Sir Gawain And The Green Knight

McKenna Forry
11­30­14
AP English III
Mrs. Edwards
Sir Gawain and The Green Knight In Sir Gawain and the Green knight there is a large display of situational irony. Sir Gawain is a knight and Knights are supposed to follow the chivalry code every second of their lives. They are also supposed to be very noble and are not afraid of death. Situational irony is when what is supposed to occur does not. Sir Gawain is supposed to be willing to die in order to keep his honor. Instead Sir Gawain accepts the sash from the lady of the castle in hopes that it will keep him safe from death. When accepting the sash from the lady it shows that Sir Gawain is afraid of death and can not keep his code of chivalry. Noble Knights are fearless of what might happen to them because their heart is telling them that they need to help keep their people safe and carry out the code of chivalry. A true knight is shown when they are in danger of being killed and when death is nipping at their toes. That is when a Knights true character is shown. Sir Gawain's proves he is not a noble knight and cannot follow the code of chivalry when he accepts the sash that will provide him protection from death.
The lady of the castle said, "No man under Heaven can hurt him, whoever man try, for nothing on earth, however uncanny can kill him"(225­226). Noble knights would not accept the sash because the code of chivalry tells them that they should not fear death, but Sir Gawain thinks it is the perfect gift to receive before he goes and meets with the Green Knight. This shows that he is looking for protection when really a knight is supposed to be fearless. Sir Gawain thinks to

himself, "If the gift meant remaining alive, it might well be worth it"(230). A noble knight wouldn't not say this and since Sir Gawain is saying this it shows he does not have the fearlessness to die. Sir Gawain might look like a knight on the outside, but on the inside Sir Gawain is not much different than a normal person. Sir Gawain does not have the fearlessness to be a noble knight.
Instead he try's to find something to save him or keep him as far away from death as he can, and in this case he found the sash. This is an example of situational irony because one thinks that since Sir Gawain is a knight he wouldn't accept the sash from the lady of the castle, but we know that he is not a noble knight and would accept anything that would help him escape death. Sir
Gawain might be called a knight but as time goes on it is easy to see that that title is just words on paper.