Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Practice Questions

Correct answer: Alliterative long lines followed by a 'bob and wheel'

The poem is written in a North-West Midlands dialect using alliterative verse. Each stanza concludes with a 'bob' (a very short line) and a 'wheel' (four short rhyming lines), which provides a melodic resolution to the unrhymed alliterative lines.

Correct answer: Green and Gold

The Green Knight is described as entirely green, but his embroidery, his saddle, and the hair of his horse are intricately woven with gold. This combination symbolizes both the wildness of nature and the refined wealth of courtly civilization.

Correct answer: A deer

On the first day, Bertilak hunts a deer (specifically a hind), which is portrayed as a noble and timid creature. This parallels the first day of the Lady's temptation of Gawain, which is relatively gentle and courtly.

Correct answer: A green silk girdle

Gawain breaks the rules of the Exchange of Winnings by keeping the green girdle. He does this not out of greed, but because the Lady tells him it has the magical power to protect his life from the Green Knight's axe.

Correct answer: Morgan le Fay

Morgan le Fay, Arthur's half-sister and a powerful enchantress, orchestrated the events to test the fame of the Round Table and to frighten Guinevere to death. Her presence throughout the poem is hidden behind the guise of the old, ugly woman at Bertilak's court.

Correct answer: A year and a day

The Green Knight specifies that Gawain must seek him out in 'twelmonyth and a day.' This timeframe is a common motif in medieval romance and folklore, often marking the completion of a full cycle of seasons and a legalistic deadline.

Correct answer: The Endless Knot

The poet calls the Pentangle the 'endeles knot' because its lines overlap and interlock without beginning or end. It represents Gawain's five-fold virtues which are intended to be perfectly interconnected and flawless.

Correct answer: A massive axe and a holly bough

The Green Knight carries a giant Danish axe to signal his potential for violence, but he also holds a holly bough, which is 'ever-green' and serves as a symbol of peace. This creates an immediate ambiguity regarding his intentions.

Correct answer: Gringolet

Gawain's horse is Gringolet, a famous steed in Arthurian tradition. The poem describes Gringolet's ornate trappings in detail as Gawain prepares for his journey to the Green Chapel.

Correct answer: Adam, Solomon, Samson, and David

Gawain attempts to excuse his failure by listing great men from the Bible who were also 'beguiled' by women. This moment shows a lapse in Gawain’s typical courtly grace as he struggles with the shame of his deception.

Correct answer: Gawain receives a small nick on the neck from the third blow

The first two blows are feints because Gawain was honest on the first two days of the game. The third blow leaves a small cut on his neck as punishment for Gawain's failure to return the girdle on the third day.

Correct answer: Because Gawain stepped forward and accepted on behalf of Arthur

Arthur initially steps up to defend the honor of the court when his knights are stunned into silence. Gawain then intervenes, requesting the challenge so that the King does not have to risk his life in such a 'silly' game.

Correct answer: The Siege and Fall of Troy

The poem uses a 'circular' frame, mentioning Brutus (the legendary founder of Britain) and his descent from Aeneas of Troy. This places the Arthurian story within a grand, historical lineage of rising and falling civilizations.

Correct answer: Five sets

The pentangle represents five sets of five: the five senses, five fingers, five wounds of Christ, five joys of Mary, and five knightly virtues (fraunchyse, felawschyp, clannes, cortaysye, and pité).

Correct answer: Hautdesert

Gawain arrives at Castle Hautdesert (meaning 'High Hermitage' or 'High Wasteland') on Christmas Eve. It is here that he meets Lord Bertilak and his beautiful wife.

Correct answer: Gules (red)

Gawain's shield shows a golden pentangle on a field of gules, that is red, with an image of the Virgin Mary painted on the inner face to steady him in battle. The pentangle's five points stand for the five wits, the five fingers, the five wounds of Christ, the five joys of Mary, and the five knightly virtues — the poet calls it the endless knot.

Correct answer: Gules (Red)

Gawain's shield is bright red (gules) with the golden pentangle painted on the outside. On the inside of the shield is an image of the Virgin Mary to give Gawain courage in battle.

Correct answer: Bertilak de Hautdesert

After the challenge is over, the Green Knight reveals he is actually the lord of the castle Gawain just left. He explains that his transformation was achieved through the magic of Morgan le Fay.

Correct answer: They all adopt the green baldric as a shared honor

Gawain returns to Camelot full of shame, intending to wear the green girdle as a badge of his 'untrawthe.' However, the other knights adopt the green sash as a heraldic honor, transforming Gawain's symbol of shame into a sign of group identity.

Correct answer: Honi soit qui mal y pense

The motto of the Order of the Garter, 'Honi soit qui mal y pense' (Shame be to him who thinks evil of it), was added by a later scribe. This has led many to speculate that the poem was written to provide a foundational myth for that specific order of knighthood.

