Sir Gawain and the Green Knight color Essay - 1412 Words

Though often extensive detail may be condemned as mere flowery language, in understanding Sir Gawain and the Green Knight one must make special emphasis on it. In color and imagery itself, the unknown author paints the very fibers of this work, allowing Sir Gawain to discern the nuances of ritualistic chivalry and truth. His quest after the Green Knight is as simple as ones quest toward himself. Through acute awareness of the physical world he encounters Gawain comes to an understanding of the world beyond chivalry, a connection to G-d, the source of truth. He learns, chivalry, like a machine, will always function properly, but in order to derive meaning from its product he must allow nature to affect him. At the onset of Sir Gawain and†¦show more content†¦He appears with no armor to shield him from feeling the world, in fact his green appearance, though brawny in description, does contain undertones of green passivity. He is neither depicted as spiritual blue, nor warm emotional yellow, rather the fusion of the two, devilish green. To live in a state of uncertainty is the antithesis of mid-evil chivalry. It is a knights’ duty to know his place in society and to whom he serves, not to think or feel therefore when Gawain asks the Green Knight for instructions to find his home, the Knight gives no formal address, rather an experiential response. He says â€Å"If I tell you true, when I have taken your knock†¦ you shall hear straightaway of my house and home and my own name† (398-399). This statement forces Gawain to live in the reality and emotion of the moment rather then set out on his quest upon social consequences. In search of the Green Knight, Gawain travels through the wilderness and comes to recognize his true subordination to nature and not merely social constructs. It is amidst his battling of vicious beasts, cold rain, wild forests and more, where he begins to feel the mortality of mankind and the need to pray to a greater being that â€Å"Mary may be his guide† (738). This prayer and recognition of a larger force beyond him leads directly to the discovery of the Palace of Bertilak de Hautdesert. While the palace of Bertilak de Hautdesert isShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Sir Gawain And The Green Knight955 Words   |  4 Pagesthe classic medieval poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight that is used to form a more captivating story and construct a deeper meaning to the plot. The color green certainly is a prominent color in the poem, especially with the Green Knight, who is literally green from head to toe. The Green Knight makes quite the entrance on his horse as he rides into Camelot disrupting King Arthur and his knight’s New Year’s Feast. The Green Knight has come to find out if the Knights of the Round Table are as loyalRead MoreArchetypes In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight829 Words   |  4 Pagesespecially in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight most characters or objects served to aid in the development of the hero by being either a situational, character, color, or a symbol archetype. The poem begins with a challenge being pres ented to the knights of the Round Table by the Green Knight. While seeing that no one else will accept the challenge, putting Camelot’s honor at stake, Gawain accepts and then realizes that in a year they must meet again and the Green KnightRead MoreArchetypal Characters In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight : Character Analysis1143 Words   |  5 Pagesmiddle ages of literature, a story such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight had many aspects of Joseph Campbell’s view of the hero’s journey. In the story of our character Sir Gawain accepts a â€Å"Call to adventure† (Campbell 45) and goes on a quest that will go through many of the archetypes. Likewise, there lies one character, The Green Knight, that can be many of the archetypal characters in the cycle of the hero’s journey. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight dramatically demonstrates how a single characterRead MoreSir Gawain and The Green Knight1018 Words   |  5 Pages Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Prompt #1 â€Å"Sir Gawain, think on this when you go forth among great princes (Gawain poet.373-374.243).† The Medieval Age had a general literary focus about Romance; the stories in that era consisted of imaginative adventures containing faraway places following the chivalric code, similar to fairytales. Writers often use symbolism to give significance to the plot and reference a deeper meaning. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the poet uses symbolism to representRead MoreSocial Tension and the Pantheistic Call back to Nature As illustrated in â€Å"Sir Gawain and the Green Knight†945 Words   |  4 Pagesnature† (Kline 3). â€Å"Sir Gawain and the Green Knight† highlights this social/religious transition and conflict through the Green Knight and his juxtapositions throughout the tale with Sir Gawain. Thus the tale portrays the differences in the new and old orders and makes a definitive statement about each through the allegorical and symbolical representatio ns of the Green Knight. Most superficially and thus most notably to the reader, the Green Knight enters the tale â€Å"in guise all of green [including] theRead MoreExamples Of Archetypes In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight1223 Words   |  5 Pagesin fantasy and reality. An example would be the renowned medieval story Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by Pearl Poet. The author permeates the story with situational, symbolic, and character archetypes that illustrate the profound life of Sir Gawain. Sir Gawain was apprehensive of his journey at first, but as time passes, he began to make choices that unveils to the audience the true flawed knight that he was. During Sir Gawain’s journey, he is met with countless types of situational archetypesRead MoreArchetypes In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight1100 Words   |  5 Pagestrend in the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Despite common belief, though, other elements of a story allow for analyzation as well. In fact, a number of archetypal situations, characters, colors, and symbols appear in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight that serve to promote Gawain’s moral development. Unfortunately, Joseph Campbell fails to discuss the significance that colors play in a story, but the colors (specifically green, red and gold) in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight play a very significantRead MoreOutline Of Grendel And The Green Knight1013 Words   |  5 PagesGrendel and the Green Knight I. Introduction II. Grendel’s Malicious Ways a. Why He Does What He Does b. Grendel’s Demise c. Symbol Grendel Wishes To Represent III. Green Knight’s Ways a. The Challenge at Hand b. Results of the Conflict c. Sir Gawain’s Repentance of Shame IV. The Unseen Pattern a. Beowulf’s Lesson? b. Sir Gawain’s Lesson c. Who gets more out of the Journey? V. Conclusion Russ Williams 19 September 2015 Dr. Daniel Pigg Out of Class Essay #1 Grendel and the Green Knight After goingRead MoreSir Gawain and the Green Knight: Symbolism and Moral Seriousness1047 Words   |  5 PagesIn the opening lines of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the Gawain-poet predicates the numerous dualities—which lead the reader through questions of moral seriousness—that exist in the poem. The opening historical recounting, according to Richard Hamilton Green, reminds the reader that â€Å"the greatness of the past is marred by reminders of failure† (179). The paradox of triumph and greatness arising out of failure foreshadows Sir Gawain following the same pattern of fate as his predecessors. WhileRead MoreSymbolism Of Sir Gawain And The Green Knight1150 Words   |  5 PagesSymbolism in Sir Gawain The Green Knight â€Å"Sir Gawain The Green Knight† is a classic medieval poem about a chivalrous knight on a journey to the Green Chapel. King Arthur’s nephew, Sir Gawain has been challenged by the Green Knight in a â€Å"beheading game,† where he has agreed to exchange a blow in the head towards the Green Knight, to be returned to him the following New Years in journeying to the Green Chapel. Gawain has to battle whether his knightly virtues are more important than his own life