by W. S. Merwin
And wyth a countenaunce dryзe he droз doun his cote, 335
No more mate ne dismayd for hys mayn dintez
Þen any burne vpon bench hade broзt hym to drynk of wyne.
Gawan, þat sate bi þe quene,
To þe kyng he can enclyne: 340
‘I beseche now with saзez sene
Þis melly mot be myne.
‘Wolde зe, worþilych lorde,' quoþ Wawan to þe kyng,
‘Bid me boзe fro þis benche, and stonde by yow þere,
Þat I wythoute vylanye myзt voyde þis table, 345
And þat my legge lady lyked not ille,
I wolde com to your counseyl bifore your cort ryche.
For me þink hit not semly, as hit is soþ knawen,
Þer such an askyng is heuened so hyзe in your sale,
Þaз зe зourself be talenttyf, to take hit to yourseluen, 350
Whil mony so bolde yow aboute vpon bench sytten,
Þat vnder heuen I hope non haзerer of wylle,
Ne better bodyes on bent þer baret is rered.
I am þe wakkest, I wot, and of wyt feblest,
And lest lur of my lyf, quo laytes þe soþe— 355
Bot for as much as зe ar myn em I am only to prayse,
No bounté bot your blod I in my bodé knowe;
And syþen þis note is so nys þat noзt hit yow falles,
Then proudly that other knight sets foot on the ground.
Now Arthur has his ax, gripping the handle,
And grimly swings it around, preparing to strike with it.
The bold man stood towering before him,
Taller than any in the house by a head and more.
With a grim look on his face he stood there and stroked his beard,
And with unmoved expression he pulled down his tunic,
No more daunted nor dismayed before that great stroke
Than he would have been if a knight had brought him, at table, a drink of wine.
Gawain, sitting next to the Queen,
Bowed to the King then:
“I will keep my words plain.
I ask for this battle to be mine.”
“If you please, glorious lord,” Gawain said to the King,
“I will turn from this table and stand by you there,
If I may do that without discourtesy,
And without displeasing my liege lady,
I would come to your counsel before your great court,
For I think it not proper, according to our customs,
For such a request to be put so high in your hall
That you feel moved to reply to it yourself
When so many of the bravest are about you on the bench.
There are no better warriors, I believe, under heaven,
No better bodies on earth, when the battle begins.
I am the weakest, I know, and the least wise,
And cling least to my life, if anyone wants the truth,
But as you are my uncle whom I live to praise
And your blood is the sole virtue in my body,
And since this affair is so foolish, it does not befit you.
And I haue frayned hit at yow fyrst, foldez hit to me;
And if I carp not comlyly, let alle þis cort rych bout blame.' 360
Ryche togeder con roun,
And syþen þay redden alle same
To ryd þe kyng wyth croun,
And gif Gawan þe game. 365
Þen comaunded þe kyng þe knyзt for to ryse;
And he ful radly vpros, and ruchched hym fayre,
Kneled doun bifore þe kyng, and cachez þat weppen;
And he luflyly hit hym laft, and lyfte vp his honde,
And gef hym Goddez blessyng, and gladly hym biddes 370
Þat his hert and his honde schulde hardi be boþe.
‘Kepe þe, cosyn,’ quoþ þe kyng, ‘þat þou on kyrf sette,
And if þou redez hym ryзt, redly I trowe
Þat þou schal byden þe bur þat he schal bede after.'
Gawan gotz to þe gome with giserne in honde, 375
And he baldly hym bydez, he bayst neuer þe helder.
Þen carppez to Sir Gawan þe knyзt in þe grene,
‘Refourme we oure forwardes, er we fyrre passe.
Fyrst I eþe þe, haþel, how þat þou hattes
Þat þou me telle truly, as I tryst may.' 380
‘In god fayth,’ quoþ þe goode knyзt, ‘Gawan I hatte,
Þat bede þe þis buffet, quat-so bifallez after,
And at þis tyme twelmonyth take at þe an oþer
Wyth what weppen so þou wylt, and wyth no wyз ellez on lyue.' 385
Þat oþer onswarez agayn,
‘Sir Gawan, so mot I þryue
As I am ferly fayn
Þis dint þat þou schal dryue.
I have asked this of you first, and beg you to grant it,
And if my request is improper, I ask this great court not to blame me.”
All the court began whispering
And all thought the same:
Relieve the crowned King
And let Gawain have the game.
Then the King commanded the knight to rise
And he leapt to his feet and turned gracefully,
Knelt before the King and took hold of the weapon.
The King let go of it and lifted his hand,
Gave him God's blessing and was glad to hope
That his heart and his hand would both be hardy.
“Take care, cousin,” the King said, “how you make your cut,
And if you strike as you should, it seems certain to me
You will endure the blow he gives you in return.”
Gawain goes to the knight with ax in hand
And the knight waits for him boldly, utterly undaunted.
Then the knight in green said to Sir Gawain,
“Let us repeat our agreement before we go further.
First, knight, I inquire of you what your name is,
And you tell me that truthfully, as I trust you will.”
