Characters in The Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

1. The Green Knight is a character from the 14th-century Arthurian poem Sir Gawain and the
Green Knight and the related medieval work The Greene Knight. His true name is revealed
to be Bertilak de Hautdesert in Sir Gawain, while The Greene Knight names him
"Bredbeddle".

2. Gawain, also known as Gawaine or Gauwaine, among other forms and spellings, is a
character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round
Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest
Welsh sources.

3. Lady Bertilak is a character in the medieval poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. She is
ordered by her husband, Sir Bertilak de Hautdesert, alias the Green Knight, to test Sir
Gawain's purity.

4. King Arthur was a legendary Celtic Briton who, according to medieval histories and
romances, was leader of the Celtic Britons in battles against Saxon invaders of Britain in the
late 5th and early 6th centuries. 

5. Sir Bertilak – The Green Knight

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight belongs to a literary genre known as romance. As it
refers to medieval literature, the word "romance" does not mean a love story, although
that sense of the word is ultimately derived from the medieval romance genre. Originally,
Romance referred to the various European languages derived from Latin, the language
of the Roman Empire. The word became applied to the popular tales written in Romance
languages, particularly French. In this sense, a romance is a tale of adventure involving
knights on a quest. Elements of fantasy and magic are always present: There may be
dragons or monsters to battle, mysterious places to visit, or peculiar spells or curses to
be broken. Damsels in distress frequently appear in the plot as victims to be rescued or
as initiators of the quest. Typically, the romance story begins at a noble court, where the
knights receive a challenge before setting out on a journey to accomplish their task. As
with Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the challenge may come from a mysterious
visitor. The knights travel far from home, encountering terrible hardships and doing battle
with their enemies before achieving their goal and returning to the court to tell their
stories. Every romance includes basic set pieces, such as the arming of the hero and the
recitation of the names of famous knights. The romance genre was so formulaic and so
universally familiar that by the Gawain-poet's time, it had long since become clichéd.
Chaucer, for example, was able to do a spot-on parody of the genre in his
ridiculous Tale of Sir Thopas, part of the Canterbury Tales. Clichéd or not, the romance
remained popular for centuries before finally reaching its logical end in Miguel de
Cervantes's romance spoof/homage Don Quixote, first published in 1605.
Poem Summary
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight follows a classic quest formula, with a knight receiving
a challenge, going out on a journey to meet that challenge, and returning home to report
on his quest.

At Christmas, a knight who is completely green rides into King Arthur's hall. The Green
Knight proposes a game: Any knight brave enough to strike off the Green Knight's head
may keep the Green Knight's ax, but that man must accept a return stroke in one year.
Gawain accepts the challenge and cuts off the Green Knight's head. The knight picks up
his severed head and leaves, telling Gawain to look for the Green Chapel.

Near the end of the allotted year, Gawain sets out in search of the Green Chapel. He
finds a castle in the wilderness. The lord of the castle asks Gawain to stay until New
Year's Day, because the Green Chapel is nearby. The lord proposes an agreement: He
will go out hunting while Gawain stays at the castle, and the two men will exchange
whatever they have gained at the end of the day.

The exchange of winnings takes place over three days. Each day, the lord goes out
hunting, while the lady of the castle tries to seduce Gawain in his bed. Gawain politely
refuses her advances, although he does give her some kisses. Finally, she offers him a
magic belt that will protect the life of any man who wears it. Gawain repays the lord his
lady's kisses, but he does not mention the belt.

Gawain keeps his appointment at the Green Chapel. The Green Knight raises his axe to
cut off Gawain's head, but twice he draws back. The third time, the Green Knight barely
cuts Gawain on the neck. The Green Knight reveals that he was Gawain's host and that
his appearance as the Knight was made possible by Morgan le Fay. He tells Gawain
that the first two blows were for the first two days of their agreement, when Gawain fairly
repaid him his wife's kisses. The small cut was for accepting the belt and concealing it.
Overcome with shame, Gawain acknowledges his fault and wears the belt to remind
him of his fault. When he returns to Camelot, the entire court wears green sashes in
fellowship with Gawain.

What is the main lesson of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

The story teaches a great lesson about dishonesty.

Gawain realizes that honor requires all kinds of honesty. While he avoided the larger sin
of sleeping with the lord's wife, he fell into the smaller sin of lying. Sin is sin, Gawain
learns, and he admits his defeat.

What is the point of the Green Knight story?

The Gawain of The Green Knight is a “Christ figure” in that he resembles the Christ of
The Last Temptation of Christ, a man who can't quite own up to who he is
expected to be. In a way, The Last Temptation's Jesus gives up a good life to attain
greatness, and The Green Knight's Gawain does just the opposite.

What is the deeper meaning of the Green Knight?

Interpretations. Of the many characters similar to him, the Green Knight of Sir Gawain is
the first to be green. Because of his strange colour, some scholars believe him to be a
manifestation of the Green Man figure of medieval art, or as a representation of
both the vitality and fearful unpredictability of nature.

The Pentangle
The pentangle that Sir Gawain adopted for his shield can be interpreted in
several ways. On the main level, the pentangle on Sir Gawain’s shield
signifies the truth. However, the truth in this poem is more than just honesty. It
also means Christian faith, purity, and moral goodness. In the chivalric
tradition that adopted some Christian beliefs, these qualities are presented as
essential for the code and every knight in particular. At the beginning of the
poem, Gawain himself becomes a symbol of unwithering faith and honesty.
Until the moment he accepts the challenge, Gawain’s life represents all the
virtues that the pentangle stands for.

Color Green
Colors are significant for the understanding of any literary piece. When it
comes to Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, they become markers, navigating
the entire plot.

The poem’s antagonist, the Green Knight, is described as a man in completely

green armor. He is stronger, taller than a human, and can survive the
beheading game. The audience connects these superb qualities with the
unusual complexion. But he also has green garments, a green horse, green
ax. Besides, he tells Gawain to meet him at the Green Chapel a year later.
This exaggeration in using green color throughout the poem plays a vital role
for the audience. It brings alive a lot of associations and mental connections.

What does the Green Knight reveal at the end of the story?
He sacrifices all his virtues and kindness in order to maintain possession of his life. But
as the film's climactic flash-forward sequence reveals, the sash ultimately burrows
into his abdomen and kills him slowly from within. The ax, on the other hand,
represents an acceptance of death.