Sir Gawain And The Green Knight Deception Analysis

Of all the themes in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the one which stood out the most to me was that of deception. With the Green Knight, the “evil” and Sir Gawain, the “good”, we see both forces partake in deceptive practices to achieve the desired outcome they sought. Throughout the poem, Sir Gawain’s moral compass was constantly being tested with deception being used to gage his level of loyalty, morality, and chivalry. The “game” that the Green Knight was hell bent on playing was not an honest one. He utilized a host of deceptions to gain the results that he sought after—there was little to no room for error with him. First, he presented a challenge in which he alone knew that he would not perish. When he asked for a volunteer to strike him with the ax, the Green Knight

knew he would not be harmed in anyway. The volunteer who accepted this challenge could only believe one of two things. Either the Green Knight would die, or somehow he himself would perish. By choosing not to reveal his powers, the Green Knight made the decision to deceive the entire court. After realizing that the Green Knight had deceived them all, no one, not even Sir Gawain thought to prepare for the ensuing battle. When Sir Gawain finally embarked on the journey to locate the Green Knight, the choices that he made were less than knightly. He became complacent and allowed himself to be manipulated by the deceptive wheeling and dealing of his hosts’ wife. I found myself a tad bit irritated with Sir Gawain throughout the last few stanzas of the poem. He had had an entire year to process the events which had taken place that New Years Eve and ample time to plan accordingly.

He could have figured out a way to prepare for what was to come, rather he took the path of deception when he decided not to be honest with his host, who as far as he knew was genuinely being a friend to him. In keeping the girdle to save himself from what he thought was certain death, Sir Gawain decided to deceive his host and not keep to the deal they had made. I believe that after Sir Gawain deceived his host, even if he felt a twinge of guilt, that … made it easier to deceive the Green Knight. He entered the Green Knight’s chapel, prepared to take his blow knowing that he was not forthcoming about having protection against said blow. While Sir Gawain kept his word and showed up to face the Green Knight, the choices he made along the way presented him in a less than honorable light. Although he told the truth to the Green Knight and then again to his court, accepting responsibility for his shortcomings, this did not absolve him of wrong doing nor does it erase the stain of deception that he would now wear for the rest of his days. So, with that, long live Sir

Gawain?