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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
This amazing piece of art - probably forced at throats of school kids in UK - was forgotten for centuries until unearthed again in 1839 and has been published in various translations ever since. As translator Brian Stone notes it is a language which is remote from Chaucer as Chaucer is from ours - so we are basically talking about dead language. Contrary to zillions of interpretations that dwell on possible symbolical meanings, religion, magic and even erotic angles, I approached it as medieval adventure romance, which works just fine by me. It turned out amazingly easy, absorbing read and best of all is the sense of listening an ancient voice telling a story so removed from our times and perspective - where today we have books and movies packed with non-stop action and cliffhangers, "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" has very little of action and a tons of wonderful, flowery, poetic descriptions that create pure magic if reader is in the right frame of mind - it probably works very well as reading out loud in the winter's night around Christmas I would guess. It is a slim volume of a great beauty and worth re-visiting. The more I think about it, the more I like it.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I didn't like O'Donoghue's translation as much as Armitage's. In fact, I'm not sure why there are so many translations (or any at all).
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The ending ruined it for me! Everything else is wonderful, but all of that to just to be a lesson about God. SMH
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read this right before going to see the movie adaptation so my memory of the book is intertwined with seeing how they adapted it. The movie definitely departs from the original, but it does so in an interesting meta way that is commented on early on as we see a story about Gawain change and morph in the telling, so we are prepared for different interpretations and Truths of the tale. It seemed to me a fitting adaptation of this knight's tale. The writing itself is lovely in the this story and the original was laid beside Merwin's translation. I love to read books that have been translated by poets because I trust that attention will be paid to the beauty and sound of language and imagery instead of just to literal transcription.
A classic of medieval literature and one of the most enduring tales of arthurian romance, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight stills holds up as a charming adventurous tale. It is short enough to read in one sitting and the mystery of the tale keeps the reader engaged. This is a great story for children as well (unlike the new Green Knight movie).