Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Poem Analysis

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is an epic poem by an unknown author about a knight in Camelot who is given a challenge by a green man during the holidays in King Arthur’s court. This “Green Knight” challenges someone to accept his request of chopping his head off and a year later he will use the same axe to swing at their neck as well. Sir Gawain steps up to the challenge after King Arthur volunteers, showing great courage and saving his king. Gawain uses the green man’s axe and cleanly cuts the knights head off his shoulders. Shockingly, the Green Knight picks up his head and walks off, asking again for Gawain to find him in a year to be proven courageous. Almost a year later he embarks on his journey to find the strange man and stumbles upon a castle after many days of facing great danger and terrible weather. The lord of the castle welcomes Sir Gawain, allowing him to stay in his castle for a few days and bring him to the Green Knight’s chapel, but in return, the Lord asks him to play another game. In this game, the Lord and Sir Gawain must give each other everything they receive at the end of each …show more content…
The Green Knight barges into the party, bringing his “Call to Adventure,” and offers a holiday game to the court, challenging them to “‘give a blow and take a blow’” (287). “Finding the Mentor,” the second step of a hero’s journey is explained “more often than not, this mentor will present the hero with something that will aid him or her later on in his or her quest” (“What Makes a Hero?” 1). This best describes Lord Bercilak as he offers Gawain shelter, the Green Knight’s location, and later, the realization that Gawain has flaws. Although he appears after the third step, Lord Bercilak still meets the requirements of a mentor. With this in mind, Sir Gawain begins his expedition to find the Green Knight by crossing over into the “unknown” and leaving Camelot on his