Women in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight"
Immediately, one is confronted with the apparent centrality of women in the society of Sir Gawain. King Arthur and his court are seen celebrating together, and the Queen stands before all as the representation of all chivalric excellence at the forefront of this otherwise all male society of knights. As one is respectful to the king, one must also be respectful to the queen -- if not more respectful, to show one's homage to Arthur.
However, although powerful images women may be symbolically important in the society of the poem, this does not mean that women are truly powerful players in courtly life. Rather, the female body is used as a 'test' of the homage a knight owes to his male host. Women serve as vehicles of male pride and honor, and facilitators of male knightly excellence, not as significant actors in and of themselves. As all the knights sit around the Round Table, during the New Year's celebration, the Green Knight of the title challenges any who will dare to strike a blow at him, provided he is allowed to strike back in a year's time. Sir Gawain cuts off the knight's head, and the knight leaves, with a promise from Gawain to extract his pledge next year.
Gawain, true to form, finds the Green Knight's abode and resides there, waiting and dreading the final strike. All the while, the Green Knight's wife makes attempts to seduce Gawain. Yet although the woman is apparently false (later, this is shown to be a deliberately staged test of Gawain's chaste honor to his host) Gawain is true to his values and the honor owed to even a less than hospitable host. For his valor of spirit as well as his manly courage, the Green Knight spares Gawain. But as inspiring as this story may be in terms of knightly valor, it is noteworthy that the female body, unlike the male body is never tested -- rather it is only a sexual test for Gawain, or a symbol of Arthur's power in the form of female beauty.
Works Cited
Anonymous. "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." New York: Knopf, 2003.
Sir Gawain and the Green Night The Arthurian poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight features a number of female characters, and when taken together, they manage to portray the entire (albeit limited) spectrum of sexist tropes and roles allowed women in the vast majority of literature. Though some of them serve crucial functions in the plot, for example by testing Sir Gawain or hiding the Green Knight's identity, the roles
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight The Unattainable Chivalric Code Some Thoughts on Chivalry The chivalric code is a paradigm that is both poorly understood and was even more poorly applied, not because the code was not clearly written down and able to be transferred among the people who it applied to but because of its very confusing historical development and even more confusing codification. The Chivalric code grew out of the desire
Sir Gawain Comparing Sir Gawain to the archetype character of a knight, similar to the knights in King Arthur's court, he possesses characteristics that define and at the same time provide a humane side to his knightly stature. As the archetypal knight, Sir Gawain is similar to King Arthur's knights in that he possesses the brave and resolute attitude of an honorable knight. He had shown these qualities when he met
Sir Gawain Religion features prominently in the 14th century text Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The story reveals the interface between indigenous pagan faiths and Christianity, especially as the two converge in the colonized Celtic regions such as Wales. As the story champions the hero, Sir Gawain, a Christo-centric message is being conveyed. Sir Gawain, although a problematic hero, is redeemed through his unwavering faith in Jesus and Mary. Christianity
This acceptance reveals the flaw in his moral structure as it is evidence that he has a certain amount of fear of death, which means that his faith is not entirely impervious to doubt and that he is not morally perfect The subsequent encounter between Gawain and the Green Knight reveals much of the strength of Gawain's moral attributes. He is brave in the face of the Knight. The Green
Beowulf" and "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" are two tales which show striking similarities in many different literary aspects. These two tales, which were passed down orally from generation to generation in Northern Europe, include many elements of heroic legend and the epic hero. An epic hero, such as Beowulf or Sir Gawain, possesses the qualities of valor, military prowess, loyalty, generosity, and honor. These ideals are also
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