Reading Questions for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (pp.

186-238)
Parts 3 & 4

PART 3 (lines 1126-1997, pp. 209-227)

1. What animal does the lord hunt the first day? Deer-female does; stags were left alone
2. What happens to Gawain while he is still in bed? The lady of the castle comes in to his
room and sits on his bead. What does he pretend to do? He wakes up but pretends to be
still asleep to avoid the situation. What happens when he finally "wakes up"? The Lady
flirts and teases with him-says that she snuck up on him and could have tied him up. What
metaphor do the lady and Gawain use in lines 1210 ff.? The metaphor of the hunt of the
battle. What does the lady seem to have in mind? She wants to seduce him-offer him her
body. How does Gawain respond? He rejects her and basically says that he is an
honorable man and won’t be engaged with a married women. Why, as the lady is leaving,
does she say "But our guest is not Gawain" (line 1293)? He says that he cannot give her
what she wants- she is married and he is too honorable for that. What does she give
Gawain? She gives Gawain a kiss.
3. What happens in the last part of the first day's hunt? They capture, butcher, and then divide
the deer amongst themselves. What does the lord give Gawain when he returns home? The
Lord gives Gawain meat. What does Gawain give the lord? Gawain gives the lord a kiss.
What do they agree on for the second day? The same thing-a gift of the winnings for a gift
of the winnings.
4. What animal does the lord hunt the second day? The lord hunts a boar or wild pig.
5. What happens to Gawain the second day? The lady of the castle comes to him again and
tries to seduce him but again he talks her out of it. How does he respond differently this
time? He still flirts but counters her logic. Why does the lady complain? She is trying to
get her way and sleep with Gawain. What does she ask him to do (lines 1533-1534)? To
take her body as his own. What is suggested by the narrator's comments in lines 1549-
1551? That the Gawain is finding it harder to resist her. What does the lady give him? She
gives him two kisses.
6. What happens in the last part of the second day's hunt? The lord corners and captures the
boar on his own. What does the lord give Gawain when he returns home? The Lord gives
Gawain the boar’s head on a stick. What does Gawain give the lord? Gawain gives the lord
2 kisses. What do they agree on for the third day? The same arrangement. What is
bothering Gawain? (See lines 1657-1663.) Note that one part of the pentangle
("cortaysye") is in opposition to another part ("clannes"), and remember what might
happen if any part of the pentangle fails. He is worrying about the following days and his
meeting with the Green Knight.
7. What animal does the lord hunt the third day? A fox.
8. What happens to Gawain the third day? The lady comes to him half naked and gives him a
kiss, and he won’t refuse if she wants him to take her. What is the meaning of the narrator's
warning in lines 1768-1769? He wants to show the readers Gawain’s Achilles hill. What
choices does Gawain have (lines 1770-1775)? Notice that line 1775 brings in another
element, Gawain's oath. What is in question here is his "troth" or truth. (In the original, line
1775 says that he would be "traytor" to the man that owned that dwelling.) Gawain can
keep the sash and her secret and save his life or he can give the sash to the lord and stay
 chivalrous but lose his life.
9. What does the lady give Gawain during her visit? 2 kisses and a ruby ring but Gawain
refuses to accept the ring. What does the lady ask for as she leaves? She ask for a token of
love from him. What can Gawain give her? He gives her nothing. Why doesn't he accept
the ring from him? Because he has nothing to give her in return. What object does he
accept from her? A green slash that has the power to protect him from harm.Why does he
accept it? What does it look like? (Should line 1832 remind you of anything?) He accepts
but then she ask him to keep it secret from her husband. It is embroidered green silk.
10. What does Gawain do differently after the lady leaves? He goes to confession. What is
ironic about lines 1883-1884? He cannot tell anyone about the sash except the priest-he is
trying to be absolved for his sin of keeping the sash and wanting to live. What should
Gawain have included in his confession that he probably didn't because it was only
planned at that point but hadn't actually occurred? He should have told how he was to keep
the sash a secret from the Lord of the castle.
11. What happens in the last part of the third day's hunt? The Lord grabs the fox out of the
mouths of the dogs. What color is "Sir Reynard" the fox, and how is he treated? He is red
and is treated as a prize. Does his color remind you of anything? Death or Love, or Sir
Gawain’s armor.
12. What happens differently when the lord returns home on the third day? Why? Gawain
gives the lord his kisses first before he can present his winnings, because he is probably
nervous about what he has accepted and has to hide from the Lord of the castle. Does
Gawain meet the terms of his oath? No, because he hides the fact that he has the green
slash. How well does Gawain sleep that night? Why? He doesn’t sleep at all, because he
has nightmares and is worried about the following days and huis meeting with the Green
Knight.

