Warning: Use of undefined constant referer - assumed 'referer' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 102

Warning: Use of undefined constant host - assumed 'host' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 105

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 106

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 109
Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes - Papers Online

Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes



Loyalty, courage, honor, purity, and courtesy are all attributes of a
knight that displays chivalry. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is truly a story
of the test of these attributes. In order to have a true test of these
attributes, there must first be a knight worthy of being tested, meaning that
the knight must possess chivalric attributes to begin with. Sir Gawain is self
admittedly not the best knight around. He says "I am the weakest, well I know,
and of wit feeblest; / and the loss of my life [will] be least of any" (Sir
Gawain, l. 354-355). To continue on testing a knight that does not seem worthy
certainly will not result in much of a story, or in establishing a ...

Want to read the rest of this paper?
Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay
and over 50,000 other term papers

to his king. The Green Knight challenges anyone in the hall to the
beheading game and no one takes him up on it. Arthur, angered by the Green
Knight's taunting, is about to accept the challenge himself when Gawain steps in
saying "would you grant me this grace" (Sir Gawain, l. 343), and takes the ax
from Arthur. This is a very convenient way for the author to introduce Gawain
and also to show Gawain's loyalty to Arthur, but it seems almost too convenient.
There is an entire hall full of knights, why does Gawain alone step up? Why is
it that a superior knight such as Lancelot does not step up? The Green Knight
is big and of course he is green, which might explain some of the delay in
acceptance of the challenge, but these knights are warriors. The color green is
not a frightening enough color, even combined with the Green Knight's size, to
scare a true warrior. The possible reason for the hesitation by the knights
could lie in the description of the Green ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays.
Write better papers. Get better grades.


Already a member? Login

test of his chivalric attributes.
Honor is another very important attribute that a knight must possess.
Gawain has given his word while accepting the beheading challenge that he will
meet the Green Knight at the Green Chapel in one year's time. This journey is
not an easy task by any means. The author tells us "many a cliff must he climb
in country wild; / far off from all his friends, forlorn must he ride" (Sir
Gawain, l. 713-714). This journey is also taking place in winter and "near
slain by the sleet [Gawain] sleeps in his irons / more nights than enough, among
the naked rocks" (Sir Gawain, l. 729-730). The author's vivid description of
what Gawain must go through to get to the ...

Succeed in your coursework without stepping into a library.
Get access to a growing library of notes, book reports,
and research papers in 2 minutes or less.


CITE THIS PAGE:

Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes. (2004, November 20). Retrieved March 28, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Sir-Gawain-Green-Knight-Test-One/17763
"Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 20 Nov. 2004. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Sir-Gawain-Green-Knight-Test-One/17763>
"Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes." Essayworld.com. November 20, 2004. Accessed March 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Sir-Gawain-Green-Knight-Test-One/17763.
"Sir Gawain And The Green Knight: Test Of One Knight's Chivalric Attributes." Essayworld.com. November 20, 2004. Accessed March 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Sir-Gawain-Green-Knight-Test-One/17763.
JOIN NOW
Join today and get instant access to this and 50,000+ other essays


PAPER DETAILS
Added: 11/20/2004 01:41:15 AM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 1980
Pages: 8

Save | Report

SHARE THIS PAPER

SAVED ESSAYS
Save and find your favorite essays easier

SIMILAR ESSAYS
» Communication Skills
» Revenge
» Talk Show Tension
» The Great Gatsby: Nick Carroway...
» The Odyssey - Gender Roles
» Pragmatics Deixis And Conversa
» Pride In The Iliad
» A Comparison Of The Medieval An...
» Quebec Separatism
» Beowulf - Christianity Vs. Paga...
Copyright | Cancel | Contact Us

Copyright © 2024 Essayworld. All rights reserved