Sir Gawain and The Green Knight
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| Name: | Sir Gawain and The Green Knight |
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Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a Middle English chivalric romance written in alliterative verse by an anonymous author who probably also wrote Pearl, Patience, and Cleanness (or Purity).
Synopsis
Near the start of the poem, a green-clad, green-skinned knight shows up in King Arthur's court and lays down a challenge: he will accept one blow with his axe in exchange for giving another a year later. If no one accepts, the court will be dishonored. Arthur moves to accept, but Sir Gawain protests that he is more expendable and takes up the challenge himself, beheading the Green Knight. The knight puts his head back on and repeats that Gawain will have to come seek him at the Green Chapel in a year. The rest of the poem details the outcome of this.
When the time draws near, Sir Gawain travels to seek him. After many adventures, he arrives at the castle of Lord and Lady Bertilak, who welcome him warmly. The lord proposes a game: he will give Gawain what he obtains hunting in exchange for Gawain giving him all he obtains in the house. Over the course of the next three days, Bertilak kills various animals and Gawain obtains a number of kisses from Bertilak's wife, which he gives to Bertilak by kissing him. On the third day, Lady Bertilak also gives him a green girdle which she says will prevent him from being cut and save his life. He hides it from Lord Bertilak, violating the conditions of the game.
When Gawain gets to the Green Chapel, he flinches from the Green Knight's axe twice. The third time, the axe comes down but only nicks him. The Green Knight was really Lord Bertilak all along. The game was partly Morgan Le Fay's attempt to scare Guinevere to death and partly Bertilak testing the valor and chivalry of the Knights of the Round Table. Gawain did not quite meet the standards of the game, but Bertilak does not hold it against him, since he only acted to preserve his life and not in a way which would harm anyone else. Gawain, however, is ashamed, and vows to wear the green girdle as a mark of his dishonor. He returns to the court and tells the people there his story. The knights resolve to all wear green sashes, as a reminder.
Cultural Impact
This text is very popular in the Arthuriana fandom, due to mix of factors, including its powerful imagery, its aura of magic, its sophisticated writing, and its homoerotic overtones.
It has been translated by numerous scholars, including J.R.R. Tolkien.
It has inspired multiple movies, including Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (1973), Sword of the Valiant, and The Green Knight (2021, starring Dev Patel).