Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Symbolism

The tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is filled with symbolism. While some works possess simple, straightforward symbolism, many of the associations in this story are multidimensional. One example of this is the green girdle worn by Sir Gawain on his trip to meet the Green Knight. Throughout the poem, the girdle is a strong, versatile symbol which expresses different meanings dependent upon the moment of interpretation and the character, and it also reveals a major theme of the poem: self preservation leads to failure. It is not uncommon for the meaning of a symbol to change over time; the association created often depends on the moment of interpretation. While Sir Gawain is at King Bertilak’s court, the green girdle represents his

During their daily conversations, Gawain’s mind begins to wander to the benefits that would be gained from falling into the lady’s temptations. He knows as he is leaving King Arthur’s court that he will never return because the Green Knight’s blow will kill him. However, with the green girdle—and its magical capabilities—his fate could be different. Gawain knows if he takes the belt he would avoid this fate because he could “come to the chapel, and take that stroke, and with this glorious device walk off unharmed” (1857-1858). This is intriguing to Gawain because it gives him hope of walking away from his encounter with the Green Knight. This moment also reveals to the reader Gawain’s intense desire to survive. It shows he is putting his own life at a greater importance than the Code of Chivalry. Later in the story, the girdle transforms for Gawain into a symbol of remembrance of his sin and failure to honor the code. After he returns home from his journey, Gawain wears the green girdle “as a sign and token of the sin he’d committed” (2487-2488). Because the code of honor he is trying to uphold is so strict, he feels as if he has let down the knights at the Round Table. This is a prime example of how self-preservation leads to

To Lady Bertilak, the girdle is a token of remembrance for Sir Gawain—a “lover’s token”—and a symbol of the success of her temptation. As Gawain is thinking of taking the girdle, he “hesitated, his heart reached for protection, like a thief for a gem [. . .] and he was ready to surrender” (1855, 1861). This clearly shows Gawain’s struggle and ultimate submission to temptation. He is hesitant, but as the lady keeps pushing and his mind keeps wandering, he surrenders and accepts the girdle. Lady Bertilak asks Gawain “to stay silent, to hide the gift from her husband” (1863). When he agrees to take the girdle, Gawain is again failing to uphold the code of chivalry by hiding the gift from Bertilak and therefore breaking the promise he has made with him. Gawain’s weakness pulls him further into sin. Through the failure of these moral dilemmas, Gawain is strengthened and when he returns home from his encounter with the Green Knight and confesses to everyone his faults, “the king consoled him, and all that court, and they laughed and resolved, then and there” (2513-2514). Sir Gawain admittedly refers to the green girdle as a symbol of his sin, yet the people of King Arthur’s court think he is being much too hard on himself, and they merely laugh it off. This situation shows their inability to recognize Gawain’s failure and learn from his imperfection. To make things worse, the members of Arthur’s court disregard the