While I like various translations of both Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, including Tolkien's translations of both, I absolutely LOVE Heaney's Beowulf and Armitage's Gawain! 😊 Tolkien was far more scholar than poet, which is perfectly fine, and he did wonderful scholarship for both Beowulf and Gawain - and of course I love his works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings - nevertheless Tolkien often wrote with a heavy hand and the result is leaden prose or verse in his translations (as well as his own LOTR, though his style fits his own saga). That heaviness may suit some passages of Beowulf and Gawain, but it ill-befits many other passages of both works. This is particularly true for Gawain, because the Gawain poet (aka the Pearl poet) often wrote with a light touch and employed amusement and humor as well. None of this really comes through in Tolkien. But it does shine through and brilliantly so in Armitage. And of course both Heaney and Armitage were offered the British poet laureate. Armitage accepted and serves as the current British poet laureate, whereas Heaney declined the honorific due to his cultural sympathies with and loyalties to his own Irish people. Heaney won the Nobel Prize for Literature, and perhaps Armitage may win it someday. Given Heaney and Armitage's tremendous poetic powers in translating an ancient fellow poet's ancient poem, i.e., Beowulf and Gawain, it's no shame to say Tolkien is an inferior poet to Heaney and Armitage, even though Tolkien is the greater scholar who still produced good translations of both works.

Good list and I am glad u are referring to older books and the sources rather then modern ones.

1. I think starting with Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur and reading all of it isn't necessarily a bad way to start. However, it takes some time to get used to Malory's style. I think it took me a good 50-100 pages if not more. Nevertheless Le Morte d'Arthur is a very enjoyable read and it has high literary value. 2. Geoffrey of Monmouth and Chretien de Troyes have some good bits, but there is a ton of mundane if not leaden prose to slog through. I know they're indispensable for contributing to the Arthurian tales (e.g. de Troyes's contributions include the Arthur-Lancelot-Guinevere love triangle and the quest for the holy grail), but I wouldn't say they're indispensable in terms of great literature. Geoffrey of Monmouth and de Troyes aren't on par with greats like Homer, Virgil, Dante, Boccaccio, Chaucer, or even Malory. Honestly I think they can be skipped entirely if one simply wants to read good Arthurian tales. I think they're mostly useful for scholars and the like-minded who wish to engage the primary source material. 3. I'd strongly recommend Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I really loved the Simon Armitage translation, but Bernard O'Donoghue in the Penguin Classics series is second. Tolkien, Merwin, Raffel, and others were good, but I preferred Armitage and O'Donoghue. Armitage (and to a lesser extent O'Donoghue) does a hauntingly beautiful translation; he spins an engrossing sense of magic and mystery with his words. Like other translators, Armitage attempts to capture the original's use of unrhymed alliterative verses followed by five brief rhymed verses ("bob and wheel") for poetic effect, but his work sounds better overall than most others to my ears. And Gawain is quite a short read. If you have an average reading speed (around 250 wpm), then you can easily read the whole tale in an afternoon or less. 4. Tennyson's Idylls of the King is beautiful poetry, though it reflects Victorian sensibilities, for better and for worse. But it's classic and certainly worth reading if one wants to read the best Arthurian literature for pleasure rather than for study. 5. For a modern take, and one of my favorite books of all time, I love The Once and Future King by T.H. White (+/- The Book of Meryln). In fact, I know this is likely sacrilege to most scholars, especially Medievalists, but I think if you can only read one Arthurian tale, ancient or new, then I'd opt for The Once and Future King, followed closely by Malory.

I really like the Simon Armitage 'Sir Gaiwain' and the Heaney 'Beowulf'. I am lucky enough to have the Folio Society's edition of Heaney's 'Beowulf'. it really is to die for.

Really enjoy your Booktube niche, & your engaging/informative take. Thanks for the bookish inspiration!

Perfect! Ive been amassing a lot these books and wasnt sure where to (or not to) start.

Irish Actress Katie McGrath really did a awesome Morgana Pendragon.

That Merlin origin sounds WILD, I had no clue. Will definitely be checking that out

Are you planning on making any more videos?

With how many episodes I love in this series, it'll probably be easier for me to select my seven 'least favorite' episodes. As a little family tie in, Andrew Robinson's (Garak) real-life daughter Rachel Robinson, appears in the episode 'The Visitor'. And wouldn't it be neat if Garak joined Section 31, after rebuilding Cardassia post-Dominion War?! Since Cardasia probably joined the Federation, and the Obsidian Order became part of Section 31. Just a thought...

Thanks for this great video!

Hey Annie great stuff, very interesting. I have always been a huge fan of King Arthur and his noble knights. Right now I am making my way through Jack Whyte's semi historical epic, but I have never read any of the foundational literature about the legend. Thanks for the recommendations. Also I was wondering if you will do anything on what a consider the best most accurate retelling of the Arthurian myth. That being Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Just want to say I am not dead yet, cheers.

I'm writing a novel based on the legend, your videos are very useful! thank you!

Read Saint Tysilio's History of the Early Britons, born in 590AD, translated by Bill Cooper, easily found online. Also worth checking out: Wilson and Blackett's work, The King Arthur Conspiracy, Moses in the Hieroglyphics, etc.

