Comp notes: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Hopefully, I'm helping someone with these notes.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight:
King Arthur - Courteous
Guenevere
Green Knight - 130-231 - Larger than life like Beowulf

• Muscular - green = nature - carries an ax
• Carries bob of holly - sign of peace?

Sir Gawain - 337-65 - Nephew of King Arthur

• Humble - New type of warrior
• Lower-class?
• Chilvary
• Loyal
• Armor, appearance, beauty - 566-89

- Story starts off with emphasis on lineage
- Quickly shifts to courtly manners and details
- Difference between the Green Knight's interruption and Grendel's?

• Green Knight passes the kingdom in peace and not destruction
• A life for a life - Significance of cleaving the Green Knight's head?

- Passing of the seasons - emphasis on nature

• Setting - Christmas in the beginning of the story and once more at the beginning Gawain's journey - Significance?
• Many alliteration and attention to detail - Significance?
• Gawain journey to his death
• Represents a Christian's journey

- Number 5 (625-69) significance - Christ-like?
- 720-25 - Less detail fighting and action
- Though both stories give thanks to God, God has more power in Sir Gawain than in Beowulf
- Castle within the woods - Significance? Nature

Lord of the castle - 844-47
- Further evidence of courtesy and chivalry - 916-19

Lady of the castle - 941-69
- Chilvaric code - 1010-19 - Secret Romance
*The Agreement* - The lord will hunt; Gawain will sleep - Exchange prizes

• Constrasting the descriptiong of the lord's hunt and Gawain's hunt
• All hunting scenes are active and fast-paced
• Gawain as prey; lady as hunter
• His knightly code is tested
• Heavy use of passive voice to describe his actions (1302-06)

Day 1:

• Hunt 1 - Deer (grace, beauty) - very detailed and graphic
• Bedroom Hunt 1 - Kissed the lady
• Exchange of Goods

Day 2:

• Hunt 2 - Boar (strength, perseverence)
• Bedroom Hunt 2 - Kissed the lady again
• Exchange of Goods

Day 3:

• Hunt 3 - Fox (sly, clever, deceptive)
• Gawain dreams of death
• Bedroom Hunt 3 - Takes lady's girdle
• Exchange of Goods - Gawain does not give the lord the girdle

- The only sin Gawain commits is covetting his life
- The "servant" tries to test him, as well

First stroke - Gawain flinches
Second stroke - Gawain doesn't flinch
Third stroke - Green Knight nicks Gawain's neck

- Gawain blames women for his sin - makes excuses

And here you'll find a cartoon of the story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t855W1rFYEo