English 12 - Mr. RinkaLesson #6

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

King Arthurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur

King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore

and literary invention, and his historical existence is debated and disputed by modern historians. The legendary Arthur developed as a figure of international interest largely through the popularity of Geoffrey of Monmouth's fanciful and imaginative 12th-century Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain). How much of

Geoffrey's Historia (completed in 1138) was adapted from such earlier sources, rather than invented by Geoffrey himself, is unknown. Although the themes, events and characters of the Arthurian legend varied widely from text to text, and there is no one canonical version, Geoffrey's version of events often served as the starting point for later

stories. Geoffrey depicted Arthur as a king of Britain who defeated the Saxons and established an empire over Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Norway and Gaul. Many elements and incidents that are now an integral part of the Arthurian story appear in Geoffrey's Historia, including Arthur's father Uther Pendragon, the wizard Merlin, Arthur's wife Guinevere, the

sword Excalibur, Arthur's conception at Tintagel, his final battle against Mordred at Camlann and final rest in Avalon. The 12th-century French writer Chrétien de Troyes, who added Lancelot and the Holy Grail to the story, began the genre of Arthurian romance that became a significant strand of medieval literature. In these French stories, the

narrative focus often shifts from King Arthur himself to other characters, such as various Knights of the Round Table. Arthurian literature thrived during the Middle Ages but waned in the centuries that followed until it experienced a major resurgence in the 19th century. In the 21st century, the legend lives on, not only in literature but also in adaptations for

theatre, film, television, comics and other media.

King Arthur of Britain, by Howard Pyle from The Story of King Arthur and His Knights. (1903)

The Knights of the Round Table

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round_Table

King Arthur presides at the Round Table with all of his Knights.

The Round Table is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his Knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status. The table was first described in 1155 by Wace, who relied on previous depictions of Arthur's fabulous retinue. The symbolism of the Round

Table developed over time; by the close of the 12th century it had come to represent the chivalric order associated with Arthur's court, the Knights of the Round Table.

Sir Galahad takes the "Siege Perilous"

Chivalryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chivalry

The Knight's Code of Chivalry was a moral system that stated all knights should protect others who can not protect themselves, such as widows, children, and elders. All knights needed to have the strength and skills to fight wars in the Middle Ages. Knights not only had to be

strong but they were also extremely disciplined and were expected to use their power to protect the weak and defenseless. Knights vowed to be loyal, generous, and "noble bearing". Knights were required to tell the truth at all times and always respect the honour of women. Knights not only vowed to protect the weak but also vowed to guard the honor of all fellow knights. They

always had to obey those who were placed in authority and were never allowed to refuse a challenge from an equal. Knights lived by honor and for glory. Knights were to fear God and maintain His Church. Knights always kept their faith and never turned their back on a foe. Knights despised pecuniary reward. They persevered to the end in any enterprise begun. Essentially, a

chivalric knight is a Christian military soldier. "Certain law”, stated a man must be a Baptized Christian in order to become a knight.

Knights of Christ

by Jan van Eyck A knight being armed.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight

Summary#6 LA 12 Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Summary

Themeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight

Temptation and TestingThe typical temptation fable of medieval literature presents a series of tribulations assembled as tests or "proofs" of moral virtue. The stories often describe several individuals' failures after which the main character is tested. Success in the

proofs will often bring immunity or good fortune. Gawain's ability to pass the tests of his host are of utmost importance to his survival, though he does not know it. It is only by fortuity or "instinctive-courtesy" that Sir Gawain is able to pass his test. In addition to the laws of chivalry, Gawain must respect another set of

laws concerning courtly love. The knight’s code of honor requires him to do whatever a damsel asks. Gawain must accept the girdle from the Lady, but he must also keep the promise he has made to his host that he will give whatever he gains that day. Gawain chooses to keep the girdle out of fear of death, thus breaking his promise to the host

but honoring the lady. Upon learning that the Green Knight is actually his host (Bertilak), he realizes that although he has completed his quest, he has failed to be virtuous.

Knights of Gawain's time were tested in their ability to balance the male-oriented chivalric code with the female-oriented rules of courtly love.(God Speed! – Edmund Blair Leighton 1900)

Hunting and SeductionScholars have frequently noted the parallels between the three hunting scenes and the three seduction scenes in Gawain. It is generally agreed that the fox chase has significant parallels to the third seduction scene, in which Gawain accepts the girdle from Bertilak's wife. Gawain, like the fox, fears for

his life and is looking for a way to avoid death from the Green Knight's axe. Like his counterpart, he resorts to trickery in order to save his skin.

Lady Bertilak at Gawain's bed (from original manuscript, artist unknown)

Nature & Chivalry (opposing views) Some argue that nature represents a chaotic, lawless order which is in direct confrontation with the civilization of Camelot throughout Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The green horse and rider that first invade Arthur’s peaceful halls are iconic representations of nature's disturbance.

Nature is presented throughout the poem as rough and indifferent, constantly threatening the order of men and courtly life. Represented by the sin-stained girdle, nature is an underlying force, forever within man and keeping him imperfect (in a chivalric sense). In this view, Gawain is part of a wider conflict between nature and chivalry, an

examination of the ability of man's order to overcome the chaos of nature. Several critics have made exactly the opposite interpretation, reading the poem as a comic critique of the Christianity of the time, particularly as embodied in the Christian chivalry of Arthur's court. In its zeal to extirpate all traces of paganism,

Christianity had cut itself off from the sources of life in nature and the female. The green girdle represents all the pentangle lacks. The Arthurian enterprise is doomed unless it can acknowledge the unattainability of the ideals of the Round Table, and, for the sake of realism and wholeness, recognize and incorporate the pagan values represented by the Green Knight.

Times and Seasons Times, dates, seasons, and cycles within Gawain are often noted by scholars because of their symbolic nature. The story starts on New Year's Eve with a beheading and culminates on the next New Year's Day. Gawain leaves Camelot on All Saints Day and arrives at Bertilak's castle on Christmas Eve.

Furthermore, the Green Knight tells Gawain to meet him at the Green Chapel in "a year and a day"—a period of time seen often in medieval literature. Some scholars interpret the yearly cycles, each beginning and ending in winter, as the poet's attempt to convey the inevitable fall of all things good and noble in the world.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Gawain_and_the_Green_Knight

The 2,530 lines and 101 stanzas that make up Sir Gawain and the Green Knight are written in what linguists call the "Alliterative Revival" style typical of the 14th century. Instead of focusing on a metrical syllabic count and rhyme, the alliterative form of this period usually relied on

the agreement of a pair of stressed syllables at the beginning of the line and another pair at the end. Each line always includes a pause, called a caesura, at some point after the first two stresses, dividing it into two half-lines. Although he largely follows the form of his day, the Gawain poet was somewhat freer with convention than his or her

predecessors. The poet broke the alliterative lines into variable-length groups and ended these nominal stanzas with a rhyming section of five lines known as the bob and wheel, in which the "bob" is a very short line, sometimes of only two syllables, followed by the "wheel," longer lines with internal rhyme.#6 LA 12 Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Assignment #1

http://quietube4.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74glI1lg1CQ Watch this documentary on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

Assignment #2

Read the translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

#6 LA 12 Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

English 12 - Mr. RinkaLesson #6

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight