Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Burton Raffel Translation

[Voivod30]

I'm curious about this translation and the over all story in general. The introduction and afterward are nearly half of the text. Any way, should I skip or read those two parts once I read the actual tale or is there some thing in either I may need to know to get the most from the story? Thanks, for any help.

[OrphanPip]

The poem isn't very long, so it doesn't hurt to read the introduction afterward to get a sense of critical opinion, especially when it's right there in your copy of it. It shouldn't take you longer than an hour to read, it's been a while but I don't remember it being all that daunting.