Major Works of Middle English Literature
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Author: Anonymous (same as Pearl, Patience, and Purity) – known as the Gawain Poet or Pearl Poet.
Date: Around 1375–1400.
Place: Northwest England (possibly near Cheshire or Staffordshire).
Manuscript: Cotton Nero A.x.
Location: British Library, London.
Poetic Style
- Alliteration: The poem is known for its use of alliterative verse, where each line typically has alliterative consonant sounds.
- Rhyming: The poem follows a bob and wheel structure, where a short line (bob) is followed by a longer rhyming section (wheel). The bob is a single line, and the wheel is five lines rhyming ABABA.
Summary
On New Year’s Eve, a mysterious Green Knight challenges King Arthur’s court to a game: strike him once, then receive the same blow in a year. Sir Gawain accepts and beheads him, but the Green Knight magically survives. A year later, Gawain journeys to the Green Chapel to keep his word. He stays at a castle where the lord’s wife tempts him for three days. Gawain resists but secretly accepts a magic girdle that protects from death. He breaks his honesty pact by not giving it to the lord. At the chapel, the Green Knight spares him but nicks his neck to mark his failure. The Knight reveals he is Bertilak, the castle’s lord, enchanted by Morgan le Faye. Gawain feels ashamed and wears the girdle as a sign of honor and humility. Arthur’s knights join him, showing unity and respect for truth and growth.
Pearl
Author: Anonymous. Known as the Gawain Poet (same as Sir Gawain).
Date: Late 14th century.
Place: Northwest England.
Manuscript: Cotton Nero A.x (same as Gawain).
Location: British Library, London.
Poetic Style
- Alliteration: The poem uses alliteration, similar to Sir Gawain, as it’s also part of the alliterative revival.
- Rhyming: The poem is written in 101 stanzas of 12 lines. The text describes the rhyme scheme as rhyming alternatively: ab ab ab ab ab ab bc bc (Note: This description appears to be for 10 lines; the standard 12-line stanza often rhymes ABABABABCBCB).
Summary
Pearl is an elegy for a father’s young daughter who died at age two, symbolized as a precious pearl. Grieving, he falls asleep in a garden and dreams of a radiant land across a stream. There, he sees his daughter in spirit, dressed in white and pearls, now a bride of Christ in heaven. She tells him not to mourn, as the innocent are saved through baptism and live with God. She leads him to a vision of the New Jerusalem, a shining city filled with angels and the saved. The poet longs to cross the stream and join her, but wakes up in the garden. Comforted, he accepts her loss, knowing she lives in eternal peace with the Lord.
Sir Orfeo
Author: Anonymous.
Date: Late 13th or early 14th century (~1300–1350).
Place: England.
Manuscript: Auchinleck Manuscript.
Location: National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh.
Poetic Style
- Alliteration: While it uses some alliteration, it’s not as pronounced as in Sir Gawain.
- Rhyming: The poem uses rhyming couplets, not rhyme royal as previously stated. Rhyme royal is a stanza form with seven lines and a rhyme scheme of ABABCCC.
Summary
King Orfeo’s wife, Heurodis, is taken by the fairy king after a mysterious dream under a tree. Heartbroken, Orfeo gives up his throne and wanders the wilderness for ten years, living like a hermit. One day, he sees Heurodis with the fairies and follows them into their magical world. He charms the fairy king with his harp playing and wins Heurodis back. Returning home in disguise, Orfeo tests his steward’s loyalty before revealing his identity. He reclaims his throne, and the court celebrates his return with a lay named after him.
Troilus and Criseyde
Author: Geoffrey Chaucer.
Date: ~1382–1385.
Place: England (influenced by Italian sources during Chaucer’s travels).
Manuscript: Cambridge University Library, Gg.4.27.
Location: Cambridge University Library.
Poetic Style
- Alliteration: Unlike some other works of the period, Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde does not rely heavily on alliteration but uses rhyme and meter.
- Rhyming: Rhyme royal: ABABCCC. This seven-line stanza gives the poem an elegant, courtly tone.
