The first ever translation of the whole of the rich and compelling body
of tales contained in Chrétien's poem and its four Continuations.
The mysterious and haunting Grail makes its first appearance in
literature in Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval at the end of the twelfth
century. But Chrétien never finished his poem, leaving an unresolved
story and an incomplete picture of the Grail. It was, however, far too
attractive an idea to leave. Not only did it inspire quite separate
works; his own unfinished poem was continued and finally completed by no
fewer than four other writers.
The Complete Story of the Grail is the first ever translation of the
whole of the rich and compelling body of tales contained in Chrétien's
poem and its four Continuations, which are finally attracting the
scholarly attention they deserve. Besides Chrétien's original text,
there are the anonymous First Continuation (translated here in its
fullest version), the Second Continuation attributed to Wauchier de
Denain, and the intriguing Third and Fourth Continuations - probably
written simultaneously, with no knowledge of each other's work - by
Manessier and Gerbert de Montreuil. Two other poets were drawn to create
preludes explaining the background to Chrétien's story, and translated
here also are their works: The Elucidation Prologue and Bliocadran.
Only in this, The Story of the Grail's complete form, can the reader
appreciate the narrative skill and invention of the medieval poets and
their surprising responses to Chrétien's theme - not least their crucial
focus on the knight as a crusader. Equally, Chrétien's original poem was
almost always copied in conjunction withone or more of the
Continuations, so this translation represents how most medieval readers
would have encountered it.
Nigel Bryant's previous translations from Medieval French include
Perlesvaus - the High Bookof the Grail, Robert de Boron's trilogy Merlin
and the Grail, the Medieval Romance of Alexander, The True Chronicles of
Jean le Bel and Perceforest.
