Sir Gawain And The Green Knight In Beowulf

Since the beginning of society, bravery has been innate in everyone. From David’s fight with Goliath, to modern day’s stand against prejudice, people continue to attack in tough positions. However, cowardice is ingrained in everyone as well. People are constantly avoiding danger―physical and internal, such as Peter’s denial of Jesus and dodging responsibility. Consequently, there is a fine line between bravery and cowardice. Granted, when is the turning point where self preservation becomes a greater priority than helping others? In the epic poem, Beowulf, and the medieval romance, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Beowulf and Sir Gawain similarly show humanity’s inclination to act brave when situations become difficult, until their lives are put at risk―revealing everyone's inner cowardice.

Medieval scholars continually inspect the particularities of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (SGGK) within the context of the preexisting Gawain literary tradition, and the issue of Gawain’s sudden antifeminist diatribe repeatedly comes to the forefront of these textual investigations. Often, literary critics claim that Gawain’s antifeminist outburst is common for the fourteenth century and that his acceptance to wear the girdle as a sign of shame still epitomizes him as a model of knighthood. Other scholars hesitate to dismiss Gawain’s misogyny as commonplace, they note that this moment is inconsistent with his reputation as an ideal knight. Gawain’s hasty compulsion to blame women suggests ruptures within the essentiality of his chivalric identity and a closer examination of the text reveals that this moment is not isolated. Despite scholars repeated attempts to identify the essential knight within Gawain, there are several examples of Gawain’s unstable identity throughout the text. I will argue Sir Gawain’s knightly identity is performative rather than essential, and his diatribe is the culmination of his failure to perform his own expected social identity.

In “Gawain’s First Failure” Victoria L. Weiss claims that, “A closer look at the terms of the challenge reveals that Sir Gawain’s temptation begins before he ever leaves Arthur’s court, and that his first failure comes when he chops off the head of the Green Knight” (Source C). Victoria L. Weiss mentions that the temptations Sir Gawain faced started before he left the court, providing evidence that supports the idea that Gawain is young and inexperienced. Due to his lack of experience and his eagerness to prove himself, he easily falls for the temptations of the challenge presented by the Green Knight. Victoria’s examination of the idea that Sir Gawain was tempted before he left the court provides evidence that he failed his quest when he accepted the challenge. By accepting the challenge and striking the Green Knight so aggressively, Sir Gawain breaks pentangle code, which is a major part of his identity. By doing so, Sir Gawain diminishes his well-known trait of chivalry. This act of disgrace towards one of his most profound characteristic is repeated when fails to uphold his agreement with Lord Bertilak.

 Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is one of the most intriguing Middle English chivalric romances known today. The poem is a delicately written balancing act between two cultures, clashing in a time of unease between the religion of tradition, (paganism) and the new religion, (Christianity). The poem is also one of the best known Arthurian tales, with its plot combining two types of folklore patterns, the beheading game and the exchange of winnings. The Green Knight is interpreted by many as a representation of the Green Man of folklore and by others as an allusion to Christ. The story is told in stanzas of alliterative verse, ending in a bob and wheel. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is an important poem in the Middle English romance genre, because it involves all the typical plot progression of a hero who goes on a quest to prove himself. Yet what sets Sir Gawain apart from heroes of lore is his inability to finish his quest. The aspect which makes Sir Gawain and the Green Knight different is Sir Gawain’s failure. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a perfect example of the struggle between enduring Paganism and newfound Christianity.

“The Middle Ages designates the time span roughly from the collapse of the Roman Empire to the Renaissance and Reformation” (“The Middle Ages”). Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was written in the thirteenth and fourteenth century, along with Morte D’Arthur. Both medieval epics exemplify bravery and courage as their themes. “The only universal European institution during the Medieval Era was the Catholic Church which had all the local power within the local bishops” (Sagona). The church saw itself as the only spiritual place of Christian believers, thus it had a large amount of influence on Medieval people, including knights. Christian roles and the act of chivalry played a part in becoming a knight in the Medieval Era that can be seen in

This was considerate behavior because even though he was angry, he was polite and allowed them to leave safely. The warning also showed his courtesy because he could have not told them in anticipation of their return in order to kill them because of their disagreement. These two examples of King Arthur’s respect for the Lady of the Lake and the Roman ambassadors made him a model knight since he was obeying the code of chivalry.

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a knight’s bravery correlates with their ethical code of honor. After the mockery of King Arthur’s court when the Green Knight notes, “Where is now your arrogance and your awesome deeds, your valor and your victories and your vaunting words,” (lines 311-312) one of the many knights in attendance is obligated to come forward to keep their pride and to save the name of King Arthur’s court. Following this encounter, Sir Gawain steps up to fight the Green Knight, which allowed King Arthur to not have to fight the Green Knight. The code of chivalry helps explain that one of the knights has to step up to keep his honor and protect the King and his court. “And the loss of my life would be least of any; and it is I that have asked it, it ought to be mine, and if my claim be not comely let all this court judge. And all councel all unite to give Gawain the game and release the king outright” (lines 355-365). The bravery to come forward and risk one’s life is another of the traits in the code of chivalry of the knights.

