Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green knight is one of the oldest and best known Arthurian stories that is thought to date back to the late fourteenth century. A knight is understood to be a warrior and a strong individual who serves a monarch or leader, but what really makes a knight? What qualities and morals are expected of a knight? Are strength and prowess enough or are knights supposed to be chivalrous, courteous, brave, and honorable? If so, did they ever make mistakes or were they perfect? Sir Gawain is the main character in the story and is seen as a good knight even though he does not think so highly of himself. He puts himself in the way of danger to protect his king, and this selfless act earns him the title of the greatest of all knights. “Should …show more content…
“Now through England’s realm he rides and rides, Sir Gawain, Gods servant, on his grim quest, passing long dark nights unloved and alone, foraging to feed, finding little to call food with no friend but his horse through forests and hills and only our lord in heaven to hear him”. (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, 152) This shows that Sir Gawain is putting his virtues, morals, and honor above his own life which are the main qualities of a good knight. After traveling for a long amount of time is harsh conditions Sir Gawain finds himself praying to Mother Mary for a church or place to attend mass. This is also a demonstration of Sir Gawain’s morals and religion. “He prayed with his heavy heart. Father, hear me, and Lady Mary, our mother most mild, let me happen on some house where mass might be heard, and matins in the morning; meekly I ask, and here I utter my pater, ave and creed.” (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, 153) After he prays he finds a magnificent castle that stuns him with its beauty, after gazing at the amazing infrastructure a guardian allows Sir Gawain inside. While inside Gawain is greeted by everyone so nicely and everyone seems to be astounded by the fact that he is there partly due to the fact that he is Arthurs nephew and somewhat of a minor
Archetypes In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
677 Words | 3 PagesMainly because he is a small celebrity being Arthur's nephew. As sir gawain stays here a singled out maiden wants to seem to become a little more attached to Gawain than all the others were. As she sneaks up into his room where Gawain sleeps, sitting bedside and wants a kiss, even more than a kiss from him. In this scenario, the host’s wife would be the temptress. The next morning after his stay Sir Gawain rides off from the castle and sets off on his Journey in the center of the abyss, The chapel.
Maturity In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
85 Words | 1 PagesThe main theme of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is the journey to maturity of Gawain, the hero. During the passage, Gawain goes through three tests on his development. First, Gawain shows courage and resourcefulness when he volunteers to take the Green Knight’s challenge instead of Arthur doing so. Second, Gawain shows authority, self-restraint, and integrity when he denies the sexual endeavours of the lady of the house. Lastly, Gawain shows bravery when he faces death by keeping his meeting with the Green
Theme Of Courage In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
1105 Words | 5 PagesCourage in her opinion is “A Virtue central to Knighthood” (ALLEN). In the 14th Century, there was a huge public recognition of courage, people wanted to be recognised as possessing it. The Character who possesses the most courage in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is most definitely Sir Gawain
Christian Symbolism In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
605 Words | 3 PagesSir Gawain and the Green Knight, whose author is unknown, is an Arthurian Romance/Epic that holds a degree of Christian symbolism. These Christian symbols are intermixed with Britannic Pagan traditions and themes in order to appeal more to the common British people at the time of the early Christianization of Britain. This can be supported by the stories of kings being created in the earlier centuries throughout history. In this particular story, this symbolism is important since all the knights of King Arthur’s Court were supposed to follow a certain chivalrous code of conduct, whether present in the courts or away on some other venture. The chivalric code being the embodiment of Christian virtue and valor, which was expected to be personified
Honor In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
775 Words | 4 PagesSir Gawain and the Green Knight In the Pearl Poet’s Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, an epic story emerges to reveal a man’s journey of honor, honesty, valor, and loyalty. Throughout Gawain’s adventures in the poem, he discovers and demonstrates his own chivalric qualities. Although he makes a few mistakes along the way he strives to be an honorable man.
Sir Gawain And Christianity Analysis
645 Words | 3 PagesRelations Between Sir Gawain And The Green Knight And Christianity “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight” have a plethora of connections and relations to Christianity all around its story. Some examples could be Arthurian chivalry with the pentangle of Sir Gawain's shield and Mary's face in the middle, the battle between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight which took place inside the chapel of a church, and The Green Knight's decision toward Gawain in showing him mercy. These examples show only few reasons why “Sir Gawain And The Green Knight” have connections and relations towards Christianity. The ideals of Christianity and chivalry are brought together in Gawain’s symbolic shield.
