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“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” Literary Analysis
“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” Literary Analysis
Sir gawain and the green knight analysis essay
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There are many parallels that can be drawn from the three temptations and hunting scenes and the three blows exchanged by the Green Knight. All of these scenes are interlocked together in the way that Gawain's quest is told and his trails he endures leading up to his meeting with the Green Knight to fulfill his promise made the year before. This all starts with the bargain that Bercilak makes with Sir Gawain. "That whatever I win in the woods be yours, and any achievement you chance on here, you exchange for it" (pg. 62). This is what sets the stage for the coming scenes of Bercilak's hunts in the woods, Gawain's temptations by the Lady of Bercilak, and the three blows exchanged by the Green Knight. Unknown to Gawain is that Bercilak's three hunts and the three temptations of the Lady is what decides the fate of the outcome of his meeting with the Green Knight. In the hunts of Bercilak, he hunts for the deer, the boar and the fox. In medieval times, the people portray different animals with different human qualities. Bercilak's Lady could also be said to be "on the hunt." For three different times does she try to tempt Gawain to succumb to her desires there by undermining Gawain's values and his believes. While Bercilak is on the hunt for the noble deer and boar and the cunning and deceitful fox. On the first day Bercilak gives chase to the noble deer. The deer is characterized as being shy and elusive. A creature that would rather flee to safety then to try and fight its pursuers for its life. This parallels to the Lady and her first attempt to try and seduce Gawain. Gawain is given the qualities of the deer in her first attempt. For Gawain acts shy and looks for a way to stay true to his values and at the same... ... middle of paper ... ...ked by the axe blade but that is all that happens to him. In the greater scheme of things he passes the third test/blow with his life, but fails as evidence of the nick he received from the third blow. He wavers in his values and fails in his bargain with Bercilak by not revealing the green girdle on the third night when he and Bercilak trade what they have received on that day's conquest. Therefore failing in what he stood for in hopes of saving his life. In conclusion, we can learn many lessons from Sir Gawain and the tests and trails that he endured leading up to his meeting with the Green Knight. Who only have to look for them and ponder how they can apply to us today. For instance, being true to ourselves and what we believe in. Keeping our word, and upholding our faiths even in the face of impending danger, even though the cost may be very great to pay.
Over the course of the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Sir Gawain faced situations that influenced his character which can be taken and analyzed for a teenager today. A teenager typically faces the issue of blending in and accepting who they are in high school, and by viewing Gawain’s experiences and changes, we can use it to adapt along with our peers in school. Initially, he is seen as a humble and unpopular knight amongst every other at the round table in Camelot. However this changes after engaging in a violent game with the Green Knight. Gawain gained fame over the course of a year, and as a result it had changed his initial outlook on his loyalty to the chivalric code, as well as his values on life.
At the end of the story, it is revealed that Morgan le Faye has orchestrated the entire situation to disgrace the Knights of the Round Table by revealing that one of their best, Sir Gawain, is not perfect. The passage begins with Lord Bercilak returning from his first hunting trip. As has been agreed, he hands over the wild boar he has killed to Gawain. In turn, Gawain gives the Lord a kiss. The lord gives Gawain a chance to admit that he has been intimate with Lady Bercilak when he says, “it might be [the kiss] all the better, would you but say where you won this same award” (Norton 187).
Phillipa, Hardman. "Gawain's Practice of Piety in Sir Gawain and The Green Knight." EBSCO host Academic Search Premier.
To continue on testing a knight that does not seem worthy certainly will not result in much of a story, or in establishing a theme. Through the use of symbols, the author of Sir Gawain is able to show that Gawain possesses the necessary attributes to make him worthy of being tested. He also uses symbols throughout the tests of each individual attribute, and in revealing where Gawain’s fault lies. The effective use of these symbols enables the author to integrate the test of each individual attribute into a central theme, or rather one overall test, the test of chivalry. To establish the knight as worthy, the author first shows Gawain’s loyalty to his king.
The year goes by, and Gawain prepares for his long journey. When the final day comes, Sir Gawain is given a farewell celebration, and armed with a ceremony, off he goes. His journey is not an easy one. While traveling, Gawain encounters challenges from beasts, monsters and most of all, from the terrible cold. In a moment of a deep desperation for a shelter, Sir Gawain discovers a beautiful castle where he is welcomed with kindness and pleasure. In this enchanting place he meets the host and his young and beautiful wife who offer him hospitality and rest before he goes to the Green Chapel. He accepts with pleasure unaware that this is the place where the real challenges are going to take place.
As a result, he learns an essential, inescapable fact about himself and human nature - there is no shame in being imperfect. The true test of Gawain's bravery was to bare his neck to the Green Knight and finish their trading of blows. Even with his 'magic' girdle, Gawain flinched the first time. The second and third times he was able to hold steady and accept fate. After the ordeal the Green Knight ridiculed him for his weakness and fear.
The Green Knight challenging Sir Gawain reminded me of the serpent challenging Eve to eat the Apple. She knew God told her and Adam that they can eat anything except fruit from the tree of knowledge. Sir Gawain did not need to accept this challenege, no one did. But the temptation to create a name for himself outweight any common sense. I also believe that when Sir Gawain was offered the green gridle, it was similar to the apple given to Eve. He did not need the gridle but his desire to live outweight any reasoning. He also went on to lie to the Lord about what he recieved that day so that he may live when his invevidable demise came from the Green Knight. Stories have always been allegored retells from epic floods to temptation driven stories. I believe the Green Knight tale was inspired by the Garden of Edan as many stories before it has
Christian Values in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Thesis Statement: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight shows the struggle between a good Christian man against the temptations of this world. I. Taking a Stand A. Worthiness B. Sir Gawain stands C. Trial overcome II.
