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In literature, heroes or protagonists frequently indicate society’s values through their culture. Beowulf and Sir Gawain’s characters are revealed through their decisions and actions. Ultimately, their decisions and actions define the concerns and ideals of their corresponding time period. As these heroes face many tribulations in their folk epic, the reader actively follows alongside them, learning more about their culture ideals, societal norms, and their duties to their people. The Middle…

perhaps he does not want to die yet. When Gawain and his guide arrive at the edge of the forest, Gawain gets one last chance to back out: “The place whither ye go is…perilous…no man pass by that place…he does him to death by force of his hand… therefore…Sir Gawain…get ye away some other road” (online version). Despite the guide’s convincing statements, Gawain continues on. Here, Gawain values honor more than his life. This is one side of Gawain; the side that believes the importance of duty…

qualities go against the standards of society. In The tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and in Marie de France’s lai Lanval, the Green Knight and the Fairy Queen are two characters whose appearance, isolation, and values act in accordance with “otherness”. While the characters are the epitome of “otherness”, how they represent the theme conflicts with the ideas of what an “other” character is with what it is supposed to be. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the Green Knight is described…

Early to the Late Middle Ages, some deplorable and splendid features persist throughout this era. Moreover, Sir Gawain and Beowulf, embark on quests that illustrate their era’s ideals. More specifically, both protagonists demonstrate honorable qualities as well as fraudulent characteristics in accordance with the paradigms of the peoples they represent. Although the quests in Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight take place in varying time periods, corresponding and clashing traits have…

None of the women in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight have any sort of agency. In order for agency to exist, it must be seen and also validated. To be seen means that the woman is visualized actually doing something. She talks, moves, and influences events. To be validated means that the women’s actions/words/influences are recognized, or at the very least, not demeaned. Guinevere is neither seen nor validated, the Lady is only seen, and Morgan le Fay is spoken about, but she is not validated.…

Sir Gawain, King Arthur’s nephew who becomes a famous knight in the land of Brutus is a hero who is aware of a Christian knight’s behavior but is also conscious of the times he failed to lived up to those standards. Sir Gawain popularity arose because he wanted to protect his and King Arthur’s honor. Therefore, he entertains a game created by the Green knight who stormed the castle before the feast. The game is, one of the knights should attempt to cut the green knight’s neck clean off using a…

need to be satisfied. Control of mind is something not everyone can achieve but in this poem Sir Gawain has tried hard not to give in and stay loyal to his chivalric code. Thus, my main focus for the literary analysis of “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” will be the temptations of Sir Gawain versus his moral values of loyalty. Sir Gawain was an excellent knight, described by our poet. He was…

The author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight uses a multitude of rhetorical techniques to teach readers the importance of chivalry, honesty, and courage. The patterns the author uses to captivate the reader because of it’s interesting sounds, rhythms, or beats that can be persuasive while reading. Some of the most effective rhetorical patterns that were used in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight to emphasis the theme of chivalry was color, alliteration, bob and wheel, weapons, dramatization. Color…

In the beginning of Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, Gawain is not a person one would consider to be fully mature. Early on Gawain is revealed to be the youngest of the Knights of the Round Table, a youth himself, and like many children his age, Gawain looks to others for their opinions on how to live his life. Gawain looks to his respectable uncle, King Arthur, as a role model for his own growth. When the man he so admires is threatened he acts out in a moment of rash judgement typical of one…

Description: In the article, "Carnival, Pagan, and Christian symbolism in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," Laura Kenny discusses the important symbolism between religions in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. She uses holly, the color green, and the pentangle to support her arguments. Kenny starts off using holly as an example of symbolism. She supports her statement by adding, "...a popular character of Paganism is the Holly King, dressed in green..." She goes on to discuss the color green and…