Pub Date: February 13, 2001
Dewey: 841.1
LCCN: 00048989
Lexile Code: 0000
Features: Bibliography, Price on Product
Target Age Group: NA to NA
Physical Info: 0.36" H x 8.00" L x 5.14" W ( 0.28 lbs) 160 pages
Series: Modern Library Classics
Description: A contemporary prose rendering of the great medieval French epic, The Song of Roland is as canonical and significant as the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf. It extols the chivalric ideals in the France of Charlemagne through the exploits of Charlemagne's nephew, the warrior Roland, who fights bravely to his death in a legendary battle. Against the bloody backdrop of the struggle between Christianity and Islam, The Song of Roland remains a vivid portrayal of medieval life, knightly adventure, and feudal politics. The first great literary works of a culture are its epic chronicles, those that create simple hero-figures about whom the imagination of a nation can crystallize, observed V. S. Pritchett.
The Song of Roland is animated by the crusading spirit and fortified by national and religious propaganda. This edition features W. S. Merwin's glowing, lyrical translation.Review Quotes: "The Song of Roland is not a chance assembly of popular tales: it is a deliberate and masterly work of art."