Summary
Troilus and Criseyde follows Troilus’s love for Criseyde across five books: from courtship to bliss, separation, and eventual betrayal. Criseyde is a widow, which allows for their relationship outside of marriage.
- Book 1: Troilus mocks lovers, then falls deeply for Criseyde after seeing her in a temple. With help from her uncle Pandarus, he begins to find a way to express his love.
- Book 2: Pandarus acts as a go-between, arranging letters and meetings between the two. Eventually, Troilus and Criseyde meet face-to-face and their relationship begins.
- Book 3: With Venus’ blessing, the lovers grow closer and spend a blissful night together. Their love deepens, and Troilus becomes a better man, full of hope and honor.
- Book 4: A political exchange forces Criseyde to leave Troy for the Greek camp. She promises to return in ten days, and Troilus is left heartbroken but hopeful.
- Book 5: Criseyde never returns, choosing Diomede for protection and giving him Troilus’ brooch. Troilus learns of her betrayal, dies in battle, and sees the futility of earthly love.
Canterbury Tales
Author: Geoffrey Chaucer.
Date: Composed 1387-1400.
Place: England.
Manuscript: Most famous is the Ellesmere Manuscript.
Location: Huntington Library, California, USA.
Poetic Style
- Alliteration: Unlike some other works of the period, Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales does not rely heavily on alliteration but uses rhyme and meter.
- Rhyming: Primarily uses rhymed couplets (two consecutive lines that rhyme, AABBCC…).
- Meter: Iambic pentameter (10 syllables per line, alternating unstressed-stressed pattern).
Summary
The Canterbury Tales begins with pilgrims journeying to Canterbury, each agreeing to tell stories for a storytelling contest. The collection presents a diverse range of tales and narrators:
- The Knight tells a romantic chivalric tale of love and rivalry between Arcite and Palamon.
- The Miller offers a bawdy tale of trickery and adultery, followed by the Reeve’s tale of revenge on a dishonest miller.
- The Cook’s tale is unfinished.
- The Man of Law tells of Constance’s trials and eventual reunion with her family.
- The Wife of Bath shares her experiences in marriage in her prologue and tells a tale about female sovereignty.
- The Friar attacks summoners in his tale, and the Summoner retaliates with a mocking story of friars.
- The Clerk recounts the patient Griselde.
- The Merchant follows with a dark comedy of infidelity.
- The Squire begins a fantastical tale.
- The Franklin tells of noble compromise in marriage.
- The Physician offers a tragic tale of honor and sacrifice.
- The Pardoner tells a moral story about greed.
- Tales by the Shipman, Prioress, Chaucer himself, and others add comic, tragic, and satirical tones to the diverse collection.
Courtly Love in Medieval Literature
Author: Andreas Capellanus.
Date: 12th century, around 1180–1190.
Place: Aquitaine, France.
Manuscript: Survives in several Latin manuscripts; no single definitive version.
Location: Manuscripts are scattered across various European libraries (e.g., the Bibliothèque nationale de France).
Concept of Courtly Love
Courtly love was a special kind of romantic love in the Middle Ages, primarily depicted in poems and stories about knights and ladies. In this idealized form of love, a brave knight would fall in love with a noble lady—often someone he could not marry, such as a queen or someone already married. He would admire her from afar and try to prove his love by doing brave and noble deeds, like fighting in battles or writing poetry.
This love was usually secret, full of longing, and based more on emotions and admiration than real relationships. It wasn’t about marriage or everyday life; it was more like a fantasy or ideal. Courtly love showed how some people in the Middle Ages thought love should be: respectful, passionate, and often painful.
Courtly Love Rules in Each Poem
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
- “Marriage is no real excuse for not loving”: Gawain is tempted by Lady Bertilak, a married woman. She flirts with him and expects him to flirt back, showing how courtly flirtation often ignores marital status.
- “That which a lover takes against his will…”: Gawain refuses to act unless Lady Bertilak gives him the token (the green girdle) willingly.
