We thought there was a great deal of blood in the other Arthurian Tales. However, what can beat Sir Gawain and the Green Knight? Not only does Gawain slice off the Green Knight’s head, there is such a minute description of the killing and dismembering of the animals that Gawain’s host hunts.
Sir Gawain and the Turk appears to be the same plot with a variation as does The Green Knight. I am wondering whether these are just different versions as different story tellers adjusted the story according to their audience.
In our own story, it surprises me that Gawain refused to meet his aunt who set up the challenge. What was the need for such a challenge? I don’t have my text with me but I was wondering whether about the relationship between Gawain and the three women. Were they his relatives? It appears that Gawain has a number of female relatives whose existence he is not always aware of. Also when Sir Percival and Sir Galahad are not around, then Gawain is the purest and bravest of the knights.
The Green Knight is obviously the “Other,” or has Morgan bewitched a human? The same with the Turk; I can see that the Turk is a romanticized representation of the “Other,” but does every “Other” have to be magical and truly “otherworldly?”
As for the question about Arthur, he is even more “whimpy” than in the other stories. Presumably to create a contrast between him and the brave Gawain; which of course leads to the next question: how come Arthur is not supposed to accept a challenge, and when he does, it is Gawain who jumps up and puts his life on the line.
My final question is about the host’s wife. Does she represent women’s promiscuity or she is simply the magical “Other?”