I had mentioned in an Instagram post that I had just finished one of the Harvard classic volumes containing a section of Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur ( by way of William Caxton).  

I found the old English kind of fascinating so I thought I’d take a little time and share it. This is the original English from Book 13: The Noble Tale of the Sancgreal, chapter 15

(SancGreal is the Holy Grail)

Original English: 

WHanne syr Galahad herd this / he thanked god / & toke his hors / and he had not ryden but half a myle / he sawe in a valeye afore hym a stronge Castel with depe dyches / and there ranne besyde hit a fayr ryuer that hyghte Syuarne / and there he mette with a man of grete age / and eyther salewed other / and Galahad asked hym the Castels name / Fair syr said he hit is the Castel of maydens / That is a cursyd Castel said Galahalt / and alle they that ben conuersaunt therin / for alle pyte is oute therof and alle hardynesse and meschyef is therin / therfor I counceyle yow sir knyght to torne ageyne / Sir said Galahad wete yow wel I shalle not tourne ageyne / Thenne loked syre Galahad on his armes that noo thynge fayled hym / and thenne he put his sheld afore hym / & anone there mette hym seuen fayr maydens / the whiche sayd vnto hym / syr knyghte ye ryde here in a grete foly / for ye haue the water to passe ouer / why shold I not passe the water said galahad / So rode he awey from them / and mette with a Squyer that said knyghte / tho knyghtes in the Castel defyen yow / & defenden yow / ye go no ferther tyl that they wete what ye wolde / Faire sir saide Galahad I come for to destroye the wycked custome of this Castel / Sir and ye wille abyde by that ye shal haue ynough to doo / go yow now said Galahad and hast my nedes / Thenne the squyer entryd in to the castel / And anone after there came oute of the Castel seuen knyghtes and all were bretheren / And whan they sawe Galahad / they cryed knyghte kepe the for we assure the no thynge but dethe / why sayd galahad will ye alle haue adoo with me at ones / ye sayde they therto maist thow trust / Thenne Galahad putte forth his spere and smote the formest to the erthe that nere he brake his neck And there with alle the other smote hym on his shelde grete strokes so that their speres brake

English with modernized spelling:  When Sir Galahad heard this, he thanked God and took his horse, and he had not ridden but half a mile, he saw in a valley before him a strong castle with deep ditches, and there ran beside it a fair river that hight Severn. And there he met a man of great age and either saluted other and Galahad asked him the castle’s name. Fair sir, said he, it is the Castle of Maidens. That is a cursed Castle said Galahad and all they that been conversant therein, for all pity is out thereof and all hardness and mischief is therein, therefore I counsel you sir knight to turn again. Sir, said Galahad, wit you well I shall not turn again. Then looked sir Galahad on his arms that no thing failed him, and then he put his shield before him and anon there met him seven fair maidens, the which said unto him, Sir knight, ye ride here in a great folly, for ye have the water to pass over. Why should I not pass the water, said Sir Galahad? So rode he away from them and met with a squire that said, knight, those knights in the castle defy you and defend you, ye go no further til that they wit what you would. Fair sir, said Galahad, I come for to destroy the wicked custom of this castle. Sir and ye will abide by that ye shall have enough to do. Go you now said Galahad and hast my needs. Then the squire entered in to the castle and anon after there came out of the castle seven knights and all were brethren. And when they saw Galahad, they cried, knight, keep thee, for we assure thee no thing but death. Why, said Galahad, will ye all have ado with me at once? Yea, said they. Thereto mayest thou trust. Then Galahad put forth his spear and smote the formest to the earth that near he brake his neck. And there with all the others, smote him on his shield great strokes so that their spears brake.

It’s not impossible to read and comprehend the older text relatively well, but it is of course much more time consuming because the words need to be sounded out phonetically and then enough sense can be made of them. 

There ARE a fair amount of archaic words. Not too many in the passage above, but here are a few:

Hight- means ‘called’ “the river hight Severn” means “the river called or named Severn”.  Conversant- means “abiding therein”  Anon- means ‘soon’  Wit- means to know. “… til they wit what you would.” Means “Until they know what you would (do here).” 

Then there is the structure of the sentences as well. While they are comprehensible to us, we simply don’t speak that way anymore, so it requires the modern reader slow down and process the patterns more.  

There are other words I kept running into that I know, but didn’t make sense in the context. I came to find out they had archaic meanings to them.

For example the word adventure could mean: 1) adventure as we know it now; 2) chance, or 3) danger. Once I understood that, it became much easier to grasp.

Some other examples are (archaic version to the left, modern English to the right) :  An- if  Certes- certainly  Essay- to try, put to a test  List- desire, inclination  Sooth- truth  Incontinent- immediately Let- hinder, prevent  Lusty- joyful, mirthful  Meet- suitable  Seige- a seat of distinction, throne  Sith- Since  Trow- believe, suppose, think  Ween- to expect, suppose 

As I mentioned in the Instagram post, it helps a little that I grew up as a child with the King James Bible, so I’m perhaps more familiar with older forms of English than someone who had no exposure. But even so, I had to consistently look up words I didn’t know. I eventually found a website that gives a list of many archaic words used in Caxton’s version of Le Morte d’Arthur.