- “A true lover is constantly possessed by the thought of his beloved”: Gawain resists, showing chivalry over romantic desire.
- “Easy love has little value”: Gawain doesn’t fall easily; the challenge makes the test more honorable.
Verdict: Courtly love is presented as a test of chivalry and honor, rather than a genuine romantic pursuit for Gawain. He ultimately values honor over romantic desire.
Pearl
This poem is more about spiritual love than courtly love.
- “When one lover dies…”: There’s a kind of eternal spiritual mourning. The dreamer does not move on from his grief easily.
- “Love always increases or decreases”: His grief transforms into peace as the vision comforts him.
Verdict: Pearl transforms earthly love and grief into divine love and acceptance. Courtly love principles do not truly apply here.
Sir Orfeo
- “No one should be deprived of love without a very good reason” – Orfeo loses his queen, Heurodis, to the fairy king without warning.
- “Love can deny nothing to love” – Orfeo risks everything to get her back.
- “A true lover considers nothing good except what will please his beloved” – He gives up his kingdom to rescue her.
- “The easy attainment of love makes it of little value” – He waits years in the wilderness. True love is shown through endurance.
Verdict: Depicts a faithful, selfless love. It is less about courtly flirtation and more about loyal devotion and sacrifice.
Troilus and Criseyde
This is often considered a peak example of courtly love, full of its beauty and contradictions.
- “Marriage is no real excuse…” – They love outside of marriage; Criseyde is a widow.
- “Jealousy increases love” – Troilus is tortured by jealousy and distance.
- “Love is increasing or decreasing” – Troilus’s love grows; Criseyde’s fades.
Verdict: Courtly love is shown as beautiful and intense but ultimately fragile and tragic.
Canterbury Tales
Courtly love appears in various forms, sometimes idealized, sometimes parodied.
- “Every lover ends in the thought of his beloved” – Palamon and Arcite both love Emily in the Knight’s Tale.
Verdict (Knight’s Tale): Classic courtly love, with high stakes and noble suffering.
- “Marriage is no excuse…” – The Wife of Bath uses love (and marriage) to gain control, not suffer for it.
- “A true lover considers nothing except pleasing his beloved” – Reversed in the Wife of Bath’s Tale: the man must please her.
Verdict (Wife of Bath’s Tale): Presents a view that challenges or mocks traditional courtly love ideals regarding female submission and suffering.
- Mock Courtly Love – Seen in tales like the Miller’s Tale, where men sneak around with married women in a bawdy, non-idealized way.
Timeless Themes and Enduring Style
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people noticed a shift in societal values, with life becoming more self-centered and traditional ideals losing some significance. This reflection draws a connection between today’s crises and the timeless themes in Middle English literature. Despite the passage of centuries, one value that remains strong is love—its meaning and emotional power have not changed much. Tales of courtly love, knights, and noble ladies still capture our imagination today, which is why Middle English literature feels so unique and enduring.
One standout example is Pearl, a deeply moving poem about the loss of a loved one. The poet’s use of elegant and poetic language to express grief resonates especially during a time of global health crisis, when death and mourning are so present. Having personally experienced loss during this time, the dreamer’s sorrow in Pearl felt incredibly relatable, making it one of the most powerful and memorable readings.
Another work that remains relevant is Chaucer’s Wife of Bath’s Tale from The Canterbury Tales, which highlights the struggles of women to be heard and valued—a theme still very much alive today. Reading these texts from the 11th to 14th centuries has shown that classic literature can still speak to us with relevance and insight, even if our expectations for older works might have been low at first.
Beyond their themes, the style of Middle English literature is also striking. The use of alliteration, rhyme schemes like rhyme royal, and poetic techniques like enjambment give these works rhythm, beauty, and a vivid sense of sound and imagery. These features make the texts feel alive and “limitless,” enhancing both enjoyment and understanding. In particular, Pearl stands out for its intricate structure, where lines and stanzas mirror each other beautifully. Altogether, reading Middle English literature during a time of crisis has offered both comfort and a deeper appreciation for the power of language across the ages.