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Piers the Ploughman (Penguin Classics) Paperback – June 30, 1959

by William Langland (Author), J. F. Goodridge (Translator, Introduction)

5 customer reviews

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Piers the Ploughman (Penguin Classics)

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Product Details

Series: Penguin Classics
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Penguin Classics; New Impression edition (June 30, 1959)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0140440879
ISBN-13: 978-0140440874
Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.8 x 7.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,056,565 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #383 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Literature & Fiction > Poetry
- #760 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Ancient, Classical & Medieval > Ancient & Classical
- #1639 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Poetry

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33 of 36 people found the following review helpful

Unlocking the gates to Piers Plowman

By John Elliott on March 9, 2001

Format: Paperback

Langland's masterpiece, "Piers Plowman", is Middle English poetry that uses language that is more opaque that that of Chaucer, while expression ideas that are at the same time less translucent than Chaucer's. Whereas Chaucer writes to entertain and incidentally edify, Langland's writing aims squarely at the reform of society: his poetic genius is ever bent on conveying his message in the most effective ways it can devise. That those ways are diverse, and that the poem entwines itself around the reader's mind with a fine webbing of delicate strands, makes a first acquaintance with this work for the student of Middle English a potent, provocative, but somewhat overpowering experience. Help is needed. Goodridge's translation into modern English beautifully renders the sense of the poem in a direct and lyrical way. This may be contrasted with most verse translations that tend to be glosses rather than translations. Consider one fragment from the prologue: "Ac of the cardinales atte courte that caught of that name / And power presumed in hem a pope to make, / To han that power that Peter hadde inpugnen I nelle: / For in loue and letterure the eleccioun bilongeth -- / Forthi I can and can naught of courte speke more." What are we to make of "can and can naught"? A verse translation by Donaldson renders this as follows: "But as for the cardinals at court that thus acquired their name / And presumed they had power to appoint a pope / Who should have the power that Peter had -- well I'll not impugn them. / For the election belongs to love and to learning: / Therefore I can and cannot speak of court further." No doubt this has merit as poetry, but of what value is it as a translation?Read more ›

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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

A journey of the simple man

By FrKurt Messick HALL OF FAMEVINE VOICE on October 2, 2005

Format: Paperback

The poem of 'Piers the Ploughman' is often considered to be anonymously composed, as the name William Langland was less an authorial designation as it was an inscription on the back of a manuscript - it would be as if I would be assigned the authorship of the O.E.D. because, in some future time, the only remaining copy was missing the title pages, but still had the hard-cover with my 'ex libris' impression on it. Be that as it may, Langland is considered at least as likely an author as any other, and becomes a sort of stand-in, an 'everyman' for his time period. A few details of this Langland are known - he was a wanderer, a constant reviser (the poem goes through several revisions that scholars have designated as texts A, B, and C (and some argue for Z). This is not a spiritual autobiography, as J.F. Goodridge states in his introduction, but there are no doubt autobiographical elements in the text. That the lead character is named 'Will' helps in this identification.

This poem stands alongside Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales' as one of the great products of Middle English; this also has the character of being a different sort of Middle English than Chaucer's more courtly, continental influenced variety. Thus, it gives breadth to the history of the English language. Goodridge ranks Langland as a great English poet on a par with Spenser, Milton, Wordsworth and Yeats, as representative of his age both in topics as well as language facility.

This epic poem deals with themes familiar for the time - like Dante and Milton, Langland deals with the grand ideas of the meaning of life and the destiny of humankind. However, unlike Dante and Milton, Will and Piers the Ploughman do not go through a mystical, otherworldly adventure or journey, but rather stays rooted to the earth.Read more ›

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2 of 6 people found the following review helpful

It's what I expected

By Joseph Goodman on January 1, 2014

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

Same book I read 40 years ago so I am thrilled about the fact that I was still able to get it.

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0 of 5 people found the following review helpful

Happy

By Aleja Allen on April 17, 2014

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

No marks or signs of ware. Excellent condition to use in class and studying. Cover clean and unbent. Thank you!

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1 of 26 people found the following review helpful

SLowly arrived

By P. Wise on September 3, 2010

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

Items were in excellent condition however, they didn't arrive when needed....snail mail was the only option and requests to pay for expedite mail unanswered. Had to buy books at school, now we have two excellent copies :(

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