Sir Gawain And The Green Knight, Pearl, And Sir Orfeo: A Collection of Medieval Poems Translated by the Beloved Fantasy Author

Matthew Jon Kathman

It was another good one!

"A fine book! Sad at times. But I like Tolkien very interesting and well written. five out of five. Great read and easy to afford. :) ["

February 18, 2026 Verified Purchase

Tamsyn

Good condition at low cost -- so excited to find this book!

"I am a huge fan of the medieval masterpiece "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," and so grateful that history was kind enough to leave us with a single surviving copy of it, so that we could realize how diverse, imaginative and rich in cultural mythology that Medieval society was. While we don't know the identity of the "Gawain Poet," his (or her) legacy has allowed us to realize that a local, native English literary tradition was thriving in the 14th century, and that many more masterpieces lost to us likely existed. I had read this poem years ago in a modern translation, and was instantly smitten .... The imagery that hearkened back to a deeply observant and poetic vision of the world, which so often seems lost in our digital-obsessed, anti-intellectual society today; the deft weaving of ancient pre-Christian symbolism with Christian themes prevalent at the time of the poem; the epic of Sir Gawain's quest, his inner turmoil and -- ultimately -- his humanity as he wrestled to reconcile his fear of what he was sure to be impending death with his sense of moral and chivalric duty: All these elements deeply resonated with me. As one with a deep and abiding love for and fascination with Old English and Middle English literature, culture, history and the medieval sensibility, I had come to want to experience this epic, powerful poem in its original tongue -- the northern Middle English dialect of the Gawain Poet. Finding such a copy -- and more than that, a version where the idiosyncrasies of that dialect's Middle English orthography were left intact (not standardized into Modern English equivalents) proved more challenging that I expected. When I learned that J.R.R. Tolkien -- not just beloved author of his own epic mythology, but eminent Old English (and linguistic scholar) -- had written his own analysis of the poem, and presented it, orthographically, virtually unchanged from the original, I was ecstatic. Tolkien's insights are to be trusted, and this particular book provides useful appendices on pronunciation of Middle English, notes on word meanings and interesting notes about the original manuscript in which the poem was discovered, and other fascinating context. For anyone with a love of historical English literature, this poem is a must, and I highly recommend reading this poem, if possible, in the original Middle English. So much is ultimately lost in translation -- especially when authors strive to preserve the unique alliterative structure of the poem. For those who might be intimidated by the quirks and inconsistencies of Middle English spelling, and the strangeness of several of the words, never fear: Middle English bears many similarities to Modern English, and once one gets a feel for the pronunciation (and becomes more acquainted with some key Middle English vocabulary), it becomes a thoroughly enjoyable and enriching experience to travel back nearly 700 years to recite this magnificent treasure of English literature in its original tongue. ["

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April 16, 2014 Verified Purchase

Mark Clegg

Three Distinct Epic Poems From 14th Century England

"This is a collection of three alliterative verse poems written in the 14th century by an anonymous author. J.R.R. Tolkien translated them from Chaucer era Middle English and provides essays that are included in the book. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, an Arthurian epic poem, is easily the longest and most well known story. It examines the chivalric code and its conflict with morality, sexual desire, honor and ultimately, mortality. The plot revolves around a "beheading game" with a mysterious Green Knight who gallops in into King Arthur's court during a yuletide feast and challenges any amongst the king and his assembled knights to decapitate him using the Green Knight's own battle axe. The offer comes with the promise that the one delivering the blow would appear in a year's time and present his own neck on the Green Knight's chopping block. Gawain accepts the challenge. The intrigue centers around a mysterious king whom Gawain visits en route to his appointment with the Green Knight. Is the king a shape-shifted Green Knight, and is his alluring and seductive wife also the king and or the Green Knight putting Gawain through his true chivalric test as a knight before the beheading? No spoilers here! The poem Pearl is pure Christian allegory, and is rather tedious. A bereaved father dreams that his deceased young daughter is one of the 144,000 selected virgins (as described in the Book of Revelations) blissfully sitting at the hand of the Lamb of God. She reveals her blessedness and the holy city in the dream and relieves her father of the regret and loss that he constantly struggled with when contemplating her mortal remains decaying in her grave . My favorite was the third epic poem, Sir Orfeo, because it delves into the land of Faerie and the kidnapping of a king's beautiful wife by the Faerie King. The devastated king becomes a vagabond in exile until he devises a clever plan to extricate his wife from Faerie. ["

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May 14, 2023 Verified Purchase

RMWARZ

Enjoyable Translations

"Decades ago, after a whole semester studying the works of Chaucer, I could read Middle English quite fluently. But that was then. Now I appreciate the opportunity to read these three works of medieval English poetry in modern English translations. The poems themselves are approachable and enjoyable for the general reader. The commentary and especially the appendix on verse forms will be of interest largely to scholars. ["

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April 25, 2026 Verified Purchase