Subversion in "The Carle of Carlisle"

In his general introduction to the Gawain legend, Thomas Hahn writes, "fantastic narratives can open a space for political critique; contradictions and absurdities, rather than being swallowed whole, constitute a basis upon which audiences - starting from a broad range of social positions - may formulate alternative or subversive understandings” (par 30). Hahn's insight suggests that the various manifestations of the Gawain myth--and Arthuriana in general--may not simply be tools which unequivocally support the established order. Instead, these tales often contain internal tensions which challenge the beliefs--be they chivalric, class-based, nationalistic, or otherwise--that the text seems to champion.

Out of our supplementary Gawain readings, I found "The Carle of Carlisle" particularly critical of the knightly class and its inability to practice the chivalrous behavior it promotes. This criticism becomes apparent in the tale's depictions of Sir Kay and Bishopp Bodwin. These men, through actions and words, insult their host, the Carle of Carlisle, and believe they are within their rights to do so. Sir Kay is the primary culprit in these scenarios, and his antagonism of the Carle begins before the two even meet. When Gawain, Kay, and Bodwin, lost in a borderland and separated from the court of Arthur, approach the Carle's castle, Sir Kay claims that he will take accommodations by force if necessary: "For if he jangle and make itt stout (complain and resist)/I shall beate the Carle all about" (107-8). Sir Kay, as a member of the Round Table, believes himself superior to the Carle, since the Carle lives in the wilderness and is not on friendly terms with Arthur.

After they have gained admittance to the Carle's castle, Sir Kay and Bishopp Bodwin continue to insult their host, treating him disrespectfully by roughly displacing the Carle's palfrey from its food and shelter in order to feed their own horses. The men perform these actions on separate occasions, and both times the Carle responds to their transgressions of chivalry by hitting them. But soon Gawain notices that the Carle's palfrey is outside and unfed in the rain:
[Gawain] "Sayth, stand up, fole, and eate thy meate.
Thy master payeth for all that wee heere gett."
The Carle himselfe stood thereby
And thanked him of his curtesye. (285-8)
The Carle's thanks take the form of a great feast for the men, and an immediate friendship with Gawain. This sets into motion a number of challenges meant to test Gawain's courtesy--all of which he successfully completes (though he almost fails a test with the Carle's wife). Gawain comes across as the exemplar of proper knightly behavior--an example which sharply contrasts those set by the seneschal and the Bishop.

Gawain's final test comes when the Carle commands the knight to behead him. At first, Gawain expresses reluctance, but soon consents. After the giant has lost his head, he returns to a normal size and Gawain discovers that his action has lifted a 40-year curse. The Carle explains that many other knights had visited him, and because of their lack of courtesy, they were unable to fulfill the obligations that would break the curse. These earlier knights, like Sir Kay and Bishopp Bodwin, are failed representatives of chivalry, and their poor treatment of politically disenfranchised border dwellers come across as failings of the knightly class.

"The Carle of Carlisle" reads as a text which, while negotiating questions of borders and national identity, also negotiates proper relations between the aristocratic knightly class and those without political clout. By exposing the failings of Sir Kay, Bishop Bodwin, and the numerous visiting knights extending over 40 years, the story questions aristocratic right, and calls for the ruling class to, like Gawain, abide by the courtesy and respect chivalry requires.