I’ve finished my seventh book! This is really exciting, guys. I might be able to add more titles to my list for this year. If I did, what would you suggest? Would love to get some reader recommends. But for now, let’s jump into the review of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and its impressive alliteration.
Plot summary
This story-length poem takes us back to the grand old days of King Arthur’s court at Camelot. It starts at the castle as the knights and ladies settle in for some Christmas and New Year’s shenanigans. King Arthur in particular is keen for someone to do something out of the ordinary by way of entertainment.
Obligingly, who should appear but the Green Knight. He rides his horse into the banqueting hall (rude) and lays down a challenge to any knight brave enough to face him. While King Arthur is keen to accept, Sir Gawain steps in and asks for the challenge as a gift from the King, who agrees.
I won’t spoil the key moment here, but suffice it to stay that something supernatural goes down. This leaves Sir Gawain in the awkward position of being under oath to find the Green Knight on New Year’s Day the next year to get his head cut off.
This, one would imagine, should put a damper on the festivities. And Gawain’s year in general. Actually, they all have a little strained laugh and carry on. A year later, Gawain is off on his hunt for the Green Knight. On the way he encounters a mysterious castle, a beautiful married woman, her very generous husband and finally the Green Knight himself.
I’ll leave it there to avoid any major spoilers.
What I loved: announcing alluring alliteration
Hats off to the Middle English poet who managed to alliterate so darn much. The flow of the poem is beautiful, the story always makes sense and the alliteration just keeps on rolling. This might get annoying for some, but I really enjoyed it. There’s a lot of skill in that, and it gave a charming lilt to the whole thing. This is a poem, but it has more focus on rhythm than rhyme.
I also enjoyed the deep connection to virtue and faith throughout the poem. It’s not something you see a lot of in later writing but it was very refreshing. Despite its unusual title character, it isn’t too focused on the supernatural, but rather on the virtue of the ordinary man. The copy I have also included some interesting essays at the back which expounded on those themes a little more which was educational. Not as fun as the poem, of course.
What I struggled with: nothing really
This was a joy to read. I literally finished it in two nights. Poetry might not be everyone’s cup of tea but I had a great time. Anything too ye olde that I didn’t understand was quickly cleared up by the notes at the back. The story was delightfully portrayed without being too heavy, but still delivered quality and even some tension about the fake of Sir Gawain. Highly recommend this one, especially if you like poetry already.
