three of the half lines have the minimum number of syllables—four—and the other has only five. In Middle English, with more elaborate alliteration, the number of unstressed syllables is increased, so that the minimum half line of four syllables is rare, and often contains some word which may have had an additional flexional syllable in the poet's own manuscript, e.g. || _þe sélf<e> chápel_ 79. || _árȝeȝ in hért<e>_ 209. The less regular first half line is found with as many as eleven syllables; e.g. _And syþen he kéuereȝ bi a crágge_ || 153. 6. The grouping of stressed and unstressed syllables determines the rhythm. In Old English the falling rhythm predominates, as in || _Gáwayn þe nóble_ 81; and historically it is no doubt correct to trace the development of the ME. line from a predominantly falling rhythm. But in fact, owing to the frequent use of unstressed syllables before the first stress (even in the second half line where they are avoided in the OE. falling rhythm) the commonest type is: || _and þe bróde ȝáteȝ_ 1, (× × -̍ × -̍ ×) which from a strictly Middle English standpoint may be analysed as a falling rhythm with introductory syllables (× × | -̍ × -̍ ×), or as a rising rhythm with a weak ending (× × -̍ × -̍ | ×). A careful reader, accustomed to the usage of English verse, will have no difficulty in following the movement, without entering into nice technicalities of historical analysis. 7. _The Destruction of Troy_ is more regular than _Gawayne_ in its versification, and better preserves the Old English tradition. _Piers Plowman_ is looser and nearer to prose, so that the alliteration sometimes fails altogether, e.g. Extract _a_ 95, 138. Such differences in technique may depend on date, on locality, or on the taste, training, or skill of the author. * * * * * #Dialect#: West Midland of Lancashire or Cheshire. (There is evidence of local knowledge in the account of Gawayne's ride in search of the Green Chapel, ll. 691 ff. of the complete text.) #Vocabulary.# _Sir Gawayne_ shows the characteristic vocabulary of alliterative verse. It is rich in number and variety of words—Norse, French, and native. Besides common words like _race_ 8, _wylle_ 16, _kyrk_ 128, _aȝ-_ 267 (which displace native English forms _rēs_, _wylde_, _chyrche_, _eie_), Norse gives _mug(g)ed_ 12, _cayreȝ_ 52, _scowtes_ 99, _skayned_ 99, _wro_ 154, _broþe_ 165, _fyked_ 206, _snyrt_ 244, &c. French are _baret_ 47, _oritore_ 122, _fylor_ 157, _giserne_ 197, _kauelacion_ 207, _frounses_ 238, &c. _Myst-hakel_ 13, _orpedly_ 164 are native words; while the rare _stryþe_ 237 and _raþeled_ 226 are of doubtful origin.