Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Summary Chapter 12

After the establishing of the threat, Gawain agrees to the “fateful region of both treasure and danger…” (Campbell 53), also known as the call. The Green Knight himself initiates the quest, originally representing the herald. As Gawain rose the sword and let it fall on the knight’s neck, the Green Knight “neither faltered nor fell; he started forward with outstretched hand and caught the head…” (Weston, 9). At the attempt to decapitate the Green Knight, Gawain realizes that he will not be easily killed and rethinks what he has agreed to. At this point, the reader can define the Green Knight as a trickster for misleading Gawain into his death. Time flew by for Gawain and soon took off on his journey to find the mysterious knight. On a chilly winter night, Sir Gawain prays to God to help guide him to a safe place to spend the rest of the night. He comes across a castle in which he stays in for three days. The castle’s owner shelters Gawain and tests his loyalty.

In “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” we see examples of moral, social, and religious conduct melding to form an all-encompassing chivalric code. Moreover, as evident from the quote above and other publications of the era, the Church was becoming quite influential in the shaping of chivalry. On this final day of Gawain’s quest, this representative of Arthur acts with honorable intent if not the utmost courtesy. He arrives at the Green Chapel intending to face a frightening peril in

Both Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Franklin’s Tale are set in a world where the laws of nature and order are turned upside down through the use of magic. In this Medieval world, death is escaped, men have the ability to shapeshift, and the impossible becomes entirely possible. What the Christian God set as earthly law, magic, created by the devil himself, subverts into illogical manifestations. Through their works, the authors of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Franklin’s Tale portray magic and the devil, whose ultimate scheme is to separate humankind from the Christian God by, as being inextricably intertwined. In both texts, magic is used to engage a faithful vassal and/or Christian in a supernatural demonstration in order to incite doubt or fear, thus subverting the power of their lord and/or the Christian God and tricking the faithful into abandoning faith and virtue.

Temptation exists everywhere and for everyone, yet for everyone temptation exists in oddly different ways. For some temptation could be that delicious ice cream cone on a hot summer afternoon, conveniently while dieting. For others temptation could exist in a six-pack of beer or bottle of liquor. The point is anything could be a temptation to someone. However, for Gawain in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight temptation existed around every corner while he was playing the game of the Green Knight. Temptation existed every day and each day it existed in a new way. Gawain never knew what was coming his way throughout the grand scheme of the game, but one thing was for certain he was being tested. Without his reliance religious faith and dedication to his reputation, Gawain would not have been able to make it through the game of the Green Knight alive and resist the temptations put in his path. Temptation was a huge part of the Green Knights game with Gawain, but because of his impeccable reputation Gawain was able to resist the temptation put before him the majority of the time.

The Green Knight agrees if Gawain will come to wherever he thinks the Green Knight will be. Of course, Gawain has no clue where he would find him, so the Green Knight says that he will tell him if Gawain can hit him square on the neck. Then Sir Gawain strikes him directly on his neck, and the Green Knights head rolls off. The Green Knight proceeds to pick up his head and leave, while bleeding terribly from the neck as if he were unharmed. Before he leaves, he tells Sir Gawain to come to the Green Chapel when they agreed. So then a year passes before Gawain comes across his second trial. It occurs while Gawain stays in the castle of a hospitable lord before he is to meet again with the Green Knight. During his stay, the lord and Sir Gawain agree to "exchange what each has won during the day" (Ponsor 128). For three days the lord brings back what he has hunted, and Gawain gives him the kisses he has received from the lady of the castle. However, he also received a magical green scarf from the lady on the third day, but fails to exchange it for it is a token of good luck. When Sir Gawain finally meets with the Green Knight, he prepares to be struck with a scythe, but the Green Knight ends up only giving him a minor scratch on the neck. This is because the knight was testing his honor, and he scratched him because he did not maintain his honor on that third day. He was supposed to hand over

After reading Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Sir Gawain’s identity is left undecided. At the conclusion of the narrative, the Green Knight restores Gawain’s knightly virtues of the pentangle and continues to praise Gawain for his virtue. But Gawain returns home unsatisfied with his restoration only to find his court full of admiration for his return home and victory, even though he now wears the green lace (4.2489-505). The physical journey Gawain to the Green Knight demonstrates his outward courage and devotion, but what is truly going on in his heart? Gawain’s moral character is at stake because he must decide between his valued pentangle or his gifted green lace as his true identity. During his encounter with the Green Knight, Sir

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the poet leaves some scenes in the poem open to the readers’ interpretation. This makes the poem difficult to understand. The poet does this by leaving out details and adding in words that can be confusing to the reader, based on the scenes or item in question. Unless the words are analyzed and thought about in detail, the reader is left in confusion. Even after analyzing the words and trying to make sense of it all, there can still be confusion and even plot holes. Confusion is provoked by the poet throughout the whole poem. The poem has been read and interpreted by many scholars for many years. They have tried to make sense of some of the scenes and of the item in question in their own ways. The areas in question that I am discussing and proving that confusion is provoked is the scene where Gawain gives his speech to take Arthurs place in the game with the Green Knight, the actual beheading scene when Gawain chops the Green Knights head off, the exchange of winnings between Gawain and Lord Bertilak, and the confession scene.

From this point in the story, Sir Gawain’s Chivalry is put to the ultimate test. The Green Knight bestows Sir Gawain with various trials that he must complete. He does this by taking the form the host, having his wife tempt Gawain, making a deal to exchange winnings, and lastly, putting Gawain’s loyalty and courage to the test towards the end with the threat of losing his life at the axe.

Gawain is the only knight who was bold enough to accept the Green Knight’s challenge. He understood the risk that he was taking, and knew the fate that might await him. Even though Gawain knew that the acceptance of this challenge might lead to his death, he recognized that it was his duty as a knight to accept a dangerous task on behalf of his king. He also saw the Green Knight’s challenge as an opportunity to express his nobility to his fellow knights and to prove

Before the blow on his neck his Challenge he accepted did not show on his side he does not have what it takes to be knight. According to the passage it shows how The Green Knight is putting a label on Sir Gawain on being faithful and a coward Knight not a man he disgraced his name among the chapel. According to the Poem “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” it states “And mocked the prince with many a proud with many reproof;/ You cannot be Gawain, he said, who’s thought so good, ;/ A man who’s never been daunted on a hill or date! ;/ for look how you flinch for fear before anything felt! “(Lines 280-284). A form of an exile from the Green knight’s point of view and his ambitions to breakdown his attitude.as he was cut The Green Knight showed

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, most readers believe Gawain is a pristine knight because he accepts the challenge, makes the journey, and meets the green knight at the chapel as they agreed. However, readers fail to realize Gawain's cowardliness throughout the entire story. Although he has many brave moments, he falls short because of the poor decisions he makes shortly after. As shown many times in the story, Gawain struggles with the fear of making the wrong decision. He attempts to portray himself as an indestructible man, but in reality he is a knight that has cowardly tendencies. Gawain can be classified as a coward because of his hesitation in timely situations, desire to protect his own life, and his dishonesty with the host.

At its core, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a story that deals fundamentally with the concept of reciprocation, something which constitutes a sort of transaction between two parties to reach an end (whatever that end may ultimately be). As established right from the beginning, the entire narrative of Sir Gawain is predicated on a type of violent “game” that requires reciprocation, as offered by the figure of the Green Knight. Though Gawain does willingly accept this challenge, a gesture that I will concede as being honorable in the eyes of the context of King Arthur’s Court, I believe that any legitimate sense of mannerism ends at that point. As Sir Gawain progresses, we are presented with various scenes of honor and manner that are not

He’s a bold man for going because he could have bailed on him. Sir Gawain finds the Green Knight and then gets into position to receive his strike. The first time the Green Knight raised his axe, Sir Gawain flinched. The Green Knight talks down on him and says that he should be called a better man. The Green Knight raised his axe two other times, but he didn’t flinch. The third time was when Sir Gawain received his strike, but he did not strike him hard. Sir Gawain gets up and draws his sword. The Green Knight then confesses that he taped him while he was there, so he knew everything that happened. After the confession, the Green Knight invites Sir Gawain back to his castle to celebrate but he declines the offer. As a result, they exchange one last kiss and part

He soon finds him and the Green Knight tries to tease him with faking the swinging of the axe over Sir Gawain’s neck. At the first and second try, Sir Gawain flinches and shows his fear of what is about to happen to him. The Green knight then makes fun of him and then tells Gawain to be brave for he is a knight, “Call yourself good Sir Gwain? Who faced down every foe in the field of battle but now flinches with fear…” (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, 232). This part also helps the reader see that even with the honorable; there may be fear and a coward type of response towards something they are threatened by. On the third try, the Green Knight tries to cut Sir Gawain’s head off but instead only cuts a small about of his neck. This is because of the girdle that he was given. The Green Knights informs Sir Gawain about knowing that he protected through the green girdle. “…you are bound with what belongs to me; it was woven by my wife so I know it very well…”, said the Green Knight (Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, 234). Eventually Sir Gawain is then told that the Green knight was actually Bertilak that took care of him, Lord Bertilak. Bertilak’s mission and purpose was to find out if King Arthur’s knights were really as honorable as they were portrayed. Bertilak explains that he was sent on the mission by King Arthur’s half-sister and with her powers she would change his appearance. Sir Gawain then returns back to King Arthur’s castle and wears the girdle as a reminder of dishonesty. This final part helps verify that Sir Gawain failed in being loyal and honest towards what he agreed

Medieval romances are timeless literary pieces that enchant audiences and create new worlds. Throughout time, medieval romances have continued to be popular novels that fly off the bookshelves. Although medieval romances have survived through many different eras, they all still adhere to a certain list of elements. These stories also manifest social views on heroes, violence, loyalty, and attitudes towards women. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by the Pearl Poet and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling are written hundreds of years apart, but they both contain striking similarities in the elements of medieval romance.