The Moral Symbolism of the Green Girdle Essay - 1812 Words

The symbolism of the girdle in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight changes and grows as the poem progresses, adding Gawains honor and sin to seemingly separate ideas of an untamed nature related to the otherworld and animal instincts. Piotr Sadowski, in his The Knight on His Quest: Symbolic Patterns of Transition in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, calls the girdle a symbol of â€Å"complex moral truth† that the other knights of the Round Table fail to learn from, as Gawain does. While I agree that the girdles most important function is the message it conveys about morality as it pertains to courtly behavior, I argue that the moral ideal the girdle sets is not higher than the knights achieve, but rather is balanced between humanity and the†¦show more content†¦His obviously foreign appearance, as compared to Arthurs knights, makes him a symbol of the Otherworld, which is reinforced when he survives after losing his head to an axe. It is also notable that where the kni ghts follow courtly customs and speak courteously, the Green Knight rides his horse straight into the hall demanding to speak with the king; he challenges their civilized customs with the savage behavior of nature and the Otherworld. The symbolism of the girdle therefore contains elements of nature and the Otherworld, which is reinforced by the fact that it comes from the house of the Green Knight (Bertilak later reveals it is his girdle). The symbolism of the color green is somewhat more ambiguous, since something as fundamental as a color tends to acquire many meanings. It commonly represents nature, which reinforces the symbol of nature in the Green Knight and the girdle, but, through nature, can also represent the witchcraft performed by faeries, such as Morgan le Fay. According to Bertilak, it is Morgan le Fays magic that is responsible for the appearance of the Green Knight in Arthurs court, but the symbolism also indicates to the reader that there may be some enchantment or curse on the girdle (and it is described later as having supernatural qualities). After Lady Bertilak tells Gawain that the girdle protects its wearer from death in combat, its symbolic importance shifts from that ofShow MoreRelatedChivalry Of Sir Gawain And The Green Knight904 Words   |  4 Pagesthe Green Knight There are many great movies, like â€Å"300† or â€Å"Saving Private Ryan,† that are told with the classic chivalry elements that were known to describe the noble knights from hundreds of years ago. Much like the courageous soldiers in these movies, Sir Gawain in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, faced many conflicts that might have questioned his moral code of nobleness. 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