Posted by Sterling on 26/11/2011, 2:06:27, in reply to "Recent Reading"
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I certainly have nothing to add to your Arthurian exploration. I have read Gottfried, Wolfram, and Malory. Many years ago I read Beowulf, The Song of Roland, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I don't believe I've read any of the others (aside from Evangeline Walton's adaptation of The Mabinogion).
Outside of the Arthurian, though, have you read Icelandic sagas? Njal's Saga is probably the best known. It is excellent, and it reads quite startlingly like a modern novel.
--Previous Message--
: So what has everyone been reading this Fall if not
: William H. Gass?
:
: A couple of months ago it occurred to me that there is
: a huge gap in my reading where medieval literature,
: especially Arthurian legends, should be. So in recent
: weeks I have read:
:
: Beowulf (re-read from high school)
: The Arthurian Romances by Chrétien de Troyes
: The Song of Roland
: The Mabinogion
: Parzival by Wolfram von Eschenbach
:
: It is fascinating to see the evolution of legends,
: characters and symbols such as the Grail (which was
: not, initially, conceived as a cup or anything to do
: directly with Jesus). Parzival is an especially
: entertaining epic, but I would recommend reading
: Chrétien's Romances first because Wolfram draws from
: them and ties them together.
:
: My medieval journey will continue in coming months
: with:
:
: The Lais of Marie de France
: Tristan by Gottfried von Strassburg
: The Romance of the Rose by Guillame de Lorris
: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
: Tirant lo Blanc by Joanot Martorell
: Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory
:
: Then wrapping up in the modern era with The Once and
: Future King by T. H. White
:
: Do you note anything missing from this list that
: should be there? (I read The Canterbury Tales last
: year, by the way.)
:
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