Green Chivalry During the Renaissance period, many prestigious virtues were important parts of culture and life. Lords and knights were expected to display numerous traits such as courtly love, chivalry, and piety. The knights were expected to follow a certain code at all times. Throughout Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Sir Gawain displays many chivalrous acts; however, he has to overcome his fears to remain a chivalrous knight. One example of chivalry in the poem is when Gawain makes an engagement with the Green Knight that he will chop off the Green Knight’s head. Gawain agreed to return in a year to allow the Green Knight to return his blow. Gawain’s chivalry is clear when he returns to receive his end of the contract with the Green Knight. This is clear as Tolkien translates, “‘On my word, sir, I welcome thee with a will to my place, / and thou hast timed thy travels as trusty man should, / and …show more content…
On the third day Gawain stays at the lord’s castle he receives a green girdle that he does not return to the lord. When Gawain goes to complete his engagement with the Green Knight he flinches when the knight swings his axe down the first time. Tolkien translates, “down it came gliding on the green there to end him, / and he shrank a little with his shoulders at the sharp iron” (111). This action is Gawain being unchivalrous because the Green Knight did not flinch when it was his part of the engagement. Also, as a punishment for not returning the green girdle to the lord, Gawain receives a flesh wound on his neck from the Green Knight. This symbolizes the fault that was made by not returning the girdle. In conclusion, this poem shows numerous aspects of chivalry in many different circumstances. It also shows how Gawain struggles to fight to overcome the mistake that he has man in the lord’s castle. In the end Gawain is rewarded for his chivalry and bravery to return to the Green Knight after a