“In good faith,” the good knight said, “my name is Gawain,
Who offer you this blow, whatever it leads to,
And twelve months from now I will take from you another
With what weapon you will, and not otherwise in the world.”
That other knight answers then,
“I welcome this stroke,
Upon my life, Gawain,
That you are about to make.”
‘Bigog,’ quoþ þe grene knyзt, ‘Sir Gawan, me lykes 390
Þat I schal fange at þy fust þat I haf frayst here.
And þou hatz redily rehersed, bi resoun ful trwe,
Clanly al þe couenaunt þat I þe kynge asked,
Saf þat þou schal siker me, segge, bi þi trawþe,
Þat þou schal seche me þiself, where-so þou hopes 395
I may be funde vpon folde, and foch þe such wages
As þou deles me to-day bifore þis douþe ryche.'
‘Where schulde I wale þe,’ quoþ Gauan, ‘where is þy place?
I wot neuer where þou wonyes, bi hym þat me wroзt,
Ne I know not þe, knyзt, þy cort ne þi name. 400
Bot teche me truly þerot, and telle me how þou hattes,
And I schal ware alle my wyt to wynne me þeder,
And þat I swere þe for soþe, and by my seker traweþ.'
‘Þat is innogh in Nwe Зer, hit nedes no more’,
Quoþ þe gome in þe grene to Gawan þe hende; 405
‘Зif I þe telle trwly, quen I þe tape haue
And þou me smoþely hatz smyten, smartly I þe teche
Of my hous and my home and myn owen nome,
Þen may þou frayst my fare and forwardez holde;
And if I spende no speche, þenne spedez þou þe better, 410
For þou may leng in þy londe and layt no fyrre— bot slokes!
Ta now þy grymme tole to þe,
‘Gladly, sir, for soþe’, 415
Quoþ Gawan; his ax he strokes.
The grene knyзt vpon grounde grayþely hym dresses,
A littel lut with þe hede, þe lere he discouerez,
His longe louelych lokkez he layd ouer his croun,
Let the naked nec to þe note schewe. 420
“By God,” the Green Knight said, “I am glad
That I shall have from your hand what I asked for here,
And that you have repeated fully, in your own words,
The whole of the covenant I asked of the King:
Only now you must swear to me, upon your word,
That you will expect, for yourself, wherever you manage
To find me on earth, to be repaid in kind
For what you accord me today before this high company.”
“Where shall I find you?” Gawain asked. “Where is your place?
I do not know where you live, by him that made me,
Nor do I know you, knight, nor your house nor your name.
Only tell me the truth about that, and what your name is,
And I shall use all my wits to make my way there,
And I swear to this on my word as a knight.”
“That is enough for this New Year, no more need be said,”
The Green Knight said to the courteous Gawain.
“The truth is that when I have taken the blow,
And you have struck me soundly, I will tell you then
About my house and my home and my own name.
Then you will find out about me and how to keep our agreement,
And if I say nothing, so much the better for you,
And you may live long in your land and not have to look further— but enough!
Pick up your grim tool now
And let us see how you handle it.”
“Gladly, sir, I promise you,”
Gawain said, stroking it.
The Green Knight takes his stand without lingering
And bends his head a little to show the skin.
He laid his long graceful locks across his crown,
Leaving the naked neck bare and ready.
Gauan gripped to his ax, and gederes hit on hyзt,
Þe kay fot on þe folde he before sette,
Let hit doun lyзtly lyзt on þe naked,
Þat þe scharp of þe schalk schyndered þe bones,
And schrank purз þe schyire grece, and schade hit in twynne, 425
Þat þe bit of þe broun stel bot on þe grounde.
Þe fayre hede fro þe halce hit to þe erþe,
Þat fele hit foyned wyth her fete, þere hit forth roled;
Þe blod brayd fro þe body, þat blykked on þe grene;
And nawþer faltered ne fel þe freke neuer þe helder, 430
Bot styþly he start forth vpon styf schonkes,
And runyschly he raзt out, þere as renkkez stoden,
Laзt to his lufly hed, and lyft hit vp sone;
And syþen boзez to his blonk, þe brydel he cachchez,
Steppez into stelbawe and strydez alofte, 435
And his hede by þe here in his honde haldez;
And as sadly þe segge hym in his sadel sette
As non vnhap had hym ayled, þaз hedlez he were in stedde.
He brayde his bulk aboute, 440
Þat vgly bodi þat bledde;
Moni on of hym had doute,
Bi þat his resounz were redde.
For þe hede in his honde he haldez vp euen,
Toward þe derrest on þe dece he dressez þe face, 445
And hit lyfte vp þe yзe-lyddez and loked ful brode,
And meled þus much with his muthe, as зe may now here:
‘Loke, Gawan, þou be grayþe to go as þou hettez,
And layte as lelly til þou me, lude, fynde,
As þou hatz hette in þis halle, herande þise knyзtes; 450
To þe grene chapel þou chose, I charge þe, to fotte
Gawain gripped his ax and heaved it up high.
He set his left foot on the ground in front of him
And brought the blade down suddenly onto the bare skin
So that the sharp edge sundered the man's bones
And sank through the white flesh and sliced it in two
Until the bright steel of the bit sank into the ground.
