The Mabinogion

Then they took the flowers of the oak, and the flowers of the broom, and the flowers of the meadowsweet, and from those they conjured up the fairest and most beautiful maiden that anyone had ever seen.

Celtic mythology, Arthurian romance, and an intriguing interpretation of British history -- these are just some of the themes embraced by the anonymous authors of the eleven tales that make up the Welsh medieval masterpiece known as the Mabinogion. They tell of Gwydion the shape-shifter, who can create a woman out of flowers; of Math the magician whose feet must lie in the lap of a virgin; of hanging a pregnant mouse and hunting a magical boar. Dragons, witches, and giants live alongside kings and heroes, and quests of honour, revenge, and love are set against the backdrop of a country struggling to retain its independence.

Sioned Davies' lively translation recreates the storytelling world of medieval Wales and re-invests the tales with the power of performance.

List of contents

• Introduction


• Translator's Note


• Guide to Pronunciation


• Select Bibliography


• Map: The Wales of theMabinogion


• THE MABINOGION


• The First Branch of the Mabinogi


• The Second Branch of the Mabinogi


• The Third Branch of the Mabinogi


• The First Branch of the Mabinogi


• Peredur son of Efrog


• The Dream of the Emperor Maxen


• Lludd and Llefelys


• The Lady of the Well


• Geraint son of Erbin


• How Culhwch won Olwen


• Rhonabwy's Dream


• Explanatory Notes


• Glossary of Personal Names


• Glossary of Place-Names

About the author

Sioned Davies is Chair of Welsh at Cardiff University. Her special interest is the interplay between literacy and the oral tradition, together with the performance aspects of medieval Welsh narrative. Her publications include Crefft y Cyfarwydd, a study of narrative techniques in the Mabinogion, The Four Branches of the Mabinogi, and a co-edited volume, The Horse in Celtic Culture: Medieval Welsh Perspectives.

Summary

The Mabinogion is one of the great epics of medieval literature. Weaving together Celtic mythology and Arthurian romance, the eleven Welsh tales include stories of dragons and giants, kings and heroes, and shape-shifters and magicians. This lively translation re-invests the tales with the power of performance.

Additional text

...a frsh translation which clears away archaisms and preconceptions to privilege the clear voice of story...[and] which is linguistically rigorous yet ever awake to the requirements of both text and reader.

Report

Davies's prose is stark and fierce, the laconic dialogue spine-tingling, and she makes the page sing. Marina Warner, The Independent

Product details

• Assisted by: Sioned Davies (Translation), Davies Sioned (Translation)
• Publisher: Oxford University Press Trade
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 30.04.2018
• EAN: 9780198815242
• ISBN: 978-0-19-881524-2
• Series: World's classics; Oxford World's Classics Hardback Collection; Oxford World's Classics; Oxford World's Classics Hardback Collection; World's classics
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature > Fairytales, sagas, legends; FICTION / Classics, Classic fiction (pre c 1945), LITERARY COLLECTIONS / Essays, LITERARY CRITICISM / Ancient & Classical, Literary studies: classical, early & medieval, Literary essays, Literary studies: fiction, novelists & prose writers, Literary studies: fiction, novelists and prose writers, Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval, Classic fiction: general and literary, Folklore studies / Study of myth (mythology), LITERARY CRITICISM / Novel as Form, Folklore studies / Study of myth