Comparing King Arthur's Court In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight

King Arthur’s court is the primary setting in a variety of tales in literature. This particular setting is portrayed in various different ways. For example, King Arthur’s court in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight depicts the king and his court is all pleasant ways. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, every one of the characters in Camelot is happy and full of joy. On the other hand, in Marie de France’s Lanval, King Arthur’s court is full of lies and deception. The environment, customs and classification of characters are all components that can be evaluated in both Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Marie de France’s Lanval. At the beginning of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a feast at King Arthur’s round table is described. “Many good knights and gay his guests were there…” People came to the court to feast and have a fun, entertaining time. “…Such gaiety and glee, glorious to hear, brave din by day, dancing by night…” The guests at the round table drank beer and wine, danced and laughed. The lords and ladies were living an ideal life with no worries or deception. King Arthur is described, in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, as the “most courteous of all.” At this time, he is a young and noble
In line 5 of Lanval, King Arthur is described as “the brave and courtly king.” Arthur’s customs included giving out gifts, wives and land to all of his lords. At this point, King Arthur’s court seems almost identical to that of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. That is until, King Arthur, for some reason forgets to give the much envied, Lanval a reward. ”For he got nothing from the king and would not ask for anything.” It seems as though King Arthur is jealous of Lanval, and so, acted spitefully by refusing to reward him in any way. King Arthur is certainly not the same man that is illustrated in Sir Gawain and the Green