The story of Sir Gawain works on an opposite level from that of Beowulf. Just as Beowulf emphasizes outward strength, the character of Gawain stands as a paradigm of inner strength as a path to outward glory. The battles Gawain fights occur inside his mind. The chivalric code is one concerned with honor and duty within a society of corruption and sin. The role of chivalry was one concerned with example. A chivalric Knight, such as Gawain, must abide by the inner code of morality in order to remain true to his self, his lord, and his God. Sin, for Gawain, would begin in the mind, and lead to dishonorable deeds in the outside world. Throughout Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain travels on a path which is as much one of inner contemplation, as it is of actual travel. We see Gawain at the beginning of his journey being,"...faultless in his five senses,/Nor found ever to fail in his five fingers,"(640-1). Gawain’s traits being likened to the five wounds of Christ sets up his eventual fall from the very start. However, like Christ, Gawain is reborn to a new life through the "scratch" the Green Knight gives him (2312). From that small wound, Gawain realizes that he cannot live up to the perfect image of chivalry he has sworn to uphold. To Gawain, this wound comes very close to being the death knell of the entire moral system Gawain has dedicated his life to.

Sir Gawain is a heroic knight who refuses to fight against Sir Lancelot as he sees him a friend and a true knight. “Whereas the Heroic Knight defines honor as a family matter, the Worshipful Knight defines it rather as a matter between individuals” (Kennedy 66). Sir Gawain’s honor comes from his individualize relationships with others. When accosted to join Sir Agravain and Sir Mordred he refuses because Lancelot is his friend, and consider him to a brother to him. “I will never be against Sir Launcelot for one day 's deed, when he rescued me from King Carados of the Dolorous Tower, and slew him, and saved my life” (Mallory 440). Sir Gawain refuses to fight against Lancelot and “expose” him. He doesn’t believe that he will ever be against Sir Lancelot. However, this does change when Sir Gawain’s sons are slain and he harbors anger towards Lancelot. This harbored anger displays how Sir Gawain although honored Sir Lancelot before the loss of his sons, over powers the previous

    Gawain’s loyalty to King Arthur is unquestionable. To begin this story, there is a Green knight who proposes a game to a room full of Arthur’s knights. When no man volunteers to play with the Green Knight, Gawain steps in to save his king’s life and reputation. Before accepting the Green Knight's challenge, Gawain asks Arthur to “...command me to step from the dias and stand with you there, / That I might without bad manners make down from my place…” (From Sir Gawain…, ln. 121-122). By doing so, not only does Gawain step up to the green knight for his king, but he also goes about it in a very chivalrous, respectful way to his king above all of us. By respecting his king and being the only man to step up to the challenge and risk his life for his king, Gawain shows loyalty, which in turn follows chivalry, putting his honor above his life.

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, by an unknown author referred to as the “Pearl Poet,” we are introduced to Sir Gawain. Gawain is a knight of the Round Table and he is also the nephew of King Arthur. As a knight, Gawain is expected to possess and abide by many chivalrous facets. Throughout the poem he portrays many of the qualities a knight should possess, such as bravery, courtesy, and honor among others. Because of his ability to possess these virtues even when tempted to stray away from them, Sir Gawain is a true knight.

From Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the hero of the story, Sir Gawain, represents a lot of the characteristics of a chivalric knight/hero, among them: modesty for himself, honesty to everyone around, as well as commitment and courage to complete his agreement made. He also engages in the activities that define heroes: starting out with a journey and completing challenges along the way, all trying to prove his worthiness to not only himself, but to King Arthur and his people back home. The most chivalric thing about Sir Gawain was probably when he knew he had the option to let King Arthur chop off the Green Knight’s head, but instead, he volunteered himself to do what he thought was the smartest thing. He also had the choice to stay in his home when he should have been out and going to find the Green Knight, but he owned what he had done and completed his journey all the way to what he was thinking was his death. His only downfall was when he lied about his magical girdle, which was given to him by a lady, but did not return to the host after they had made a deal. The Green Knight

“Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is an excellent work to reference when examining different relationships within Arthurian legends. The author of “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is unknown, but he is sometimes referred to as the “Gawain Poet” or “Pearl Poet” because of his additional works: “Pearl,” “Purity,” and “Patience.” All four poems were part of the Alliterative Revival of the Middle Ages of Northern England, containing mostly religious content. This may be the origin of Gawain’s exaggeratedly religious portrayal in “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is organized in a stanza arrangement. Each stanza ends with one short line and four longer lines, called the bob and wheel, which “knits” the story together. It may important to note that the work was most likely written in the fourteenth century. The work is set in sixth-seventh centuries, but includes modern advances in armory, dress, and décor from the time the poem was written. “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” exhibits many different types of love and relationships in which they are demonstrated. Familial love, spiritual love, erotic love, and courtly love are demonstrated within families, friendships, marriages, and Godly relationships.

A hero, what is a hero? Close your eyes and imagine what a hero is. Is it a man or a woman? Are they tall or short? Do they have dark or light hair? Are they young or old? Now take this hero you have imagined and give him or her traits. What would they be? Is he or she courageous or adventurous? Are they physically strong or mentally strong, or both? A hero is defined in 3 ways; selflessness, humbleness, and bravery.

At this point in history the men who fought the wars were lead by their leaders with a code of chivalry. Chivalry can be explained as “the Anglo-Saxon code on steroids.” (McGee) Which is, explained further, a moral system for a good way to conduct fighting. The knights in Arthurian time went even further with that code to say that it was a way to conduct oneself not only in battle, but at all times. Knights, by being chivalrous, were kind to all people, fought well and true, kept faith and believed in the Christian God, and fought for their kings. Chivalry can be found across the Arthurian texts, The Song of Roland is one of the texts that has multiple examples of chivalry.