Sir Thomas Malory's Morte Darthur: A New Modern English Translation Based on the Winchester Manuscript (Renaissance and Medieval Studies)

Dorsey Armstrong, a scholar who has written and taught extensively on medieval life and culture (and on Arthurian literature), has done all Malory fans a great service. This is a straightforward, clear translation of Le Morte D’Arthur. There have been many attempts at doing this over the last few years. The most recent was Peter Ackroyd’s Death of King Arthur, which was not a translation so much as a rewrite — and a rewrite with the story hacked and slashed to the bone.Armstrong’s version is more complete (and more faithful) than Ackroyd; more accessible than RM Lumiansky; and more stately than Keith Baines. Reading it feels like reading Malory. (And I know what reading Malory feels like: I’ve read the Caxton edition three times.)The organization is unique as well. It has neither the short, arbitrary chapters of the Caxton edition nor the long, comprehensive “books” of the Winchester manuscript. She’s divided the book into 90 or so story units, each one more or less independent, though most are not really standalone: a result of Malory’s skill at joining the bits into a coherent whole.I’m only sorry this isn’t published in commercial form, where it would be more widely known. It certainly deserves to be. It’s great to see that it’s finally available in Kindle format. If you want all of Malory but don’t have the inclination to master his spaghetti-ish prose style, get this one.

Dorsey Armstrong is the premier Arthurian scholar of our time and a specialist in the work of MaloryThis one-volume edition is perfect for the non-scholar to experience the breadth of Malory’s work

This edition is a fresh one. The modern English version makes it clear for those who want to enter Arthurian world via contemporary English. Having read both the classical Caxton's edition and this one as an academician, I highly suggest reading this edition granted that it is easier to give citations from this edition for non-native speakers.

Excellent, comprehensible modern translation by an expert.

Best translation of Morte Darthur that I know of

I sadly - and frustratingly - abandoned my efforts to read Mallory's "Le Morte d'Arthur" many years ago. It has remained on my bucket list but I really had no plans to ever tackle that olde English again. Recently I gave John Steinbeck's 1976 effort, “The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights" a try and loved what he accomplished in "Lancelot of the Lake." Alas, Steinbeck died before he could finish his Mallory rewrite. I came across Dorsey Armstrong’s modern English "Mallory's Morte Darthur" and what a treat. Armstrong's creation - and that’s what it is – is an awesome accomplishment. I renamed it “Armstrong's Art Darthur” and put a check by it on my bucket list. I can’t help but picture Mallory and Steinbeck smiling somewhere.

Discovered this version through Armstrong's Great Courses presentation of Arthurian history. She does an amazing job of providing a translation that is modern without losing the more formal flavor of some of the older versions. Hands-down my favorite edition of Mallory.

The print is a bit heavy for a comfy reading. It was a gift so I can't tell about the content.