The Representation Of The Natural World In “Sir Gawain And The Green Knight”

In his 1959 translation, Brian Stone describes Sir Gawain’s Green Knight as “a Romance full of magical and human beauty, dramatic and descriptive incidents, and full philosophic and descriptive beauty”. This medieval poem, full of symbolism and nature imagery, is a source of great intrigue for readers. Gawain’s ambiguous portrayal of nature – personified by the formidable Green Knight – has been a subject of much discussion. Its enigmatic images and supernatural undertones create a multi-layered, intimidating impression of wilderness. The primitive nature of these aspects appears threatening and alien, establishing a stark difference between the cultured knights’ existence and the wild world outside the castle walls. The Gawain poet does not intend to portray nature as an evil opponent of chivalry. Instead, it has many other meanings in the poem. Sir Gawain’s “courtly life” is mirrored by the nature’s mutability, indicating a close relationship between man and his environment. The finely crafted scenes of hunting and passages detailing how the seasons change highlight similarities between the innate emotions of humans and those of nature.

The Green Knight, dressed in green, enters Camelot. His arrival immediately halts all celebrations and turns the atmosphere of joy into one filled with suspense. The giant is a startling green figure that “hales into the halle dor” and destroys the barrier created by man between the primitive nature of the world and King Arthur’s decorous courts. The poem then goes on to describe an “aghlich mightster”, who is “the molde at measure hyghe” because of his abnormal stature and height. His terrifying size and the use of alliteration by the poet are accentuated. The giant’s organic, uncultivated features, such as his “massive beard” (“as a bush”) and grass-green color, are also indicative of its association with nature. The Green Knight’s uninhibited buoyancy, and the hierarchical structure of the knights’ celebrations (“The Best Burne Ay Abof, As Hit Best Semed”) seem to be the antithesis of civilized human existence. The Green Knight’s appearance has been characterized by some as the “natural foe” of Camelot, and its knighthood, because of the sense of apprehension and mystery that accompanies the giant.

The Gawain poet begins by presenting the reader with a grotesque monster, but then proceeds to describe the stranger in a more positive light, endowing him with attractive traits that would have earned respect among Gawain’s contemporaries: “For of his bak and brest all were his bodi sturne, / Both of wombe and wast were worthyly smale”. The Gawain Poet presents the reader with the grotesque image of the Green Knight, before revealing more favorable aspects. His description would have garnered respect from Gawain’s time. The Gawain-poet uses a similar structure in his descriptions throughout, but the reader’s impressions of the Green Knight are constantly changing. The significance of green is questioned by the giant’s complex relationship with nature. It has become a hot topic in the world of criticism. Heinrich Zimmer has associated the color green with death and corpses. However, other critics believe that the colour is positive and can be linked to fruitfulness, vitality and nature. In fact, there are many examples of green-clad people in literature from the fourteenth century, who usually symbolize youth.

This ambiguity makes it impossible to dismiss the Green Knight’s primitive nature as an “obvious enemy” of the knighthood. Instead, the Gawain-poet skillfully contrasts this character’s primitive side with its nobler sophistication. The Green Knight carries a holly-branch and an iron axe, two striking symbols of violence and peace, fertility and artifice. Bertilak is thus portrayed as both a formidable opponent and hospitable hosts. The poet’s description creates a sense of volatility and foreignness, even though the giant has more attractive features. The Green Knight’s combination of beauty and fear is enough to make the knights “petrified”. The dread instilled by the giant only adds to his wildness.

Sir Gawain’s journey from Bertilak to Bertilak Castle reinforces nature’s ability to humiliate and overpower man.

“Sumwhyle, with wormez and wolves, he was a wolf”

The knarrez won with the sumwhyle and wodwos.

Borez and bullez can be used together, but not both.

“And etaynez him anelede the heghe fele.”