Keel-hew'ch' or thereabouts

Heaney's translation of Beowulf is also great!

Where r u? Is this what it feels to wait 4 king Arthur's return ?

The father of Anakin 😂😂😅

I just discovered your channel and love it. I hope you return some time soon!

Too bad this is her last video, I just found this channel.

Great introduction. Thank you.

Loved the Video, I would love to see a video of the lady of the lake.

Man, i only realized now that this video is 2 years old. Im already hooked on this channel

I love these ambiguous character portrayal, its always more deep than what we have. I also notice alot of tropes now present in romantasy and YA literature, i know a lot of it is inspired by fantasy and fantasy is inspired by arthurian myths too, but its funny to think that theres this common need for us to tell tales of such characters with these tropes, like its just another part of life.

You are absolutely beautiful Annie. This random internet Joe isn't trying to be disrespectful I just wanted to brighten your day. And you are absolutely well spoken about you're subject matter to boot.

Here's the really frustrating part about modern people who claim that King Arthur was a mythical character; the reason for this, they say is that king arthur stories r legends nd that they r overly aggravated. Duh tahts the whole point of a legend. But to say that King arthur is a just a character of people's imagination is also a little beyond what we knw. Fair enough we havent gotten any evidences that indicate his real existence or they say but we have gotten no evidence whatsoever that disproves his existence either. There r legends written about real people who lived. So the sensible take to hold on this matter is a plain, " I dnt knw" as opposed to a "no he didnt exist" or a "yes, he did", unless u happnd to have proof to prove any of those claims.

Excellent review with great enthusiasm. Although I'm a history buff, with a particular fondness for the Middle Ages, I've been away from the subject matter for a huge number of years---until fairly recently, that is. My resurgence of interest in medieval history has led me to rediscovering the Arthurian saga---its legends, lore, who the "real" Arthur may've been in actual history, etc. As for Arthur, specifically, I think it was my reading the great Mark Twain novel "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" last year, that got me to thinking about Camelot again. I also would mention the most famous British poet of the Victorian Era, Tennyson, as having much to do with re-igniting the world's interest in the entire Arthurian story-arc, expressed in the beautiful & majestic poem "Idylls of the King". The little I've read from it so far is quite enchanting & easy-to-comprehend. His way of rhyming is wondrously impressive & elegant, along with fine storytelling. Thanks again for a terrific overview!

Morgana is witch race not individual name...morgana symbol love that come too late but she gonna love you after the reincarnation....she make couple cursed before she dies....at the time she rules, she pretty much selfish

You are so well spoken and enthusiastic, and very beautiful as well. It brings me joy to see someone so happy to share their hobbies.

Unrelated but your hairs so nice!

You haven’t posted in a while, hope you’re doing good :) love your videos

LE FAY ? SHE IS FRANCE 🇨🇵 ?

It’s silly to assume King Arthur isn’t real because your lit class “authoritatively” told you as such. People also believed Alexander to be myth until a little over 100 years ago. Same with the Trojan War.

I enjoy the video and enjoy the topic good job. I'll subscribe you should try making a French sauce from medieval times.

Morrigian, she was Breton I believe. St Bride and Brigid inspired I've heard

Thanks for your video! I will be picking Le Morte D'Arthur soon and I wanted to hear people's experience with it. Also, what is that poster/scroll behind you?

I fell in love with Frodo when Fellowship first came out at the cinema over 20 years ago! I read the books straight after and Frodo became my favourite fictional character. He is so strong, wise, merciful, tragic and quietly heroic. I do feel like ‘film Frodo’ and ‘book Frodo’ did end up differing though. And not just because of that added scene. Firstly, age. Frodo in the books is 50 so it is believable when he becomes wise, almost like Gandalf by the end. Casting a much younger actor made it harder to portray this side of him. The film focused on his vulnerability more than his wisdom. Secondly, his mercy. This follows on from the previous point. I think the books manage to communicate that his mercy comes from wisdom. However in the films it comes over more as a result of naïveté. Thirdly, Frodo’s fighting scenes are cut. Whilst Frodo didn’t actively fight much, he did stand up to the Barrow-wights and the Witch King. The Barrow-wights are cut from the film and instead of standing up to the Witch King in the film he just…falls over. Basically I feel like Frodo was portrayed as younger and more vulnerable in the films. And I think this gets interpreted as weak, especially when compared to Sam whose strength is, if anything, exaggerated in the films at times. I do feel like more people would love Frodo if they read the books. However I still love Frodo in the films and love Elijah Wood playing him.

Arthur lived

Love your channel darling! Are you planning to make a video about the different versions of Tristan and Isolde tale? Keep up the great work. ⭐⭐⭐

I discovered an interest in Arthurian stories and I’ve been binging your videos lately. I can’t find other channels about this topic. I see you haven’t uploaded in 2 years but I hope you come back someday! I love your passion for Arthurian legend and medieval literature! I was hoping you could do a video on Robin Hood! ☺️🏹💚

I love you made the Harry Potter / Frodo archetype thing. I get that

Morgan le Fay asteroid is in my 1st House, conjunct Jupiter <3

I've long had similar problems with the Jedi Code. I like your solutions!

I know the answer to this the church always persecuted powerful women 💯