Sir Gawain: Section 2

1) Look at the progression of each stanza in this section and briefly list/discuss in order what every stanza is about.

• Even though Gawain has cut off the head of the Green Knight and must go receive his fate in one year, everything goes on as normal. This stanza describes the spring that passes while Gawain waits to embark on his journey.
• The same purpose as the last stanza, only this one describes summer. As summer draws to an end, Gawain realizes he must soon begin his quest.
• Halloween comes and Arthur has a feast in Gawain's honor, for he is to depart the next day. He gets a lot of advice from the court.
• Gawain prepares to leave Arthur's court today. His clothing and armor are described to us in grand detail.
  
• Gawain goes to mass the morning of his leaving. After mass, we are again assaulted with unnecessarily opulent descriptions of what his horse is wearing and how Gawain gleams in the sunlight.
• The first descriptions of the Pentangle shield that will protect Gawain through his journey.
  
• More descriptions of the shield, what exactly the Pentangle means and why Gawain is honorable enough to carry it.
  
• Gawain rides off and we learn that people really are sad to see him go and regret the decision to send him. This gives us a hint that he is not quite as lowly as he claims to be.
• He has a dreary journey as it rains and he begins to go hungry. He cannot find anyone who has heard of the Green Chapel.
• We learn about his battles. Battles with creatures, with the weather, and with his own depression. He can't find what he's looking for.
• On Christmas morning his faith makes him a little happier as he thinks about the Birth of Christ. In his renewed faith, he begins to pray.
• Almost as soon as he is finished uttering the prayer, he sees a castle come into view. He rushes toward it to seek refuge.
• He admires the castle then calls for the porter.
• The porter comes and passes on Gawain's request for lodging. The lord of the castle says Gawain is most certainly welcome, and when he gets inside they embrace as Gawain thanks him.
• They realize that he is, indeed, Gawain and they welcome him even more heartily.
• He is introduced to the lady of the castle and to her old crone. The lady is described slightly as we only find out that she is extremely beautiful. The crone, however, is described in great detail. We understand by the end that she is one of the most ugly people it appears Gawain has ever met.
• They celebrate for a few days. The lord of the castle asks Gawain to stay, but Gawain says he cannot.
• They discuss what he is looking for and Gawain learns that the Green Chapel is only about a mile away from the castle. He agrees to stay until New Years' day.
• The lord of the castle tells Gawain that he will be going hunting for the next few days.
• The lord also tells Gawain that he will bring back anything he hunts and give it to Gawain. Also, that Gawain may keep anything he earns while the lord is away from the castle. Gawain agrees heartily to this game.
  

2) Look at the motif of games and discuss how it works in this section.
This book is full of games from beginning to end. From those that are obviously games at Christmas to those games that nobody realizes are being played. Christmas seems to be the time of year when games run rampant, moreso than usual. In the second section of the book, they appear to be taking Gawain's situation more seriously "But, if the game grew serious, think it no surprise" (line 496), but we soon learn that even though they know what's coming, they still make jokes "And yet, though sad, they still made jests" (line 541). When Gawain agrees to stay at the castle for a few extra days, Bertylac offers to him a game to pass the time. He says he will go hunting, bring all his winnings to Gawain, and Gawain may keep whatever he
earns at the castle. This also provides two games within this game: Bertylac's hunting, and the lady's hunting in the bedroom. I believe that games were originally meant to prove that nothing was too serious. However, once the games became more subtle, such as the lady's seduction, I think they were tests to Gawain's faith. This is why he gets to angry at himself and feels so guilty when he fails, and ends up cursing all women in the end.

3) Other than the pentangle describe a symbol in this section and relate it to a theme. Discuss how this symbol reinforces the theme.
Bertylac's castle is a huge symbol in this section. Gawain sees this castle as a place of refuge, a place where he can rest for the test to come. It turns out to be quite the opposite of that. The castle comes to represent a bigger test than any Gawain would face at the Green Chapel. This connects to the theme of Chivalry because Chivalry includes faith. Everything that Gawain ends up encountering inside the castle is a test of his faith, a test which he fails.

4) How is Gawain different in this section as compared to the last?
Gawain takes on a bit more of his main character role in this section. In the first, he wasn't mentioned until he stood up in the court. He appears to be taking both his duty and his faith more seriously. We see him face dangers every day while he is on his journey, as opposed to in the court when he only fought the Green Knight as a last resort. We learn a lot more about Gawain in this section, namely about his faith. He is always going to mass, or praying, or giving his success to God. He seems like a better Knight now, as he is more confident. He still appears humble, saying that his successes are only due to his faith, but he doesn't hesitate as much as he seemed to in the first section.

5) Discuss the setting.
The setting of the first section is Camelot, where Arthur holds court. Everything seems to be merry and happy and not too serious there. It is quite a silly place where nothing seems to be happening that is of any importance. Arthur is jovial and youthful and mischievous, always looking for another story, adeventure, or fight even when it may not be the best thing for himself or his knights. This place is full of games. This draws a stark contrast to the setting in the second section. At first Gawain is riding through the forest for weeks on end. It is dreary, miserable, and depressing. There is an extreme lack of games and a definite spike in danger. Once he gets to Bertylac's castle, things are more serious there. There is still happiness and games, but not to the almost ridiculous level that occurred in Arthur's court.