The handsome head fell from the neck to the earth
And rolled out among their feet so that they kicked it.
The blood gushed from the body, glittering over the green,
And the knight never staggered or fell, for all that,
But he stepped forth as strong as ever, on unshaken legs,
And reached in roughly among the knights
To snatch up his lovely head and at once lift it high.
And then he turns to his horse and takes hold of the bridle,
Steps into the stirrup and swings himself up,
Holding his head in his hand by the hair,
And settles into the saddle as firmly as ever
With no trouble at all, though he sits there headless.
All around him the blood sprayed
As his gruesome body bled.
Many of them were afraid
When they heard what he said.
For he holds the head up high in his hand,
Turning the face toward the noblest on the platform,
And it raised its eyelids and opened its eyes wide
And said this much with its mouth, which you may hear now:
“Remember, Gawain, to get ready for what you agreed to,
And search carefully, knight, until you find me
As you have sworn to do in this hall where these knights heard you.
I charge you to make your way to the Green Chapel
Such a dunt as þou hatz dalt—disserued þou habbez
To be зederly зolden on Nw Зeres morn.
Þe knyзt of þe grene chapel men knowen me mony;
Forþi me for to fynde if þou fraystez, faylez þou neuer. 455
Þerfore com, oþer recreaunt be calde þe behoues.'
With a runisch rout þe raynez he tornez,
Halled out at þe hal dor, his hed in his hande,
Þat þe fyr of þe flynt flaзe fro fole houes.
To quat kyth he becom knwe non þere, 460
Neuer more þen þay wyste from queþen he watz wonnen. What þenne?
Þe kyng and Gawen þare
At þat grene þay laзe and grenne,
Зet breued watz hit ful bare 465
A meruayl among þo menne.
Þaз Arþer þe hende kyng at hert hade wonder,
He let no semblaunt be sene, bot sayde ful hyзe
To þe comlych quene wyth cortays speche,
‘Dere dame, to-day demay yow neuer; 470
Wel bycommes such craft vpon Cristmasse,
Laykyng of enterludez, to laзe and to syng,
Among þise kynde caroles of knyзtez and ladyez.
Neuer þe lece to my mete I may me wel dres,
For I haf sen a selly, I may not forsake.' 475
He glent vpon Sir Gawen, and gaynly he sayde,
‘Now sir, heng vp þyn ax, þat hatz innogh hewen’
And hit watz don abof þe dece on doser to henge,
Þer alle men for meruayl myзt on hit loke,
And bi trwe tytel þerof to telle þe wonder. 480
Þenne þay boзed to a borde þise burnes togeder,
To receive a stroke like the one you have given—you have earned it—
To be repaid promptly on New Year's morning.
Many men know me as the Knight of the Green Chapel,
So if you ask, you cannot fail to find me.
Come then, or you will rightly be called a coward.”
With a terrible roar he turns the reins,
Rides out through the hall door, his head in his hand,
So that the flint
flashes fire from his horse's hooves.
No one there knew what land he was going to
Any more than they knew where he had come from. What then?
Gawain and the King smile
And laugh about that green man.
All agreed that he was marvel
Enough for anyone.
In his heart Arthur, that noble king, was stunned.
He allowed no sign of it to show but said aloud,
Gently, courteously, to the beautiful Queen,
“Belovèd lady, do not be troubled by what happened today.
Things of this kind can occur at Christmastime,
With the performing of plays, the laughing and singing,
And carols and courtly dances of knights and ladies.
Just the same, I may well turn to my meal now,
For I have seen a wonder, I cannot deny it.”
He glanced at Sir Gawain and, making light of it, said,
“Now, sir, hang up your ax, which has hewn enough,”
And it was done, above the dais, attached to a tapestry,
Where everyone might stare at it as a marvel
And try to find words for the wonder of it.
Then all those knights turned together to the table,
Þe kyng and þe gode knyзt, and kene men hem serued
Of alle dayntyez double, as derrest myзt falle;
Wyth alle maner of mete and mynstralcie boþe,
Wyth wele walt þay þat day, til worþed an ende in londe. 485
Now þenk wel, Sir Gawan,
For woþe þat þou ne wonde
Þis auenture for to frayn
Þat þou hatz tan on honde. 490
The King, and the good knight, and bold men served them
Double of all the fine dishes, whatever was most delicious.
There was all manner of food and also of minstrelsy.
They spent that day in pleasures until it came to an end on the earth.
Now take thought, Sir Gawain,
Of the danger before you,
The risk to be run,
Which you have taken upon you.
II
This hanselle hatz Arthur of auenturus on fyrst
In зonge зer, for he зerned зelpyng to here.
Thaз hym wordez were wane when þay to sete wenten,
Now ar þay stoken of sturne werk, stafful her hond.
Gawan watz glad to begynne þose gomnez in halle, 495
Bot þaз þe ende be heuy haf зe no wonder;
For þaз men ben mery in mynde quen þay han mayn drynk,
A зere зernes ful зerne, and зeldez neuer lyke,
Þe forme to þe fynisment foldez ful selden.
