Author Description

The Book Compares Gawain With A Wide Range Of French Arthurian Romances, Exploring Their Recurrent Structural Patterns And Motifs, Their Ethical Orientation And The Social Context In Which They Were Produced. It Presents A Wealth Of New Sources And Analogues, Which Reveal And Illuminate The Gawain-poet's Sophisticated Literary And Moral Understanding Of The Conventions Of Arthurian Romance. Throughout, Ad Putter Pays Close Attention To The Ways In Which The Modes Of Representation In Romance Are Related To Social And Historical Contexts. Focusing On The Importance Of Conscience, Courtliness, And Self-restraint In Arthurian Romance, This Book Explores The Ways In Which Literati Such As Chretien De Troyes And The Gawain-poet Adapted Chivalric Ideals To The Changing Times.