(Lines 720-3)

Gawain has to confront nature’s perils in harsh conditions, facing giants and dangerous creatures in stark contrast to the sheltered life he led in Camelot. The ironic and elaborate description of Gawain’s shield, especially the “endeles knot”, further emphasizes this disparity. The knights’ armour has a great religious and moral value, but its value is diminished when it comes to the forces and dangers of nature. It suggests that chivalry values decorative symbols more than human life and death. The poet also adds an extra layer of danger to Gawain’s situation by including fantastical creatures like dragons and orcs in the passage. Gawain’s grim pledge to the Green Knight will take him into the terrifying realm of the unknown. He is ill-prepared for this challenge due to his courtly splendour.

Throughout the text, however, the reader comes to understand that the relationship between man and nature is intrinsic. Fitt Two begins with a passage that offers an alternative perspective of nature. Seasonal imagery and its analogy with the human experience are used to illustrate the passage. As an example, Gawain’s declining mood and the cycle of life are reflected in the passage detailing the passing of the year at the beginning of Fitt Two. Gawain has uneasy thoughts about his impending “anious travel” because of the onset of winter. This passage may be interpreted by some as an example of nature’s destructive power, but it is also a powerful reminder of how nature can regenerate and restore itself over time. The cyclical pattern of the poem reinforces how nature is constantly regenerating itself “as it askez”. The Gawain poet’s description of the changing of seasons, which is evocative, suggests that man and nature are in harmony, as they share the same mortality and transience.

In other words, the secure, ordered life of the court is actually a cover for the constant threat of violence and even death. The three “hunting scene” parallel Bertilak’s attempt to catch his prey with his wife’s erotic hunt of Gawain. The poet contrasts the moral temptation to kill animals with the hunting scenes. Gawain’s failure to accept the lady’s green belt occurs at the same time as the killing and capture of a fox. Yet, the lorde is leading his gomnes on the laundry. Gawain, in his exploration of animalistic behaviour, undermines the aristocratic values of duty & dignity. Denton Fox highlights the similarities between the fox hunts in the romances and the more traditional, “noble”, pursuit of deer or boars. It is true that the use of the “foul-fox” as the third and last quarry by the poet exposes how artificial chivalric constructions can be, because it implies that human beings, like “verminous” or “verminous” animals, are mere products of the natural world. Despite all the efforts made by the court and its officials to contain or control nature, it continues to invade civilized society.

Consider Sir Gawain’s second journey, where he will sacrifice his neck with Bertilak’s axe. Fox points out a distinct difference in Gawain’s perils between his two winter voyages. Gawain’s journey to the Green Knight lair is marked by a different kind of danger. While his first journey was filled with dangers such as beasts and giants he now faces a more spiritual threat. The poet depicts misty mountains and barren rocks (“Thay are clomben with clyffez clengez the colde”) to create an ominous, uncertain atmosphere. Gawain’s psychological and spiritual turmoil is unlike the overt dangers of previous passages. In the last stanza of Gawain’s night in the castle, the poet uses pathetic fallacy. This shows Gawain’s apprehension and the seriousness of his journey.

“Clowdes were able to feel the colde in the air,

Whyth the nakedness of the Northe.

The snawe snayped all the wylde.

The hyghe waded from the werbelande.

“And dryftes are full of drof.”

(Lines 2001-5)

The personification of hate and malice by the weather may reinforce the connection between human emotion, nature and its forces. Some have argued that the chivalric tradition makes a grave mistake when it excludes nature from its equations because of this lack of clear boundaries between man and natural forces. After the codes and values of civilised society are removed, individuals are left with their natural emotions, desires, shortcomings and untamed desires.

The poet uses a lot of symbolism in Sir Gawain the Green Knight to engage the reader and stimulate critical discussion. In particular, the poem reveals the interaction between mankind and nature through the Green Knight. Other themes include the harsh winterscape, Gawain’s fear of dying, and sexual desire. The Green Knight, a man of contradictions who combines primitive horror with noble courtliness, is the most effective way to illustrate this unity. In linking the disparate worlds between humanity and the natural world, the poem shows how artificial chivalric value is and the unyielding power of nature.