SIR GAWAIN AND THE
GREEN KNIGHT
Honors English 12
BACKGROUND
■ One original manuscript exists
■ Composed no later than 1400 (contemporary to Chaucer)
■ Last of four poems written by presumably the same author- style, dialect,
theme
– Pearl
– Purity
– Patience
– Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
■ Provincial dialect indicates origin in the northwest Midlands of England,
local allusions in the work support this theory
■ Audience- clearly aristocracy
CHARACTERISTICS
■ Typical of Middle English alliterative poems
– alliterative long lines following Old English metrical style
– repetition of the same consonant sound on at least two,
often three, of the stressed syllables (bob and wheel)
■ From the “Golden Age” of Camelot
– before Launcelot’s prominence- more works feature
Gawain than Launcelot
MEDIEVAL ROMANCE- CHARACTERISTICS
■ Opens at a feast (details of pageantry highlighted)
■ challenge presented
■ setting amidst feudal nobility, celebration of warrior
society
■ adventures of a young hero
■ supernatural elements
■ hero learns a moral lesson
■ archetypical female temptress
■ cyclical qualities of nature
■ chivalric concept of courtly love
CHIVALRY AND COURTLY LOVE
■ relationship between ideal hero: errant knight, and noble woman of
his affection
■ most supreme example of courtly love was for an unattainable
woman, often the queen
■ the knight’s love for this woman would be the inspiration for his
achievement of braver deeds in her honor
■ CODE OF CHIVALRY
– protection of the weak and fair elements of society by the loyal,
self-sacrificing knight
– demonstrations of the knight’s fidelity to his court and king
– respect for other warriors and the rules of combat
ROMANCE OR ANTI-ROMANCE?
■ 1400 time period- end of the romance genre
■ Is the poet supporting chivalric/courtly love values? Or is he being dramatic and ironic in his
portrayal of conventional romance elements? Is this a satire?
■ SGATGN could very well be an expression of the author’s doubts about the values and social
institution of the chivalric court.
– opens with darker side of British history- misery and distress
– very superlative description of Camelot
■
decadence of feast
■
exalted Guinevere, other women are in keeping with courtly love “standards”
■
Arthur- young, boyish, restless, inexperienced, likely immature
■
the Stranger- appears to be half-mocking the court
■
initial silence demonstrates possible cowardice of Camelot
■
cowardly description of court
■
Gawain’s speech- perhaps too deferential?
■
Arthur- lack of concern for Gawain’s mission- demonstration of Arthur’s immaturity
CELTIC CONNECTION
■ Setting- Christmas/ New Year’s
– Celtic pagan beliefs- year is an importance cycle in both human and natural
worlds
– strange time of year often affected by supernatural events or interactions
– new year often equaled celebration and revelry to welcome new year and
release excess spiritual energy
■ Green Knight
– unaccountable force of nature intrudes into the epitome of civilization,
Camelot
– beheading game- ritual Pagan significance
– Green Knight’s indication of the following New Year’s day hints at importance
of the cyclical year
– renewal/regeneration
– green color- dominant in nature
GAWAIN’S CHIVALRIC FAITH
■ Gawain fully believes in the values of chivalry
■ He never questions his “duty” to set off on his
quest
– volunteers to take the Green Knight’s
challenge
– keeps his “side of the bargain”
– as a nod to both chivalry and Christianity, the
author clearly indicates that Gawain is guided
and protected by his sense of morality
■ Shield
WILL PIETY AND MORALITY SUSTAIN HIM?
■ QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
– Will his unerring moral sense be enough to protect
him from these more disguised forces?
– Are Christian and chivalric perfection enough to
make a man whole?
■ The writer questions the above when societal values are
pitted against human nature and the imperfection of
society!
■ Gawain seems too perfect and too idealistic to survive
unscathed!
THE EDENIC METAPHOR
■ COMMON ALLUSION
– Man was intended by God to be a perfect creature. Adam, the
first man, initially lived in an untouched Paradise (the Garden
of Eden), along with Eve, the first woman.
– Eve was tempted by Satan, became curious, and convinced
Adam to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge.
– As punishment for the Original Sin, they were thrown from
Paradise to the earth.
■ THE FALL OF MAN
SYMBOLISM- THE SHIELD
■ This is a symbol of both PHYSICAL protection and MORAL protection
– Faultless in his Five Senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste)
– In his Five Fingers he failed at no time (he is dexterous and able in combat)
– Faith in the Five Wounds Christ received on the cross (one in each limb and the spear wound
in the abdomen)
– Five Joys the Virgin Mary had in Jesus (These are not listed in the poem, but are offered as
background: Annunciation, Nativity, Resurrection, Ascension, and Assumption). The Hail Mary
prayer is often associated with these five joys.
– And, finally, the Five Knightly Virtues (exact wording depends on translation)
■
(a) free-giving (or generosity)- liberality
■
(b) friendliness (or brotherhood)- lovingkindness
■
(c) chastity (or purity)- continence
■
(d) chivalry (or courtesy)- courtesy
■
(e) piety (or compassion)- piety
■ Morality protects him on the outside, but faith is his inner strength
SYMBOLISM- FIVE
■ Bible- numerous references-The number 5 symbolizes God’s grace, goodness and
favor toward humans and is mentioned 318 times in Scripture. Five is the number
of grace, and multiplied by itself, which is 25, is 'grace upon grace' (John 1:16). The
Ten Commandments contains two sets of 5 commandments. The first five
commandments are related to treatment and relationship with God and the last
five concern relationship with other humans.
■ Pentateuch- Old Testament- five books of God’s law
■ English Lover’s Knot
■ Pythagorean Theorem (2+3) as one was not a number and was not odd. Man plus
woman equaled five.
■ Five Pillars of Islam
SYMBOLISM- THE TEMPTRESS
■ Archetypical representation of the temptresshighly seductive. Gawain must use all of his
virtue and willpower to resist the temptation.
■ Highly sexualized encounter.
SYMBOLISM- THE GREEN SASH
■ Symbolic of Gawain’s falling away from truth/ falling
away from his perfect virtue
– If Pentangle equals truth, the girdle is the
“untruth” in Gawain’s life
■ Perhaps a symbol of Gawain’s humanness
MISOGYNY IN GAWAIN’S SPEECH
■ The speech appears to likely be simply a frustrated
outburst
■ Highly contradictory to Gawain’s behavior throughout
this work (and others)
■ Several Biblical allusions
THE END…
■ Gawain’s return to Camelot
■ Treacherous journey home
■ Upon arrival, Camelot celebrates
■ Gawain still overwhelmed by his personal defeat
■ Arthur’s insistence that all shall wear a green baldric- will this serve as a
constant reminder of Gawain’s failure?
■ Celebration highlights Arthur’s immaturity.
■ HONY SOYT QUI MAL PENCE- Shame on him who thinks ill of it / Shame on
him who thinks this evil- Hard to say if the author included this or not- still
exists as the motto of the Order of the Garter (most senior order of British
Chivalry, founded by Edward III in 13480.
MYTHIC STRUCTURE
■ The first part (fitt) takes place within a royal court
■ The second part (fitt) is a perilous journey outdoors which ends in another royal court
■ The third part (fitt) alternates between the setting of the royal court and the perilous outdoors
■ The final part (fitt) is again a journey outdoors that ends the original court, the court of King
Arthur at Camelot
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■ The hero takes the journey to right some previous wrong or restore balance to the natural order
■ The symmetry of this poem in particular would suggest that the natural order has been restored,
as the New Year shines brightly on Arthur’s court- fine and well, but consider it does mask the
fact that Gawain’s individual sense of order has been uprooted