Women In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight

“For that noble princess pushed and pressed him” (Line 1770). This line from “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” suggests to readers that the woman of the story is dominant over Sir Gawain. This theme is unusual considering the time period it was written in. During this period, women were subordinate to their male counterparts. Men found them to be inferior to their power. The theme of “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” can be found in other Middle English poems as well. Geoffrey Chaucer’s stories “The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale” and “The Miller’s Tale” are two pieces from his infamous work “The Canterbury Tales”. These two stories exhibit the theme of a woman’s place in society. One other work of this time period that has this theme of women in power
There are three women characters in “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” and each one differs from one another. Queen Guinevere is the first woman introduced to the readers. Her character represents the ideal woman of the time period. Men yearned for beauty and silence in a woman to serve their sex drive and allow them to exert their power over them.