Nobility Vs. Human Nature - Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Nobility vs. Human Nature: Sir Gawain and The Green Knight

                                              The UnDead have invaded today’s pop culture in terms of television, movies, the internet and more. However, the Undead have been represented in literary texts for a very long time, and the medieval undead beings specifically have often acted as mirrors to the living rather than self-sustaining beings themselves. The Undead in literature have been able to demonstrate specific human anxieties regarding life and death, and have always been able to be symbols that force the mortal characters in the literary texts to be more aware of their own mortal faults. The significance of the Undead rests not in their characters specifically, but more in their ability to send a message to the livings about life, death, and their own characteristics. The Green Knight in Sir Gawain and The Green Knight shows readers and Gawain that even the bravest knights of Arthur’s Round Table have flaws and weaknesses, and that everlasting honour, nobility and virtue are extremely unattainable at times, even to those of the highest moral standards as human beings fall short to their own human nature. Ultimately, the poem overall implies the loss of the importance of the honour code for Gawain as he is faced with an honest truth about himself: the turmoil of his true bravery in the face of death or the Undead.

                                              The Green Knight, the supernatural problematic being in “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is definitely Uncanny even just in terms of his physical appearance. He is described as having “a terrible figure” (136) and being extremely “massive and long” (139). Not only is he extremely large, but he also is “all arrayed in green” (151), and thus has many uncanny features that cause him to be a source of restlessness and fear to all who encounter him. Despite his many inhuman characteristics, The Green Knight assertively demands to see Arthur “the governor of the crowd” (225) as he poses a challenge to him and his “warriors [who] reputed the best” (259). The language he uses is very charming, and he is fearless in the way he presents himself to King Arthur and his knights. He is extremely polite and presents his challenge honourably even after his head is severed as he held his head “in his hand”(443) and his “mouth uttered” (446) the words of the deal back to Gawain. The fact that he continues to speak after being disembodied and continues to give instructions to King Arthur and his knights reinforces the fact that he is supernatural and unlike beings that they may have previously seen. He specifically reminds Gawain that if he does not honour his part of the challenge and seeks him out in a year’s time, he’ll have to “merit the name of craven coward” (456) which is a knight’s biggest fear during Arthur’s time. This fear of loss of honour, or refusing to abide by a noble knight’s chivalric code acts as a large motivator for Gawain to set onto his journey in a year’s time and face what fate lies ahead for him.

                                              King Arthur and his knights, specifically Sir Gawain are representatives of chivalry, honour and nobility; however, it is interesting to see that no knights volunteer to face The Green Knight’s challenge until Arthur himself is willing to rise and defend the honour of the court. This is probably due to the Green Knight’s uncanny character. Despite the fact that nobility seems to be the motivator for Arthur to rise up to The Green Knight’s challenge, it was also the nature of the time, as the nobles of the time had to rely solely on their reputation throughout the land to assure everlasting strength and stability of his court. The challenge that this mystical Undead Green Knight poses towards Arthur and his knights threatens the round table’s established name amongst the lands, and puts all of their honourable reputations at stake. Gawain, due to his established reputation, and his heroic nature agrees to the challenge; however, by the end of the poem it is revealed that Gawain is not truly heroic as he does not truly accept the challenge and his fate as he tries to manipulate a way out of his timely meeting with the Green Knight. This showcases a fear of the UnDead and a very human commitment to survival that outweighs and overpowers Gawain’s commitment to honour and nobility.