Why is it that humanity is so captivated and fixated with spellbinding tales and mysterious magic?\u00a0 What is it that draws us in so deep that we find ourselves nearly reluctant to abandon the grand realm of fantasy?\u00a0 Could it be we have an irrevocable longing to dive into a time and land far from our own?\u00a0 The Arthurian romance Sir Gawain and the Green Knight<\/em> manages to teleport its readers to the legendary Camelot, where chivalry and magic come alive.<\/p>\n The poetic adventure begins within the hallowed halls of King Arthur\u2019s court, in the midst of a celebration in honor of the New Year.\u00a0 Gifts and kisses are exchanged among the guests while awaiting the arrival of the meal.\u00a0 However, once the food is presented, Arthur refuses to dig in until someone has told an extraordinary story.\u00a0 As the others devour their food, Arthur maintains to wait for this marvelous tale.\u00a0 Suddenly, a rather imposing figure enters the room on horseback.\u00a0 The unexpected guest is described as \u201ca most massive man, the mightiest of mortals\u201d (141).\u00a0 Not only is he large in stature, he is clothed entirely in emerald green armor and sports a holly bob in one hand and a giant axe in the other.<\/p>\n The Green Knight does not bother with introductions, he instead, demands to speak with the prominent person of authority.\u00a0 After a momentary pause of stunned silence, Arthur speaks up and invites the odd stranger to join in the celebration.\u00a0 The Green Knight rejects the offer and remains mounted on his steed.\u00a0 It is at this moment the Green Knight elucidates the reason for his intrusion: he has heard remarkable claims about Arthur\u2019s knights and has come with a desire to be indulged in a game.\u00a0 The game in question involves an individual striking him with his own axe, with the understanding that the Green Knight will return the blow in precisely a year in and a day.\u00a0 Just as Arthur is in the process of swinging the grand axe, his nephew, Sir Gawain, boldly requests permission to take on the Green Knight\u2019s challenge.\u00a0 When the king agrees the Green Knight dismounts from his horse and exposes his neck to Sir Gawain.\u00a0 In a single stroke, he successfully severs the Green Knight\u2019s head, which eerily speaks to Gawain, reminding him of their future meeting.<\/p>\n Time passes and Gawain leaves Camelot on the Day of All Saints, in search of the Green Knight.\u00a0 During his laborious journey, he suffers from harsh weather elements and hunger.\u00a0 Just as he begins to lose hope, he stumbles upon a \u201cmost commanding castle a knight ever kept, positioned in a site of sweeping parkland with a palisade of pikes pitched in the earth in the midst of tall trees for two miles or more\u201d (767-769).\u00a0 Gawain is warmly welcomed by the lord of the castle and introduces him to his wife and the elderly woman beside her.\u00a0 Bertilak, the lord of the castle, arranges a deal with Gawain: everyday, the lord will venture out to hunt with his men and upon his return in the evening, he will trade his prizes for whatever Gawain can manage to obtain while staying in the castle.\u00a0 Gawain willingly accepts the arrangement and retires for the night.<\/p>\n This exchange between Bertilak and Gawain carries on over a course of three days.\u00a0 The morning of the first day, the wife of the lord, creeps into Gawain\u2019s chambers and makes aims to seduce him.\u00a0 He refuses her advances, but she succeeds in stealing a kiss from him.\u00a0 That evening, Bertilak gives him his winnings and in return, Gawain kisses him since he received one kiss from his flirtatious wife. \u00a0The second day of his stay is fairly similar to that of the previous day.\u00a0 While the lord was out pursuing a wild boar, Gawain acquires two kisses from the lord\u2019s wife, so when the exchange takes place, he bestows two kisses to Bertilak and receives the boar\u2019s head.\u00a0 On the third day, the lady kisses Gawain three times and asks for a love token of some sort.\u00a0 Gawain denies her request and refuses to accept anything from her that is until she mentions her girdle.<\/p>\n This is no ordinary girdle, however.\u00a0 It is green and made of fine silk, it also possesses the magical ability to shield the individual who wears it from death.\u00a0 Gawain is very much intrigued by this notion, for if he wears this while facing the Green Knight he could survive a swing from the axe.\u00a0 With a ray of hope, Gawain agrees to take the girdle but cannot part with it when it comes time for the final exchange.\u00a0 The lord gives Gawain a fox skin and he gives the three kisses he received but mentions nothing of the green girdle.<\/p>\n The next morning, Gawain throws on his armor along with the magical green girdle and sets off to complete his mission.\u00a0 He arrives at Green Chapel on New Year\u2019s Day and calls out to his opponent.\u00a0 The Green Knight steps forward to greet the smug Sir Gawain, who is resolved to face his destiny head-on.\u00a0 Gawain bares his neck to the Green Knight, who in turn, makes point to feign two blows with the giant axe.\u00a0 It is only on the third feint that the axes nicks Gawain\u2019s neck, scarcely drawing blood.\u00a0 Infuriated, Gawain howls that their agreement has been fulfilled, yet, the Green Knight simply laughs.\u00a0 It is in this moment that the Green Knight sheds light on his true identity: he is Bertilak, the lord of the castle where Gawain rather recently lodged.\u00a0 The revelations do not end with the unmasking of the Green Knight\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n Bertilak, then explains his reason behind drawing blood on the third blow: Gawain managed to remain honest in his winnings from his stay at the castle, save for the third day.\u00a0 He did not hand over the magical green girdle to Bertilak during their last exchange, which means that Gawain did not fully hold up his end of the deal.\u00a0 A knight should be a man of his word, he is to live and die by his promises, and Gawain faltered and thought of his own skin.\u00a0 Despite his stumble, Bertilak assures Gawain he is a worthy knight.<\/p>\n A major theme one can take away from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight<\/em> is the moral significance of chivalry in reality and Arthurian literature.\u00a0 The code of chivalry is a key element within the romantic and fantastical world of King Arthur.\u00a0 Chivalry entails five virtues: friendship, generosity, chastity, courtesy, and piety.\u00a0 Theses virtues reflect the ideals of Christian morality and how a person of faith is to live out their life.\u00a0 For if a knight does not possess an ounce of generosity, how would he be able or willing to give up his last dying breath for the greater good of the kingdom?\u00a0 The same token applies to the average individual in reality, if a man or woman refuses to think of others\u2019 needs before their own, earth may very well continue to look the complete opposite of Camelot.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Miranda Alexander Why is it that humanity is so captivated and fixated with spellbinding tales and mysterious magic?\u00a0 What is it that draws us in so deep that we find 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