Sir Gawain and the green knight and the literary achievement of the north-west Midlands: the historical background

Bennett, Michael J.

doi:10.1016/0304-4181(79)90018-6

Search citation statements

Order By: Relevance

Paper Sections

Select...

Citation Types

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Year Published

1995

2017

Publication Types

Select...

Book3

Other2

Relationship

Self Cite0

Independent5

Authors

Journals

Cited by 41 publications

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

G awain ‐Poet

Olsen

2017

The Encyclopedia of Medieval Literature in Britain

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Gawain ‐poet refers to the presumed and anonymous author of the Middle English alliterative poems Sir Gawain and the Green Knight , Pearl , Patience , and Cleanness . The poems are believed to have been written sometime in the later fourteenth century. They survive in the only Middle English manuscript containing solely alliterative verse, British Library Cotton Nero A.x. (article 3). From manuscript evidence (dialect), and internal evidence, such as poetic form and interest, it is commonly assumed that the same person wrote all four poems. While some scholars have attempted to identify the poet, none of the theories have been widely accepted. Current scholarship traditionally accepts that the poet was from the northwest Midlands of England, was well read and familiar with courtly traditions, and was perhaps a cleric.

show abstract