Correct answer: A short line (bob) followed by four rhyming lines (wheel)

The 'bob and wheel' is a distinctive feature of the Gawain-poet's style. The 'bob' is a very short line of one stress, followed by the 'wheel,' which consists of four lines of three stresses that rhyme abab.

Correct answer: The image of the Virgin Mary

While the outside of the shield displays the Pentangle, the inside bears the image of Mary. This was intended to inspire Gawain's courage and remind him of his spiritual devotion during battle.

Correct answer: The three attempts by the Lady to seduce Gawain in his bedroom

There is a structural parallel between the physical hunts outside and the psychological 'hunts' in Gawain's bedroom. The characteristics of the animals (the timid deer, the aggressive boar, the wily fox) reflect the changing nature of the Lady's temptations.

Correct answer: He believes it possesses magical properties that will save his life

The Lady convinces Gawain that whoever wears the green girdle cannot be killed by any man on earth. Driven by his fear of the impending blow at the Green Chapel, Gawain prioritizes his survival over his vow of honesty.

Correct answer: The five knights of the Round Table

The Pentangle symbolizes the five senses, the five fingers, the five wounds of Christ, the five joys of Mary, and the five knightly virtues (fraunchyse, felawschyp, clannes, cortaysye, and pité).

Correct answer: He is horrified, describing it as a cursed mound or a 'chapel of mischance'

Gawain finds the Green Chapel to be a hollow, grass-covered mound by a stream. He perceives it as an unholy, devilish place, which heightens his fear and sense of isolation before the confrontation.

Correct answer: Scare Queen Guinevere to death and test the pride of the Round Table

Lord Bertilak reveals that Morgan le Fay, Arthur's half-sister, engineered the challenge. Her goal was to challenge the reputation of the Round Table and specifically to terrify Guinevere through the Green Knight's decapitation trick.

Correct answer: Kisses he received from Bertilak's wife

According to the rules of their game, Gawain must give Bertilak whatever he 'wins' in the castle. Since the Lady kisses him, Gawain dutifully (and awkwardly) kisses Lord Bertilak at the end of each day.

Correct answer: It is kicked around by the knights before the Green Knight picks it up

The head rolls across the floor and is kicked by the members of the court. The Green Knight then calmly walks over, retrieves it, and holds it up to speak to Gawain before riding away.

Correct answer: He leaves a small nick on the skin of Gawain's neck

The first two swings are mere feints to reward Gawain for his honesty on the first two days. The third swing results in a small cut because Gawain was slightly unfaithful on the third day by withholding the girdle.

Correct answer: A combination of truth, fidelity, and the keeping of one's word

The poem is a profound exploration of 'trawthe.' This Middle English concept encompasses not just telling the truth, but the integrity of one's character and the loyalty required to fulfill a vow or contract.

Correct answer: Sharpening a massive new axe on a grindstone

As Gawain approaches, he hears a terrifying 'whirring' sound. He finds the Green Knight preparing for their appointment by sharpening his weapon, a sound intended to intimidate the young knight.

Correct answer: His sin, cowardice, and 'untrawthe'

While the rest of the court treats the girdle as a badge of honor, Gawain is deeply ashamed. He wears it as a sash to remind himself of the moment he failed his knightly code out of fear for his own life.

Correct answer: Because the fox represents treachery and Gawain's upcoming deception

The fox hunt is distinct because the fox is a 'thief' and a trickster. This mirrors Gawain's behavior on the third day, as he 'tricks' Bertilak by hiding the girdle, making the fox's skin a highly symbolic and 'unworthy' exchange.

Correct answer: He accepts the challenge himself after his court stays silent

Arthur is initially stunned by the court's silence, which he perceives as a slight against their reputation. Angry and embarrassed, he steps forward to take the axe before Gawain intervenes to protect his King.

Correct answer: ababa

The bob (one short line) is followed by a wheel (four lines) with a rhyme scheme of ababa. The 'bob' provides the first 'a' rhyme.

Correct answer: The tension between courtly 'cortaysye' and the raw power of nature

The poem contrasts the ultra-refined, almost stagnant court of Camelot with the vibrant, testing environment of Hautdesert and the wild nature of the Green Knight. It asks whether courtly manners can survive real-world moral tests.

Correct answer: He hides it and tells Bertilak he has nothing else to exchange

Gawain breaks the rules of the game on the third day. He exchanges the three kisses he received, but he intentionally conceals the girdle, falsely claiming that those kisses are the extent of his winnings.

Correct answer: Incredibly handsome and well-proportioned, like a giant

Despite his strange color, the Green Knight is described as an impressively built, handsome figure with a thick beard and beautiful clothes. He represents the 'sublime'—something both terrifying and aesthetically magnificent.

Correct answer: Because he is the youngest and his life would be the least missed

Gawain uses a form of extreme courtly humility, arguing that he is the 'weakest' and 'feeblest of wit.' He claims that as Arthur's nephew, his only value is his blood relation to the King, making his life the most 'expendable' loss for the court.