I live in the North-West of England — not very far from the Cheshire / Staffordshire border, in fact — and for those not familiar with this part of the world, you may be interested to know that Northern English accents and dialects are still to this day noticeably different from those in London and the South. (Although not as different now as they were once.) There are definitely Northern dialect words that you don't hear anywhere else — and one of them is "fell" for "hill / mountain", which is of course that Old Norse word "fjall" in modern form! It's not used in Cheshire (we don't have many big hills), nor in the Peak District to the east, but hills are definitely fells further north in Lancashire, Yorkshire, and most of all in Cumbria / the English Lake District. I spend a lot of time in the latter and I can say for sure, up there you always go walking up in the fells, never the "hills"!
Not sure I will be able to join in the reading group, but this is definitely a piece of Middle English literature I should get to know better, especially now I know the author came from near where I now live!
Another thing as I cannot resist talking about my favourite medieval text. The pearl poet is so human with the way (he presumably) writes. There is so much love poured into this text and this story it feels almost autobiographical- like we get a view into the creative psyche of writers in this time and what it means to be creative throughout time. I’m giving a lecture on this exact topic on my campus next week so I’m so happy to have this appear on my feed as I take a break from writing my lecture notes!!
I still have the Tolkien and Gordon version, edited by Davis, that Colin refers to, I had it for an English literature class in school years ago (manige wintra!), and it's still there in the bookcase. Also, precisely like Colin mentions, I experienced the contrast between the English of Chaucer and the Gawain poet.
Feeling brave one summer a few years ago, I decided that I was going to read all of Canterbury Tales in the original, no translation to assist me. I started positively and discovered, after only a few pages, that "wow, I get this!" Not every word was clear, but I got smooth flow. And, right through to the end, tons of enjoyment. And pride. But pride as all know "goeth before the fells", or somesuch thing. Anyway then I was beyond brave, then I was cocky and decided that I was going to keep on and go straight to Gawain; because obviously, if I managed so well with Chaucer then I should be just as able to read SGATGK. Uh, nope.
My parents bought me a book of this story as a child due to my name which is one of my earliest memories. Lovely to hear it being discussed again as an adult.
Hi Colin, I only just discovered your Substack, and I have to say I absolutely loved reading this post - such a wonderful retelling of the Gawain story and then such a fascinating explanation about Middle English & how this would've been difficult even for Chaucer to read (made me feel so much better about myself! 😅). Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you 🤩
My degree in Journalism required two full years of English Lit. I hadn't thought of Sir. Gawain since my boys were young. Bedtime reading was a standing tradition for many years, and I remember reading an age-appropriate version of this story to them. Thanks for the refresher!
I've been reading a few different translations of Sir Gawain. I found a little gem. This young adult retelling has SPECTACULAR watercolours by Michael Foreman. It's prose, but I was surprised how close it stayed to detail of the original. It even fleshed out a bit the part of the journey that the anonymous poet tantalizingly glossed over - battles with wyrms and trolls! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight_(children%27s_novel)
The audio version of the Simon Armitage translation is read by Bill Wallis, who first reads the translation and then reads it again in the original middle English.
I live in the North-West of England — not very far from the Cheshire / Staffordshire border, in fact — and for those not familiar with this part of the world, you may be interested to know that Northern English accents and dialects are still to this day noticeably different from those in London and the South. (Although not as different now as they were once.) There are definitely Northern dialect words that you don't hear anywhere else — and one of them is "fell" for "hill / mountain", which is of course that Old Norse word "fjall" in modern form! It's not used in Cheshire (we don't have many big hills), nor in the Peak District to the east, but hills are definitely fells further north in Lancashire, Yorkshire, and most of all in Cumbria / the English Lake District. I spend a lot of time in the latter and I can say for sure, up there you always go walking up in the fells, never the "hills"!
Not sure I will be able to join in the reading group, but this is definitely a piece of Middle English literature I should get to know better, especially now I know the author came from near where I now live!
YESSSS I love Gawain so much. Getting my teeth into pearl next and it’s a very different beast!
Another thing as I cannot resist talking about my favourite medieval text. The pearl poet is so human with the way (he presumably) writes. There is so much love poured into this text and this story it feels almost autobiographical- like we get a view into the creative psyche of writers in this time and what it means to be creative throughout time. I’m giving a lecture on this exact topic on my campus next week so I’m so happy to have this appear on my feed as I take a break from writing my lecture notes!!
I still have the Tolkien and Gordon version, edited by Davis, that Colin refers to, I had it for an English literature class in school years ago (manige wintra!), and it's still there in the bookcase. Also, precisely like Colin mentions, I experienced the contrast between the English of Chaucer and the Gawain poet.
Feeling brave one summer a few years ago, I decided that I was going to read all of Canterbury Tales in the original, no translation to assist me. I started positively and discovered, after only a few pages, that "wow, I get this!" Not every word was clear, but I got smooth flow. And, right through to the end, tons of enjoyment. And pride. But pride as all know "goeth before the fells", or somesuch thing. Anyway then I was beyond brave, then I was cocky and decided that I was going to keep on and go straight to Gawain; because obviously, if I managed so well with Chaucer then I should be just as able to read SGATGK. Uh, nope.
My parents bought me a book of this story as a child due to my name which is one of my earliest memories. Lovely to hear it being discussed again as an adult.
Do you know the Birtwistle opera based on the poem? It’s not an easy listen but is hauntingly dramatic.
https://open.spotify.com/album/6GItS5pt7ZXGy6CTybTBxm?si=pWAYR0NmTg6ZqYT6tl4uqw
>French indoors, Norse outdoors
Or as it might alternatively be styled, "Norse in the streets, French ..." haha
Hi Colin, I only just discovered your Substack, and I have to say I absolutely loved reading this post - such a wonderful retelling of the Gawain story and then such a fascinating explanation about Middle English & how this would've been difficult even for Chaucer to read (made me feel so much better about myself! 😅). Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you 🤩
My degree in Journalism required two full years of English Lit. I hadn't thought of Sir. Gawain since my boys were young. Bedtime reading was a standing tradition for many years, and I remember reading an age-appropriate version of this story to them. Thanks for the refresher!
Does anyone know which edition has the facing Middle English original?
I found this W.W. Norton edition on Amazon, and the sample pages show facing page original/translation.
https://tinyurl.com/2ywdbzhn
Excellent read & fascinating ❤️
I've been reading a few different translations of Sir Gawain. I found a little gem. This young adult retelling has SPECTACULAR watercolours by Michael Foreman. It's prose, but I was surprised how close it stayed to detail of the original. It even fleshed out a bit the part of the journey that the anonymous poet tantalizingly glossed over - battles with wyrms and trolls! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight_(children%27s_novel)
I used to teach this in my Arthurian Lit course and also read Tolkien’s version in graduate school. Still love it! Taught Borroff.
I didn't join Beowulf, but the opening scene grabbed my attention and won't let go. See you on 5/5!
Any audio version of the Middle English? Any guide to pronunciation?
The audio version of the Simon Armitage translation is read by Bill Wallis, who first reads the translation and then reads it again in the original middle English.
You've sold me on it.
Which translation is most literal?