Sir Gawain and The Green Knight
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Prompt #1
“Sir Gawain, think on this when you go forth among great princes (Gawain poet.373-374.243).” The Medieval Age had a general literary focus about Romance; the stories in that era consisted of imaginative adventures containing faraway places following the chivalric code, similar to fairytales. Writers often use symbolism to give significance to the plot and reference a deeper meaning. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the poet uses symbolism to represent a whimsical world and to highlight mankind’s faults.
The symbolism of the color green varies in mythical meanings. The expression of the color is seen frequently throughout the medieval romance, it is first shown in the exposition of the story. “Splendid that knight errant stood in a splay of green (Gawain poet.1.230).” A giant knight came into King Arthur’s kingdom on Christmas day; the knight was abnormally large and entirely green. The other knights feared him due to his unusual characteristics however, he was unarmed and held only a bough of holly and a green axe. The Green Knight’s strange components, such as his abnormal skin and stature, indicate that the color green is a color of whimsy, nature and foreign aspects. The Knight proposes a Christmas challenge and Sir Gawain volunteers on behalf of the king. “That he dares to stoutly exchange one stroke for another, I shall let him have as my present this lovely gisarme, this ax (Gawain Poet.67-69.233).”After the
Hagen 2
Green Knight is beheaded, he continues to talk as though his head is still intact and he is viable. The Green Knight being alive after the decapitation shows that he is of mythical elements, which also proves that the color green symbolizes a whimsical universe due to the fact that death cannot be cheated in reality. Sir Gawain arrives at a castle where he meets a lord and his lady, after a few days the lady begins to develop a fondness for Sir Gawain and she offers him a green sash. “For the
“Sir Gawain, think on this when you go forth among great princes (Gawain poet.373-374.243).” The Medieval Age had a general literary focus about Romance; the stories in that era consisted of imaginative adventures containing faraway places following the chivalric code, similar to fairytales. Writers often use symbolism to give significance to the plot and reference a deeper meaning. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the poet uses symbolism to represent a whimsical world and to highlight mankind’s faults.
The symbolism of the color green varies in mythical meanings. The expression of the color is seen frequently throughout the medieval romance, it is first shown in the exposition of the story. “Splendid that knight errant stood in a splay of green (Gawain poet.1.230).” A giant knight came into King Arthur’s kingdom on Christmas day; the knight was abnormally large and entirely green. The other knights feared him due to his unusual characteristics however, he was unarmed and held only a bough of holly and a green axe. The Green Knight’s strange components, such as his abnormal skin and stature, indicate that the color green is a color of whimsy, nature and foreign aspects. The Knight proposes a Christmas challenge and Sir Gawain volunteers on behalf of the king. “That he dares to stoutly exchange one stroke for another, I shall let him have as my present this lovely gisarme, this ax (Gawain Poet.67-69.233).”After the
Hagen 2
Green Knight is beheaded, he continues to talk as though his head is still intact and he is viable. The Green Knight being alive after the decapitation shows that he is of mythical elements, which also proves that the color green symbolizes a whimsical universe due to the fact that death cannot be cheated in reality. Sir Gawain arrives at a castle where he meets a lord and his lady, after a few days the lady begins to develop a fondness for Sir Gawain and she offers him a green sash. “For the