PART 4 (lines 1998-2530, pp. 227-238)

1. Gawain puts on the girdle in lines 2030-2036. Does the combination of colors in lines
2035-2036 remind you of anything (even though it may be anachronistic)? The Colors
green, red, and gold remind me of Christmas.
2. What does the guide say about the Green Knight? The guide says the Green knight is big
and mean and will win any fight. What does he tell Gawain to do? He tells Gawain to
leave. What is Gawain's response? Gawain takes it as an insult and won’t do it because he
is not a coward.
3. Is the Green Chapel what Gawain expected it to be? What is it? No, it is a large green
mound with 2 entrances & has a bubbling stream around it.
4. What tone does the Green Knight maintain throughout Gawain's encounter with him? He
maintains a bold and challenging tone.
5. What happens the first time the Green Knight raises the ax? Gawain sees the ax and
flinches. What does he tell Gawain in line 2270? He tells Gawain he’s a coward like the
rest of Author’s knights. Have we heard that before? Yes in part 1.
6. What happens the second time the Green Knight raises the ax? Gawain doesn’t flinch.
What is Gawain's response? Gawain gets furious and calls out the green knight for being a
coward because he is acting like he was gonna do something but doesn’t.
7. What happens the third time the Green Knight raises the ax? It knicks his neck. What is
Gawain's response? Gawain jumps up, grabs his helmet & shield and says the bargain is
complete and the Green knight better not go back on his word.
8. What surprises do we and Gawain get in the Green Knight's explanation of the three tries
(lines 2345-2357)? What additional surprise appears in lines 2358-2361? That the Green
Knight is really the Lord of the manor and that his wife was just testing him.
9. How does the Green Knight judge Gawain's performance during his tests? The Green
Knight fins him worthy and honorable. How does Gawain judge his own performance? He
says that he was a fool. Whom does Gawain blame (lines 2411-2428)? Himself
10. Who is the Green Knight? Bernlak de Hautdesert Who is the old woman at the castle?
Morgan le Fey Why is she so much more important to the poem than she appeared to be?
She is the one that enchanted the Green Knight and sent him to Author’s court. What did
she want to do to Arthur's knights? She wanted to test the knights and see if they were
chivalrous and honorable. What did she want to do to Arthur's queen? Scare her to death.
11. What is Gawain's attitude when he returns to court? He is embarrassed and ashamed. What
is the court's attitude? The court is pleased and very excited for Gawain. What happens to
the girdle? Gawain decides to wear the girdle (sash) around his arm to constantly remind
him of his flaws. What does the court do about it? They pledge to all wear green sashes to
honor Gawain’s noble behavior.

12. Whose response should we see as the more appropriate, Gawain's or that of both the Green
Knight and the court? The Green Knight and the court.
13. What is the effect of the last part of the last stanza (lines 2519-2550)? To be accurate to the
original, lines 2525-2526 should read "After the siege and the assult was ceased at Troy /
iwiss [I know],". Compare line 2525 and line 1. What is the effect of repeating the first line
of the poem here? It brings the poem full circle- back to the beginning with the mention of
Troy.
14. What additional understanding do we get of the poem by noting that until this century
January 1 was primarily celebrated as "The Circumcision of Our Lord"? The circumcision
is mentioned in Luke 2:21. Some sense of the significance of the circumcision can be seen
in the collect [prayer] for the feast:
Almighty God, who madest thy blessed Son to be circumcised, and obedient to the law for
man: grant us the true circumcision of the Spirit; that our hearts, and all our members,
being mortified from all worldly and carnal lusts, we may in all things obey thy blessed
will. Through the same Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. Who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

More of the significance of the circumcision as foreshadowing the crucifixion and

resurrection can be seen in the hymn provided for Matins of the feast:

O blessed day, when first was poured

The precious blood of Christ our Lord!
 O blessed day, when so began
His travail in redeeming man!

Scarce entered on our life of woe,

His infant blood for us doth flow!
Whilst yet he suckles at the breast,
Atoning love he thus confessed!

From heaven come, and willingly,

Man's sacrificial Lamb is he!
The Son of God, quick to fulfil
Each mandate of his Father's will!

Beneath the knife see Mary's Child,

God's Innocent! man's Undefiled!
For sinners he would ransom pay,
For lawless man the Law obey!

Grant circumcision, Lord, within;

Cut from our hearts the love of sin!
That we thy likeness true may bear,
Carve deep thy Name and image there! Amen.

Of course, Gawain is not a Christ-figure, merely a human (even if one of the best). But
certainly the "little blood" (line 2314) of Gawain's that is shed on January 1 for his "sins"
would remind at least some in the audience listening to Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
of the feast celebrated on the same day.

GENERAL QUESTIONS

1. Beowulf is an epic (see p. 29); Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a romance (see pp. 8-
9). In what ways is Sir Gawain and the Green Knight different from Beowulf? What is the
most important thing that appears in the world of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight that
did not appear in the world of Beowulf?
2. In what ways are Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Beowulf similar? (For some fairly
obvious answers, you might consider how the two poems together differ from something
like Great Expectations or Moby Dick, although even there you could find some interesting
similarities).
3. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, like Lanval, is an example of Arthurian literature,
although Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was apparently written about 200 years later
than Lanval was. How are the two poems similar? How are they different?