Originally published in 1963, this book provides a series of introductory essays relating to Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, one of the great German epic poems of the medieval period. At the time of publication there was a relative lack of critical literature relating to Parzival; in particular, there were very few texts aimed at undergraduates. Given the complicated nature of the story and its often tortuous linguistic structure, this absence was rendered all the more conspicuous. This volume filled the gap in Parzival criticism through a highly rigorous, yet accessible, textual analysis which broadly followed the narrative of the poem. This volme will remain of value to anyone with an interest in medieval German literature or literary criticism.