Part Three of Gawain and the Green Knight tell about the three days before Gawain is to leave the Lord’s castle to meet the Green Knight. The first day the lord wakes up early to hunt for deer. The story tells in detail about the hunting party when suddenly we move to the castle back to Gawain. Gawain asleep in his bed is greeted by the lady of the castle sneaking into his room and watching him sleep. Gawain knows she is in his room but acts surprised to wake up to her. The lady flirts with Gawain by telling him how great he is and offers her body to him. The author writes “My body is here at hand, / Your each wish to fulfill; / Your servant to command/ I am, and shall be still.” (Lines 1237-1240). Gawain tells her he is unworthy of her to which the lady continues her flirtatious ways. Before the lady leaves Gawain’s room she asks for a kiss to which Gawain complies and grants her a kiss. The lord’s hunting party has killed a large amount of deer and begins dividing the killings. The party returns home and Gawain is given the game, Gawain gives the lord the kiss he received but refuses to tell who gave him the kiss.
He politely refuses her intended actions, upholding the chivalric code of being courteous towards women. He attempts to offer her another service of word or deed, stating that it “would be an endless delight.” This shows that Gawain is able to maneuver his way around the wife’s flatteries and overcome temptation with ease. Consequently, “...Gawain is in trouble because his feelings are engaged, and they pull him towards her at the same time as his sense of propriety holds him back. The lady shamelessly plays on his reputation for courtesy, which gives him another problem: how does he refuse her while still maintaining his reputation?...” (Anderson, 346-347). The author shows that although Gawain’s “feelings are engaged”, his sense of morality holds him back from Lord Bertilak’s wife. Bertilak’s wife complements Gawain for his ability to be chivalric, which makes it difficult for him. Additionally, this shows that Gawain is able to listen to his conscience and uphold his morality. Similarly, Martin claims that Gawain is “urged by Bertilak to postpone his departure, sleep late, and relax indoors while his host hunts.” As a result of this matter, “Gawain had been rendered vulnerable to the lady of the house’s daily more insistent claims on the gallant guest’s reputation for lovemaking. These he manages to resist. Deflecting her flatteries…, Gawain keeps his word as a true knight should”
Diana Wynne Jones said, “If you take myth and folklore, and these things that speak in symbols, they can be interpreted in so many ways that although the actual image is clear enough, the interpretation is infinitely blurred, a sort of enormous rainbow of every possible colour you could imagine”. When a person doesn’t pay attention to the signs around them not only do they get themselves into messes that could’ve been avoided, but they also could lose something of value to them. There were many signs that hinted at important details, yet Gawain ignored them causing his name to be defiled. Sir Gawain and The Green Knight is about paying attention to signs that are all around a person.
The story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight revolves around the knights and their chivalry as well as their romance through courtly love. The era in which this story takes place is male-dominated, where the men are supposed to be brave and honorable. On the other hand, the knight is also to court a lady and to follow her commands. Sir Gawain comes to conflict when he finds himself needing to balance the two by being honorable to chivalry as well as respectful to courtly love.
Gawain’s acceptance of Lady Bertilak’s girdle causes him to progressively lose himself internally in order to save his physical life. Gawain appears to be the perfect image of a knight, who exhibits himself as worthy and noble when he accepts the Green Knight’s challenge. Known to be “honored all over the world,” his remarkable valor and devout behavior define his character. He loses his honorable reputation, though, when he disrespects the honor of King Bertilak. Disgracing his knightly code, Gawain fails to exchange all of his gifts with the king and lies, without hesitation, to the king when he claims that “what [he] owed [King Bertilak] [he has] paid [King Bertilak]” (1941). Gawain directly lies to him without hesitation, proving that his conscience does not seem to be effecting his actions. Lying is a common action, but generally, it causes us to feel remorseful and guilty over our wrongs. Gawain breaks the code of chivalry that requires a knight to be loyal and honest, but he is not regretful due to his apparent selfish nature (“Code of Chivalry, 2 and 15”). He makes a deal with the king to “[trade] profit for profit,” yet he dishonestly “[hides] [Lady Bertilak’s] love gift” rather than honoring the king’s wishes (1677, 1874). Gawain makes a promise that he fails to fulfill. The girdle drives him to destruction because it pulls him away from what he knows to be good and
He demonstrates goodness at the hand of the Green Knight. He shows courage by accepting what is to come upon him during his voyage. His journey to find the Green Knight is filled with temptations. In the conversation with him and the “Lady”, Sir Gawain showed a Chivalrous code by keeping his loyalty to the king by not kissing his wife. The lady states “if I should exchange at my choice and choose me a husband for the noble I know….would I elect before you”.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a poem which tells the tale of a knight who undergoes trials-testing the attributes of knighthood-in order to prove the strength and courage of himself, while representing the Knights of the Round Table. One of King Arthurs most noblest and bravest of knights, Sir Gawain, is taken on an adventure when he steps up to behead a mysterious green visitor on Christmas Day-with the green mans’ permission of course. Many would state that this tale of valor would be within the romance genre. To the modern person this would be a strange category to place the poem in due to the question of ‘where is the actual romance, where is the love and woe?’ However, unlike most romances nowadays, within medieval literature there are many defining features and characteristics of a romance-them rarely ever really involving love itself. Within medieval literature the elements of a romance are usually enshrouded in magic, the fantastic and an adventure. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight follows Sir Gawain over the course of one year, from one New Years to the next, as was the deal he and Bertilak, the green knight, struck.