SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT-Penguin Classics

Tomorrow I must set off to receive that blow, to seek out that creature in green, God help me!Composed during the fourteenth century in the North of England, Sir gawain and the Green Knight describes the events that follow after a mysterious green-coloured knight rides into King Arthur's Camelot in deep mid-winter. The mighty knight presents a challenge to the court: he will allow himself to be struck by one blow, on condition that he will be allowed to return the strike the following New Year's Day. Sir Gawain takes up the challege, decapitating the stranger- only to see the Green Knight seize up his own severed head and ride away, leaving Gawain to seek him out and honour their pact. Blending Celtic myth and Christmas faith, Gawain is among the greatest Middle English poems: a tale of magic, chavalry and seduction.Bernard O'Donoghue's elegant, lyrical verse translation skilfully conveys the force and imagery of the original, while his introduction considers the work's influences. This edition also includes a note on the traslation and an extract from the original Middle English text.