Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Close reading PDF

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A close reading of the Short Story: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight...

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1

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Bertilak’s wife, the Lady of Castle Hautdesert, continuously attempts to seduce Gawain. The lady fails to persuade Gawain into being her lover; however, she succeeds in tempting him to take her green silk belt. Before accepting the lady’s belt, Gawain refuses to give her his glove as a love token, and declines her token of a gold and red ring. This exchange occurs between lines 1846 and 1865, and Gawain is direct in informing the lady that she will never be his lover. Being a courteous knight, Gawain does not give her a glove because doing so would be unacceptable and indecent behavior, and a wrongdoing against his host. Gawain’s opposition to the lady displays his qualities of purity and chivalry. He then rejects the lady’s valuable ring, exhibiting his loyalty to his code of values, as well as his disinterest for material objects. He is not enticed to snatch the lady’s ring, which shows he is not a selfish individual. Consequently, it is unanticipated when Gawain accepts the lady’s green silk belt due to his chivalrous reputation. Throughout the poem, Gawain never surrenders to the beautiful lady’s tempting efforts, stating, “I have nothing to offer you, and nothing will I take” (line 1823). So, it is a significant moment when he decides to take her silk belt, which she claims can protect the individual that wears it. Due to the lack of comments about Gawain’s acceptance of the silk belt, it is difficult to determine why he decided to take it, and thus open for interpretation. One would assume that because of his noble background, he would never take it; therefore, it is meaningful to figure out Gawain’s intentions. Gawain’s Christianity is evident through the pentangle painted onto his shield, his prayers to the Virgin Mary in the wilderness, and his daily confessions after encounters with the lady. He

2 strongly holds onto his faith by not committing adultery with the lady, yet quickly abandons it when he takes possession of an object with the ability to protect him. By taking the silk belt, Gawain believes that its magic will save him from the Green Knight’s blow. This confirms that Gawain is not confident in God’s power to save him from mortal danger; however, during his travels in the wilderness, he knew God would not let him be harmed. Although Gawain has appeared courageous throughout the poem, he is weak in this moment, displaying his desperation to have the silk belt. By relying on a talisman to protect him, Gawain values his life over his Christianity. His fear of dying ultimately determines his acceptance of the magical silk belt, which compels Gawain to further neglect his faith when he does not confess to the priest, and when he omits telling Bertalik about the green silk belt. The importance of Gawain’s decision to take the lady’s belt becomes clear during his encounter with the Green Knight in the Green Chapel. After the Green Knight reveals his plan, Gawain comes to a realization that while he is a glorious knight, he also possesses weaknesses. His failure in taking the belt was not due to dishonesty, impurity, or disrespect, but his lack of faith in God’s ability to save him from death. By accepting responsibility for his actions, he acknowledges that he is not a perfect Christian knight, but a human who has flaws. The poem states that Gawain was “so mortified and crushed that he inwardly squirmed. / All the blood in his body burned in his face, / so that he winced with shame at what the man said” (lines 2370-2732). The words “mortified” and “squirmed” show that Gawain truly regretted his acts of cowardice. Gawain’s acceptance of the belt is the most significant part of the poem because it causes him to experience a transformation from being an extraordinary knight to an ordinary human. If Gawain had not taken the lady’s belt, he would remain stagnant and perfect, which is

3 unrealistic, and would deprive the audience from connecting to his character. In his moment of weakness, he becomes a believable character, adding depth to the poem because he becomes a relatable individual in which readers can analyze his actions.

Work Cited

4 Anonymous. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Broadview Anthology of British Literature, edited by Joseph Black et al., 3rd ed., Broadview Press, 2017, pp. 225-290....