Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

J.A. Burrow (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Classics | Publication Date: September 1, 1987

A New Year's feast at King Arthur's court is interrupted by the appearance of a gigantic Green Knight, resplendent on horseback. He challenges any one of Arthur's men to behead him, provided that if he survives he can return the blow a year later. Sir Gawain accepts the challenge and decapitates the knight but the mysterious warrior cheats death and vanishes, bearing his head with him. The following winter Gawain sets out to find the Knight in the wild Northern lands and to keep his side of the bargain. One of the great masterpieces of Middle English poetry, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight magically combines elements of fairy tale and heroic sagas with the pageantry, chivalry and courtly love of medieval Romance.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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 --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (September 1, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140422951
• ISBN-13: 978-0140422955
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.4 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #924,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Modern English Translation of This Masterpiece, May 5, 2002

By 

Joelline "joelline" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

I know that the Marie Borroff translation is much praised, but this one is far better for the undergraduate classroom. While both translations share some characteristics (both are in poetry, both try to maintain the alliteration), you need only compare/contrast the "bob and wheel" (last 5 lines of each stanza) to see that Stone has managed to maintain "the sting in the tail" so typical of the original Middle English version--wherein a significant or surprising part of the stanza often appears in the bob and wheel--start with Fitt I, stanzas 4 and 7. Stone also maintains the "alliterative signaling" oral tradition: when possible he tries to alliterate only key words (Boroff seems happy when she can alliterate anything in the line, regardless of its significance to theme or motif!). As a medievalist, I am truly sorry to see so many of my colleagues jumping on the Borroff bandwagon when this superior, alternative translation is so readily available.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Burrow's Penguin Classics edition is a solid resource, December 5, 2003

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

The Penguin Classics edition of SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT, edited by J.A. Burrow, is fantastic for motivated readers who wish to approach the text as it really is, and delve deep into its symbolism and historical references. Burrow's edition is not a translation into modern English, but a presentation of the original Middle English with enough notes and and a glossary so copious that the reasonably well-educated reader will be able to tackle and even really enjoy this important work.

While it was written at the same time as Chaucer's CANTERBURY TALES, which is difficult but of which the modern reader can usually get the gist, SIR GAWAIN is written in a dialect of rural England which seems more impenetrable nowadays. Under this archaic facade, however, lies a magical tale ostensibly of Arthurian myth, but which is really an adaptation of an older, indigenous legend. The framing of the tale attempts to claim a noble heritage for England from Troy like the Roman poet Vergil had done for Rome with his AENEID.

I was a bit disappointed by the lack of a decent introduction. Barrow provides only a brief explanation of how the text was typeset and minor alterations in spelling, but I would have preferred coverage of the history of the story, the role of Arthurian myth in the popular literature of the writer's region, and a brief mention of the other contents of the manuscript on which the work was found.

If you are a student of English literature, or simply a lover of archaic English texts, the Penguin edition of SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT is a great choice.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite Gawain, October 10, 2002

By 

Judith C. Kinney (Westerville, OH USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

I have read at least four translations of Gawain, including Tolkein's, and the Brian Stone version is my favorite. It is written in understandable English. As another reviewer has pointed out, Stone's version is most like the medieval one in its structure, its use of alliteration, and the rhyme scheme of the bob and wheel. Tolkein, in an appendix to his version, gives a clear and enlightening explanation of the principles of this kind of poetry. Once you've read Tolkein's explanation, your appreciation of the poem will be greatly enhanced. Nowadays, many poets and others turn up their noses at alliteration, but I love it. So the language is one of the things that make the poem such a pleasure to read.

Another thing that makes Gawain a great read is that it is just a darn good story. When a green man riding a green horse and carrying his own green-haired head gallops into Arthur's dining hall, you know there's going to be some drama in this tale. And there is! There's some hunting and killing of animals for the sportsperson and the bloodthirsty. There's romantic temptation, and there's suspense.

One reviewer speculated on possible symbolism in the novel. The search for deeper meanings might interest some readers. For me to "get" a symbol, it has to jump out of the book and bite me on the nose.