The Dichotomous Nature Of Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
2073 Words | 9 Pages1. The dichotomous Nature of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight The topic of spirituality, divinity and otherworldly phenomena is quite common in medieval literature and there is a multitude of contexts, in which these topics are addressed. The protagonists of those texts find themselves in a balancing act between the secular world and a supernatural world, where they need to overcome struggles to master the difficulties of their worlds’ dualisms. Be it an otherworld of fairies or the christian hereafter, those worlds and the mundane conduct often influence each other reciprocally in the stories of medieval literature.
Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Courage Analysis
1684 Words | 7 PagesConsider how the theme of courage is treated in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a story that celebrates courage in a positive light in the majority of situations but we see that courage can have a negative impact on some of the characters in the story and it questions knighthood. Courage is an honourable term defined “The ability to do something that frightens one; bravery:” (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/courage) and for Gawain to be called this term defines him as a knight. His actions throughout the story makes it difficult to analyse how courage is treated in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
Sir Gawain And The Green Knightly Virtue Analysis
998 Words | 4 PagesThe ideals of Christian morality and knightly qualities are represented by Gawain’s gold, star-shaped pentangle. The five knightly virtues that Sir Gawain expresses are: generosity, chastity, friendship, piety, and courtesy. From the beginning of the poem, Sir Gawain portrays his generosity by agreeing to cut the Green Knight’s head with an axe. He makes this decision after King Arthur fails to do so (Cathell, 2014).
The Hero In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
1269 Words | 6 Pages.This makes Sir Gawain as a relatable hero, opposed to the heroes that are portrayed as godly and infallible. Sir Gawain was not a military warrior with badges, he did not swing a weapon but one at the Christmas games in the beginning. Sir Gawain is considered a literary hero because he was brave for stepping forward to protect King Arthur, his king and uncle. He had faith that led him through his journey into the enchanted forest and into the castle and he did not abandon it. He was noble in being a guest at Lord Bertilak’s, or the Green Knights, castle by offering his services to Lord Bertilak and, resisting temptations, and not sleeping with Lady Bertilak, Lord Bertilak’s
Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Deception Analysis
1719 Words | 7 PagesDeception is the act of deceiving; or the state of being deceived, which is something of very powerful nature. Deception can cause people to believe things that may or may not be true. Deception in most cases is used when an individual has a certain motive that he or she is trying to achieve. In the play Sir Gawain And The Green Knight, deception is present when Bertilak uses his wife to deceive Sir Gawain, by having her to try to seduce Sir Gawain on three different occasions. Although Sir Gawain remains loyal to Bertilak, Sir Gawain still takes the girdle; therefore, in the end Sir Gawain is left with a sense of failure, proving that Bertilak attained the motive he was seeking.
Loyalty In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
718 Words | 3 PagesWould you be able to hold steadfast to your core values and knighthood when faced against a sorcerous Green Knight with an itching to kill? Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, written by the Pearl Poet, is a Medieval Romance tale about a noble knight who puts his life on the line in order to defend his king. Sir Gawain is a prestigious knight who demonstrates passionate integrity and honor as he remains faithful to King Arthur and holds true to the knight's code of chivalry. Although Sir Gawain knew that his life would be thrown into grave danger, he chose integrity and proved his loyalty to the king by upholding the virtues of knighthood.
Chastity In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
573 Words | 3 PagesThe lines 1550-1553 from the Pearl poets epic Sir Gawain and the Green Knight epitomizes two of the most important virtues of a noble knight, and Sir Gawain, the man the story follows, defines what is a true knight. He holds a place next to King Arthur and the queen as well as exemplifying two of a knights most important virtues. The first being chastity and the second being courteousness, both however, are very much entwined in this tale. Throughout this epic and many other Arthurian legends praised these traits in the knight and as we shall see, Sir Gawain although still very much human, is a master of both. The virtue of chastity is extremely important in Arthurian legend and we can see this from examining Gawain’s shield.
Physical Quest In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
1809 Words | 8 PagesHowever, few quests delve as deeply into psychology and internal struggles as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Right from the beginning, Sir Gawain’s character is drawn into question. He tells the court that he is the “’weakest of [King Arthur’s] warriors and feeblest of wit’” (354). His rationale for stepping in and taking King Arthur’s place, is that he recognizes his supposed worthlessness and believes his importance is only familial, as King Arthur’s nephew. His loyalty to his King, his uncle, is his call to action, prompting him to step forward and incur the risk.
Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: An Analysis
903 Words | 4 PagesThroughout the rest of the morning, Gawain continues to guard himself while still being gracious. Later, however, Gawain’s resolve weakens and he kisses the lady at her request, committing an act of adultery, violating one of the Ten Commandments. This can be seen as a transition from his Christian beliefs to his courtly duties and indulgence of his host’s wishes. Afterward, Gawain quickly reverts to his Christian duties, immediately going to hear mass.
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