Fit 3 Q. 2-5

2. Gawain does a very good job in this section of holding up his honor at the same time as not offending the hospitality of the people in the castle. The fact that the author makes him seem so perfect in this section makes me, as a reader, not like him very well. In his perfectness, he is harder to relate to and he seems less human. It's possible that the author sets it up this way for the reader to better understand the reaction of King Arthur and the Knights to Gawain at the end of the story ("the lords and ladies of the Round Table...should wear a baldric" ln. 2516). Gawain seems to behave very well with the lady in his bedroom, especially considering that he is trapped. There is the suggestion, however that he isn't as perfect in his keeping the lady there as he would like to think ("kisses his lips...all was bliss between them" ln. 1758). The lady and himself may know that he is upholding his honor, but to anyone else, they don't have any way of knowing what is going on behind closed doors. While the reader knows that he is being very honorable, the people of the castle might start to get ideas because of the lady spending so much time in Gawain's room.

3. The climax of the book is when the Green Knight's axe nicks Gawain's neck. It is at this point where we see Gawain completely lose his faith in God. The author could be using this to suggest that Gawain is not really as faithful as he pretends to be. Perhaps he is using his religion in order to make him one of the best knights at the Round Table. Perhaps that is why his failure is so important to him because in his mind, he has failed at being the best and one of the other knights will take his place of perfectness due to his mistake. This point in the story brings into play a competetive spirit that we perhaps haven't seen in Gawain previously.

4.The green girdle is symbolic of Gawain's failure, both to the reader and to Gawain himself. It's possible the author is using this to hilight the difference between Gawain and all of the other characters in the book. To them, everything is a game so whether you win or lose, it doesn't really matter all that much. Gawain, on the other hand, takes it way to seriously and the reminder of the girdle only tosses his failure back in his face. We see just a hint of his failure in spirit when he takes the girdle from the lady ("he cannot be cut down by any man nor slain" ln. 1853). The author's suggestion that he takes the girdle because of its supposed ability to save him from death shows us that Gawain has already failed before he is even aware of it.

5."The rooster had not roused, cackled and crowed three times" (ln. 1412: allusion to Peter denying Jesus(Luke 20:60&61). The author uses foreshadow the failure of Gawain in his service to God and comment on Gawain's refusal to forgive himself. According to the Bible, when God forgives you, you also have to be willing to forgive yourself. Gawain's failure to do this suggests that he failing even further. There is a contrast between the characters of Gawain and Peter. When Peter realizes that he has denied Jesus, he "went out, and wept bitterly," but then he is able to get over it and go on with his service to God. The fact that Gawain isn't able to do this suggests that he is more earthly oriented than he would like to think.

"Mary reward you, madam" (ln. 1263): allusion to the Virgin Mary. Mary is supposed to symbolize being pure sexually and I think Gawain is using this reference to not only warn the lady off, but also to remind himself of what his duties are to both himself and his knighthood. He prides himself in being perfect, but the author uses this allusion to show the reader one of his times of struggle. He is trying to remind himself of his vow of chastity, but at the same time he is having difficulty sticking to it, due to the presence of the lady in his room. By showing the reader Gawain's struggle so close to the recieving of the green girdle, the author is emphasizing his failure.