Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: An Essay in EnigmaPearsall discusses Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a poem upon which he wrote nearly 60 years ago. He says that he have written on it several times since then, but he's not sure what it is about. He explains that when he says that he doesn't know what it is about, it means he doesn't know what it means, or why it is significant, though he do know that it is significant, from the experience of having read it. He adds that trying again to work out how it makes sense would be to compound that frustration and end again in failure.