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Title: Malory's Le Morte D' Arthur: King Arthur and the Legends of the Round Table by Sir Thomas Malory, Keith Baines, Robert Graves ISBN: 0-451-52816-6 Publisher: Signet Pub. Date: 10 October, 2001 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.37 (51 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An Excellent Piece of Arthurian Literature
Comment: Sir Thomas Malory's rendition of the Arthurian legend, Le Morte Darthur, is one of the most complete, clear, and enjoyable versions of the story. Malory combines aspects of Arthurian stories found in other works into one complete volume. Le Morte Darthur gives the reader a taste of the romance, as found in lais of Marie de France, as well as the battles and gallantry found in Geoffrey of Monmouth's The History of the Kings of Britain. This edition, based on the Winchester Manuscript and edited by Helen Cooper, combines the battles and romances into a cohesive and enjoyable story which encompasses the stores of Merlin, the quest for the grail, the story of Tristan, and Lancelot and Guenivere.
Malory wrote his story in the late 15th century, and while it was in English, the spelling would be hardly distinguishable to the modern reader. Cooper has edited the text for clarity, but its character is left intact by Cooper's refusal to change words. Included in the book is a table of words that are not commonly used, or appear to mean something other than their intention. This takes some getting used to, but once they sink in, the reader will be appreciative because this language gives the book flair and one does not feel like he or she is reading a modern text. In other Arthurian literature that has been translated from Anglo-Norman, French, or English, much of the original writers craft has been lost, and poetry has become prose. In Cooper's edition of Le Morte Darthur Malory's original work is better represented, and provides a more enjoyable story.
Malory's combination of romance and battle, and the breadth of his story give the reader a lot of material to peruse. The story covers almost every area of the Arthurian legend, and Cooper has edited it in a style so as to keep the Old English feel. This makes Le Morte Darthur the most complete and enjoyable piece of Arthurian literature available.
Rating: 5
Summary: The breadbasket of medieval legends
Comment: LE MORTRE D'ARTHUR (The Death of Arthur) was written by Sir Thomas Malory while he was imprisoned for some number of years. It was one of the very first times that the Arthurian legend was penned in English. There were some older Latin fragments of the myth floating around, but it's thru Malory's account by which we know the stories most thoroughly. The most successful movie adaptation of the legend, EXCALIBUR, is based on elements taken from Malory's epic.
As I struggled through Chaucer while in college, I've not yet gotten up the courage to read the original middle-English version of this work (my apologies to all of the English professors out there). Therefore, it is good that Mr. Keith Baines was kind enough to translate the middle-English into a more accessible lexicon for me & people like me. Baines reveals the myths and legends in all their glory, and I can't help but believe that he expresses them in at least some measure of their middle-English power.
This is an ABSOLUTE must-read for all persons who have even a remote interest in the Arthurian fantasy. Although the book is abridged from the original, it nonetheless contains all of the most famous characters and episodes from the legend.
Within these pages, one will encounter Arthur, Gwynevere, Sir Launcelot, Sir Galahad, Sir Modred, Sir Bors, Sir Percivale, Merlin and all the rest. The purity of Galahad is contrasted with the sinful nature & temporary madness of Launcelot. The memorable allegory of Sir Percivale's duel with Satan, as well as so many other knightly adventures, are all recorded for us here.
This book is highly recommended to all fans of medieval times, medieval literature, the history of Great Britain and the idea of Chivalry. The codes of honor, the rules of fair play and the heroic ideals conceived by the knights of the middle-ages have followed us down thru the centuries and are still as relevant to the best of us today as they were 500-1500 years ago. The story ends with one of the most memorable Latin phrases in literary history:
HIC IACET ARTHURUS, REX QUONDAM REXQUE FUTURUS
[Here lies King Arthur, the once and future King]
Now for the details, open up the book!
Rating: 2
Summary: Overbrief Translation
Comment: In his preface, the translator Keith Baines asserts that he attempted to "provide a concise and lucid rendering of Le Morte d'Arthur" and to clarify "those episodes which, for the purpose in hand, seemed obscure, and condensing those which seemed prolix."
As an example of this condensation in progress, Baines version of The Tale of Sir Launcelot du Lake is 19 pages long. Steinbeck's translation of the same story (which had the goal of accurately preserving the story as told in the Winchester Ms.) runs over 100 pages. Throughout, Baines' edition is horribly abridged. He leaves most of the basic facts from the story intact (though some parts of his translation, especially concerning the obscurer genealogies, are plain wrong when compared to most other editions). However, he cuts all elements that make reading the legend enjoyable.
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Title: The Once and Future King by T. H. White ISBN: 0441627404 Publisher: Ace Books Pub. Date: July, 1987 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Idylls of the King (Penguin Classic) by Alfred Tennyson, Baron Tennyson, J.M. Gray ISBN: 0140422536 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: September, 1989 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: History of the Kings of Britain by Geoffrey of Monmouth, Lewis Thorpe, Thrope Lewis ISBN: 0140441700 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: January, 1977 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: Arthurian Romances (Penguin Classics) by Chretien De Troyes, William W. Kibler, Chretien de Troyes, Carleton W. Carroll ISBN: 0140445218 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: June, 1991 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Beowulf: A New Verse Translation by Seamus Heaney ISBN: 0393320979 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: February, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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