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Dive into the historical and literary context of the 14th-century masterpiece "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" by The Pearl Poet. Explore the intricate alliterative revival style, the use of the unique "bob and wheel" structure, and the three intertwining narrative strings featuring the beheading game and the hero's temptations. Unravel the story's complexities and the themes of honesty, loyalty, and chastity in this timeless tale.
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Medieval Romance “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight”
Historical Context • Written mid to late fourteenth century • Composed by a university-trained clerk: The Pearl Poet • Written in a dialect of Middle English • Belongs to a type of literature traditionally known as Alliterative Revival (Northern England)
Literary Context • Purpose of alliteration: to connect two halves of each poetic line • Poet uses rhyme to structure the stanzas • Each group of long alliterative rhyme concludes with a word or phrase containing two syllables and a quatrain-known together as the “bob and wheel.”
Literary Devices • Bob and wheel – technique used for spinning cloth. • Bob and wheel help to spin the plot and narrative together in intricate ways. • Bob and wheel provide commentaries on what has just happened, create or fulfill moments of suspense, and serve as transitions to the next scene or idea.
Literary Devices • Story is told in four “fitts” (parts), which weave together at least three separate narrative strings commonly found in medieval folklore and romance. • First plot: “The beheading game”: derived from pagan myths related to the agricultural cycles of planting and harvesting crops. • Second and Third Plots: Exchange of winnings and hero’s temptation: romance (honesty, loyalty and chastity are tested).
