An original English chivalric verse, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, was written at the end of the XIV century by an anonymous author and kept in a single manuscript. In verse, the poet generates conflict between Christianity and paganism for the purpose of challenging and examining the very principles that Sir Gawain, the idealized warrior, values the most. This struggle reveals human nature’s reluctance to comply with several of the highest moral obligations that Christianity and medieval society place on the knight, who embodies the best that the Almighty and the ruler have to offer. As a result, specific moments of the narration shed light on the tension between Christianity and remnants of paganism.
The narrative begins with a complimentary contrast of Christianity and chivalry principles, implying that they coexist. Here Sir Gawain embodies the highest degree of respect, courage, and faithfulness, as well as an unwavering confidence in the divine power (Slojka, 2016). Sir Gawain treasures these values, and every deed of the man is considered and analyzed according to the expectations of the court and Lord. Nevertheless, according to the story, Sir Gawain fails to complete the mission, he particularly fails in his faith in God (Gawain Poet, 2021). This acts as the principal foundation for deciphering the narrative’s message.
In order to show the tension between beliefs, another character is introduced, the Green Knight. Gawain leaves the kingdom to confront the antagonist but encounters several obstacles on his way (Gawain Poet, 2021). Nature is chaotic and desperately tries to kill him, whether with the help of snakes, wolves or by the severe starvation and extreme cold conspiring against him (Gawain Poet, 2021). These are pagan images of anarchy, typified by nature’s incapacity to comprehend justice and morality and, instead, exposing itself to Sir Gawain’s frailty. They are not the grand challenges that a hero is used to, but instead brutal attacks on this character. The man is on the verge of death when he begs God to spare him from this terrible fate.
Thus, if Gawain symbolizes Christianity’s most devoted warrior, its finest and purest, then the Green Knight who fights Gawain symbolizes the filthiest ideas of paganism that are entirely opposed to Christianity. Christianity is relatively new in terms of time, and nature, along with its pagan worshippers, has always existed in various forms. Nature is older, smarter, and more potent than Christianity, making believers, such as the knight, fragile.
Conversely, the Green Knight’s strength and maturity represent these characteristics related to pagan values. The Green Knight had a big beard which reminded a bush, implying a generational difference between him and the kingdom, which primarily constituted children without beards (Gawain Poet, 2021). Additionally, when Gawain delivers the very first strike to the Green Knight under tournament circumstances, his head drops to the floor, but the man grabs it, which indicates nature’s regeneration capabilities (Gawain Poet, 2021). This way, the character shows his pagan power contrasted to Christians who are only aware of death.
The underlying message of this interaction is that this is the first true struggle to Gawain’s religious views. As soon as the diabolical Green Knight makes the dilemma recognized, the pagan tries to tell Gawain that if he keeps failing to maintain his agreements and standards, he will be considered a recreant knight. As a result, this placed Gawain’s confidence and trust instantly in danger and intertwined with the upcoming death.
Until Gawain encounters the Green Knight at the Green Chapel, the character is subjected to a series of lures, which he is unable to resist, and which comprise the story’s central theme. Though the character may have succeeded in the most insignificant primitive desires, he seems unable to repeat his willpower when presented with silk, which would allow him to remain immortal. When he takes the garment and wears it to the final battle, he eventually chooses pagan sorcery and wisdom over Christianity’s alleged wonder and God’s mercy to allow him to live (Weston, 2021). The knight decides not to depend on the most vital aspect of his chivalry character, and this grave sin leads to his demise as a knight.
Hence, nature is inextricably linked to the human mind and destiny. Sir Gawain eventually becomes wayward, attempting to overcome the shortcomings of his mission. The readers are left to ponder the possibility that any romanticism of the past may have been only that, in all its impossible glory. They will relive the moments of the noble knights’ adventure and danger, but the truth of nature’s decisive triumph over any spiritual virtue is inevitable. Eventually, they’d recognize that there’s no way around the truth that all Christians and all people are prone to wrongdoing. The knight valued his life more than his knightly integrity and religious philosophy. Though Gawain is a great, flawless warrior and one of the most devoted Christians, nature compels him to question his mortality and reevaluate what it means to be a Christian.
Works Cited
Gawain Poet. (2021). Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: The Original and Translated Version. Ragged Hand.
Slojka, E. (2016). Obligation, Marvel, and Passion in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The Mediaeval Journal, 6(2), 81-109.
Weston, J.L. (2021). Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Dover Publications.