally accepted is that it is the work of the same hand as Pearl, another poem of considerable merit contained in the same MS.

Our poem, or, to speak more correctly, metrical romance, contains over 2500 lines, and is composed in staves of varying length, ending in five short rhyming lines, technically known as a bob and a wheel,—the lines forming the body of the stave being not rhyming, but alliterative. The dialect in which it is written has been decided to be West Midland, probably Lancashire, and is by no means easy to understand. Indeed, it is the real difficulty and obscurity of the language, which, in spite of careful and scholarly editing, will always place the poem in its original form outside the range of any but professed students of mediæval literature, which has encouraged me to make an attempt to render it more accessible to the general public, by giving it a form that shall be easily intelligible, and at the same time preserve as closely as possible the style of the author.

For that style, in spite of a certain roughness, unavoidable at a period in which the language was still in a partially developed and amorphous stage, is really charming. The author has a keen eye for effect; a talent for description, detailed without becoming wearisome; a genuine love of Nature and sympathy with her varying moods; and a real refinement and elevation of feeling which enable him to deal with a risqué situation with an absence of coarseness, not, unfortunately, to be always met with in a mediæval writer. Standards of taste vary with the age, but even judged by that of our own day the author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight comes not all too badly out of the ordeal!

The story with which the poem deals, too, has claims upon our interest. I have shown elsewhere{1} that the beheading challenge is an incident of very early occurrence in heroic legend, and that the particular form given to it in the English poem is especially interesting, corresponding as it does to the variations of the story as preserved in the oldest known version, that of the old Irish Fled Bricrend.

But in no other version is the incident coupled with that of a temptation and testing of the hero’s honour and chastity, such as meets us here. At first sight one is inclined to assign the episode of the lady of the castle to the class of stories of which the oldest version is preserved in Biblical record—the story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife; a motif not unseldom employed by mediæval writers, and which notably occurs in what we may call the Launfal group of stories. But there are certain points which may make us hesitate as to whether in its first conception the tale was really one of this class.

It must be noted that here the lady is acting throughout with the knowledge and consent of the husband, an important point of difference. In the second place, it is very doubtful whether her entire attitude was not a ruse. From the Green Knight’s words to Gawain when he finally reveals himself, I wot we shall soon make peace with my wife, who was thy bitter enemy, her conduct hardly seems to have been prompted by real passion.

In my Studies on the Legend of Sir Gawain, already referred to, I have suggested that the character of the lady here is, perhaps, a reminiscence of that of the Queen of the Magic Castle or Isle, daughter or niece of an enchanter, who at an early stage of Gawain’s story was undoubtedly his love. I think it not impossible that she was an integral part of the tale as first told, and her rôle here was determined by that which she originally played. In most versions of the story she has dropped out altogether. It is, of course, possible that, there being but a confused reminiscence of the original tale, her share may have been modified by the influence of the Launfal group; but I should prefer to explain the episode on the whole as a somewhat distorted survival of an original feature.

But in any case we may be thankful for this, that the author of the most important English metrical romance dealing with Arthurian legend faithfully adheres to the original conception of Gawain’s character, as drawn before the monkish lovers of edification laid their ruthless hands on his legend, and turned the model of knightly virtues and courtesy into a mere vulgar libertine.

Brave, chivalrous, loyally faithful to his plighted word, scrupulously heedful of his own and others’ honour, Gawain stands before us in this poem. We take up Malory or Tennyson, and in spite of their charm of style, in spite of the halo of religious mysticism in which they have striven to enwrap their characters, we lay them down

Reviews for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

[g026r · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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.

[mbmackay · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Arthurian legendary fight with supernatural Knight.Read Samoa Nov 2003

[gbsallery · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

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).

[mdtwilighter · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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.  

[jesindaloannes · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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.

[mmwiseheart · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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.

[dominiquemarie-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Back to the Classics Reading Challenge 2017
Category: Published Before 1800

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a medieval alliterative romance poem that is surprisingly deep for it's time. I really enjoyed it. The most striking thing about it to me was Gawain's character. He is a dynamic character which is not typical during that era of Literature. The imagery is fantastic. I chose the translation by Simon Armitage in audio book format. I really wanted to hear the poem spoken aloud, so this version was a great choice for me, and the introduction was very helpful.

[ashleypolikoff · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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

[bobobones · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed how this book was a poem, it was in verse but when you read it you don't get caught up in the rhyme and rhythm. When i was reading this book, because its told in third- person form, and i imagined the author was some sort of philosopher because there are times where there are parts that sound like something you would find in a quote book, and it is very descriptive and well worded. though in the middle of the book, it was a little hard for me to follow what was going on. The only way I understood what I was reading was when I read out loud. This story itself is great though. It has good moral values, but it has (just a little bit) goriness.

[thinkneil · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I remember reading a summary of this story in middle or high school, but it is nice to sit down with a classic and let it tell its tale. This is a very good story and its age only makes it more endearing. A simpler story from a different time.

[trilliams · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I wouldn't trust anyone wearing all green in the first place.

[amishtechie-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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.

[thedivineoomba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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.

[dreesie-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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!

[tjsjohanna_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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!

[poetontheone · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

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.

[ijustgetbored · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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.

[cmbohn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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!

[heidip_38 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Isn't this just the creepiest cover? Anyway, I've read this for the thriller category for the Back to the Classics Challenge. King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table enjoy a Christmas celebration. But, along comes a huge green knight who goads them into accepting a challenge. In order to protect King Arthur, Sir Gawain agrees to the challenge. He must make one blow with his sword against the Green Knight today, then in one year Sir Gawain must come and find the Green Knight and receive one blow from him. Well, Sir Gawain chops his head off in one blow, but the Green Knight picks up his head and laughingly gallops off. You'll have to read it to see what happens.

[philsyphe · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I read this in 2011 for one of my university modules.I found it interesting to read something as old as this but didn't find it especially entertaining. I only read this because I had to!

[bryndahlquis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

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!

[janeajones · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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 .

[morgannakerrie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An epic poem about Sir Gawain from Arthur's court.

[smiley_13 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent.