Verified Document

Courtly Love Is Expressed In Sir Gadwain Essay

¶ … Courtly Love" is expressed in Sir Gadwain and the Green Knight How social and cultural events influenced the development of the selected theme "Courtly Love"

What makes the selected work uniquely English

The term 'courtly' love only evolved far later. Here, in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,, t he poet refers to it as 'courtesy'. It is still uncertain whether courtly love was a social construction or a literary notion that existed in many medieval romances (http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/sir-gawain-and-the-green-knight/about.html). Either way, it was pervasive. The most influential and earliest book on courtly love was that written by Andreas Capellanus in the 1170s where he provides rules of love that are illustrated by a story of a knight on the way to the court of King Arthur. The knight was a man devoted to pleasing the lady. The fact that the lady was married was no impediment to the knight. He was chivalrous and seductive to her, but his honesty and Christian religion forbade him o enter an adulterous relationship (although other medieval literature portrays the knight consummating the relationship). Clandestine meeting between lady and knight were conducted by messages that were relayed between go-betweens very much in the style of some of Shakespeare's romances. The lovers usually exchanged gifts or favors such as the ring, glove, or...

Literature of the period portrays this kind of 'courtly' love as resulting in sleeplessness, jealousy, and faintness -- all marks of supposedly true love (http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/sir-gawain-and-the-green-knight/about.html)
The moral -- hence perfect - knight was one who remained loyal to his host if seduced, did all to win his 'pure' maiden's love by defeating monsters and evil men (etc.) was chivalrous and abided by strcit codes of honor. Gawain showed all of these in his resistance of Lady Bertilak's approach. (Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism, p. 186. ). Courtly love required that the knight be challenged by adultery but that he transcend it. This was due to his honesty to the host, but also due to Christian morals that demanded Clerissa before marriage. Whilst on the one hand, courtly and medieval love required that knight become experts in seducing and attracting women, they were also expected to be courteous and sociable and never to, at least, overtly engage in an adulterous affair (http://www.reneemattila.com/Sir%20Gawain.htm).

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Lady Blakely discreetly visits his bedroom, kisses him and hands him her girdle as well as her ring. The girdle is synonymous to her most intimate private parts indicating that she is allowing him eentry to them. This was profoundly European…

Sources used in this document:
Sources

Armitage, Simon (2007). Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: A New Verse Translation. New York: Norton. Cooke, Jessica (1998). "The Lady's 'Blushing' Ring in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." The Review of English Studies 49 (193) [HIDDEN]

Dinshaw, Carolyn. "A Kiss Is Just a Kiss: Heterosexuality and Its Consolations in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." Diacritics. Vol. 24 No. 2/3 (Summer 1994) pp. 204 -- 226
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

King Arthur Is an Epic
Words: 1560 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

This notion was reinforced during her second marriage. After her son died, again because of the societal expectations, she had to remarry. It would not be good to be a single woman at her age. She however, did not want to be put into a marriage, so instead she decided to choose her husband. The shock was not necessarily in the choosing of a husband, it was in the

King Arthur: The Prototypical Anglo-Saxon
Words: 603 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

King Arthur's formation of the Knights of the Round Table, his association with the wise Merlin, and the Guinevere-Lancelot are all fairly well-known elements of King Arthur's story that help to exemplify his heroism in the Anglo-Saxon conception of the term, but more than this Arthur was initially remembered and revered for helping to end in fighting between various war lords and factions that existed in the British Isles

King Arthur: Man and Myth
Words: 1239 Length: 4 Document Type: Research Paper

Many readers, even hundred of years ago, did not take the tale of King Arthur as "pure fiction" (15) and Ashe asserts that these readers were "more right than wrong" (15) in their assumptions. It is likely the story is true in some respects. In many ways, the man was a hero larger than life, which makes many skeptics call into question his existence. Ashe states that many even

King Arthur
Words: 1003 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

King Arthur Mordred and the Conflict at Camelot Arthur is at the center of the Arthurian world of legends; he is the king of Camelot and is married to Guinevere. Arthur has numerous difficulties with his Knights of the Round Table, however—including with Lancelot and Mordred. Lancelot has an affair with Arthur’s wife; and Mordred betrays Arthur’s trust in seeking his own ascension. Why should so many people who were close

King Arthur's Birth King Arthur
Words: 2634 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

King Uther married Igraine and they had a son named Arthur. He was born at Tintagel Castle. This was a very dangerous time and attacks by Saxons happened a lot. So King Uther gave his baby son to his wizard, Merlin, for safety. Merlin sent Arthur away to be raised in the countryside by Sir Ector. He grew up with his foster brother, Kay. He never knew who his real parents were. The

King Arthur S Round Table and the Giant of Mont Saint Michel
Words: 822 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Speech Closing with Leadership StoryAnd as you all move forward in your new positions, remember to be more than just managers and supervisors.Be a mentor and role models for those who will be coming up behind you�.Before I conclude my speech today, I want to leave you with a story from an unlikely source, but a powerful example of leadership, King Arthur of Camelot. As the story goes, King Arthur

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now