Prominent Symbols in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
The literary technique of symbolism exists to get across significant messages.
The three biggest symbols in the story are: the Green Knight, the green girdle, and Sir
Gawain’s shield.
The Green Knight himself serves as an important symbol in the story. The
difficulty in discerning what the Green Knight represents lies with the fact that he has
a very contradictory nature. He symbolizes the nature of earth by being green. He
represents conflict by engaging in dangerous games, yet ends up being peaceful by
sparing Gawain’s life. He exudes power because of his stature, but ends up being the
peaceful lord of the castle. This range of extremes seems to, overall, represent the
earth itself. The earth can be peaceful and harsh, intimidating and nurturing, familiar
and foreign, similar to the Green Knight. While small in comparison to the Green
Knight, the green girdle serves an extraordinary purpose in this piece.
The green color of the girdle links the Green Knight and Gawain’s experience.
The girdle, itself, represents Gawain’s cowardice; he falls victim to the lures of sin.
Further, the author seems to be trying to show how the attractiveness of sin can cause
the downfall of even the best knights, if the knight allows sin to enter into his life.
Lastly, once Gawain returns to Camelot, the other knights begin to wear green
adornments as well. The author could very well be trying to show how someone’s
mistake can benefit others, if they are smart enough to heed the lessons people learn
in life.
The shield of Sir Gawain symbolizes moral and physical protection. The
Virgin Mary on the inside of the shield lies close to Gawain’s heart, symbolizing his
love of God. Because his prayer for a place to stay is answered, the author exposes his
message of believing in and being trusting of God. On the outside of his shield,
however, he displays the pentangle, which shows everyone how chivalrous he is. The
pentangle symbolizes the five essences of Gawain’s flawless knighthood: his perfect
five senses, the Five Wounds of Christ, the Five Joys (of Christianity), his five
fingers, and the virtues of free-giving, piety, chastity, chivalry, and friendliness. The
pentangle has no beginning and no end, and so not matter where one starts, at the end
it all starts again. That concept plays out in the story with the seasons: the story starts
in the winter, goes through spring, summer, and fall, and then ends up back at winter,
where the entire ordeal with the Green Knight begins. One could also argue that, just
when Gawain thinks his life is over when he meets the Green Knight, his life actually
begins anew in a way, which could be symbolized by the pentangle.
This piece is drenched in symbolism, which allows the reader, if he or she
understands the symbols, to truly grasp the essence of the story, and take away life
lessons. From the three symbols mentioned, many virtues can better the life of the
reader, if implemented correctly, and that seems to be the goal of the author, to show
readers virtuous life choices and, to him, the benefits of living a life based on God.