Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Chivalry Essay - 796 Words

Knights and shining armor, is a modern day description of knights. These knights road on horseback, jousted, but more importantly, served by a code. This was a code dealing with chivalry, in which knights obeyed by. The article Nighthood and Chivalry, defines it by, â€Å"In modern English, chivalry means the ideals, virtues, or characteristics of knights,† (Velde). There is one specific knight who shows this code in the story, Sir Gawain and The Green Knight. The knight is Gawain, a noble and courageous man who makes a deal with the Green Knight. The story Sir Gawain and The Green Knight shows chivalry by respect, strength, and honesty. The story displays a type of chivalry by Gawain through respect. Knights respect women, their peers, as†¦show more content†¦In the story, he and the Green Knight have a deal where Gawain can either cut the Green Knight’s head, or slice it completely off. Whichever he chooses, Gawain must find the Green Knight a year later and the Green Knight gets to return the â€Å"favor†. Furthermore, the story explains, â€Å"Gawain grips his ax and gathers it aloft...brought it down deftly upon the bare neck...and cut the flesh cleanly and clove it in twain...the head was hewn off and fell to the floor,† (page 176, lines 192-198). Gawain decides to slice off the Green Knight’s head; however, the Green Knight is still alive, for he is magical. Although he is still alive, Gawain has to use his strength to slice the Green Knight’s head off. This is just one more way Gawain shows chivalry, through strength. The story also mentions the idea of chivalry by displaying honesty. Honesty, once again, is one of the main factors in the knight’s code. In the article, The Tenets of Chivalry -- The Knights Codeen, lightens, â€Å"A Knight doesnt make promises lightly, but once he gives his word, he always keeps it,† (VR-TechSolutions). After a year has passed in Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, Gawain keeps the promise he made with the Green Knight. He stays honest to his word and promise in the deal and heads to the knight’s house. Before he does so, king Arthur has a celebration for Gawain winning the challenge. He then informs Gawain, â€Å"NowShow MoreRelatedSir Gawain and the Green Knight – A Test of Chivalry Essay2448 Words   |  10 PagesSir Gawain and the Green Knight – A Test of Chivalry Essay with Outline   Loyalty, courage, honor, purity, and courtesy are all attributes of a knight that displays chivalry. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is truly a story of the test of these attributes. In order to have a true test of these attributes, there must first be a knight worthy of being tested, meaning that the knight must possess chivalric attributes to begin with. Sir Gawain is self admittedly not the best knight around. 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