The Role Of Women In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight And Paradise Lost

Men are known in the real life and in fabrication as the heroes or the strongest and bravest of people, while women are known to be the damsel in distress, or the ones who tempt the protagonist. However, in the poem “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” by the so-called Pearl Poet and the book Paradise Lost, specifically books nine and ten, by John Milton, both depict the roles of women and how they help shape the events that take place in the stories. To start off, “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” begins during Christmas time at King Arthur 's court where the knights, and the ladies celebrate the joyous time with a feast. While everyone is feasting, the Green Knight shows up to the court and invites anyone brave enough to join the “game”: one courageous man will behead the Green Knight and in return, they must find him in a year, and he will do the same. At first, Arthur volunteers to do it, instead, Sir Gawain takes on the challenge. In one strike, Sir Gawain successfully beheads the knight, however, the Green Knight picks up his severed head and as he leaves the castle, he repeats that Sir Gawain must return in a year to him, leaving Gawain anxious. A year later, On the Day of all Saints, he prepares his horse and sets on his journey to the Green Knight which is tough with him ending up suffering in the cold and hunger. He prays for himself to be saved from this, and then, a castle appears out of nowhere. The lord of the castle, Bertilak, warm-heartedly welcomes him in