How does the screenplay and manuscript of The Green Knight tell us very different stories about Sir Gawain? This is a comparative analysis of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight as adapted for the silver screen by David Lowery (2021) and the original text of 14th century Alliterative Revival poetry. Quotes are from Brian Stone’s translation of the poem. The original work can really only be called English in name as that Middle English is literally a different language from that of today. And so, Stone’s translation brilliantly brings the narrative to more modern readers. I also recommend J.R.R. Tolkien’s posthumously published translation, with an excellent introduction by his son, Christopher, although, for me I found it enlightening as a second tier source after becoming familiar with the more accessible language of Stone.
Stone identifies three themes that are woven into the poem; beheading, temptation, and fair exchange (the latter offered by the Green Knight and by Sir Bertilak). There are Pagan and Christian references interlaced throughout the narrative found in the sorcery of Morgan la Fey and the Christian moral fortitude of Gawain. The image of the pentangle on Gawain’s shield reflects Biblical wisdom while pagan rituals of fighting and dancing pervade. In the denouement of the poem it is Gawain’s deep-seeded Christian penitence doctrine and his desire to hold onto life that saves his life. In the film adaption Gawain is less than sure of what virtue is and in the end it is his embrace of death that brings about an epiphany.
It was upon a suggestion by the medieval art and literature scholar Maidie Hilmo that I explore the narrative differences between the screenplay and manuscript of The Green Knight. Her own research is fascinating and shows how, “details subsequently obscured by paint [the illustrations in the manuscript] are important in extending the iconographic and interpretive range of the miniatures and, reflexively, of the poems—all supporting the likelihood that the scribe was also the thoughtful draftsperson of the underdrawings.” The British Library houses the manuscript, referred to as Cotton Nero A.x. It is the sole extant manuscript of the works of the so-called Gawain-poet. This includes the works titled Pearl, Cleanness, Patience, and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
Ok, on to the comparison.
Key: Lowery’s Sceenplay will be abbreviated as LSP
The Gawain Manuscript of The Green Knight will be abbreviated as TGK
Gawain from the Outset: Screenplay and Manuscript Portrayals
Tis Christmastide in Camelot…
LSP: We are taken into a stark and unforgiving medieval town, snow begins to fall, a castle begins to burn, and we meet a young waft of a man, Gawain, played by Dev Patel and his lover, played by Alicia Vikander. Gawain in essence is a young man of little drive or purpose, reveling in hedonistic pleasure and castle comforts. We learn that it is the Yuletide season and Gawain must rush to a banquet at Camelot hosted by the aging and frail King Arthur and Queen Guinevere, surrounded by the knights of the round table. Gawain’s mother, Morgan la Fey, is not to be present, as she is concerned with carrying out an enchantment for the promotional benefit of her son, perhaps with a kingly trajectory.
TGK: King Arthur is hosting a gay and lively feast.
But Arthur would not eat until all were served.
He was charming and cheerful, child-like and gay,
And loving active life, little did he favour
Lying down for long or lolling on a seat,
So robust his young blood and his beating brain.
Still, he was stirred now by something else:
His noble announcement that he never would eat*
On such a fair feast-day till informed in full
Of some unusual adventure, as yet untold,
(Stanza 5)
LSP: As the banquet is underway Gawain is gifted with a seat next to a feeble and aged Arthur who asks him to tell a tale of his adventures. The nephew, so pleased thus far with his laissez-faire noncommittal lifestyle, becomes keenly aware that he has no virtuous pursuit to recount to the king, who, in paternal patience, hints at “not yet”. Here we learn that Gawain’s mother is Arthur’s sister. This is a significant variation of the original tale and one that brings Morgan la Fey’s contempt for Arthur and Guinevere to a personal connection with Gawain. Although, it seems in the screen play that Gawain is a bit clueless to this family drama.
Soon after the embarrassing confession of Gawain as having no tales to tell a stranger enters the banquet hall upon his charger, a towering oaken, axe bearing figure of green. The Green Knight. In his silence he hands Guinevere a letter (conjured as part of Morgan la Fey’s sorcery) who becomes a medium for the Green Knight’s voice and proposes the Christmas time “beheading game”, well, beheading is implied but the challenge is for anyone present to strike the Green Knight with his axe, a blow which, in one year hence, he will be able to return, blow for blow at a place called The Green Chapel.
TGK: The Green Knight’s presence was awe inspiring.
Men gaped at the hue of him
Ingrained in garb and mien,
A fellow fiercely grim,
And all a glittering green.
(Stanza 7)
The Green Knight offers Arthur a Christmas game.
So I crave in this court a Christmas game,
For it is Yuletide and New Year, and young men abound here.
If any in this household is so hardy in spirit,
Of such mettlesome mind and so madly rash
As to strike a strong blow in return for another,
I shall offer to him this fine axe freely ;
(Stanza 13)
LSP: Gawain seeing Arthur not fit to defend the challenge, or in an opportunistic dash, volunteers himself instead. In place of the Green Knight’s axe Gawain is given Excalibur. He beheads the knight with anticlimactic ease and the knight, without even feeling around with his fingers, picks up his head, leaves his axe on the floor, bids the crowd adieu and with his head tucked under his arm, rides away while his deep, jovial, Santa-like laugh echoes across the land.
TGK: Arthur, being a virile warrior leader takes up the Green Knight’s challenge more out of incensed feeling of being disrespected.
Hand me your axe now, for heaven’s sake,
And I shall bestow the boon you bid us give.’
He sprang towards him swiftly, seized it from his hand,
And fiercely the other fellow footed the floor.
Now Arthur had his axe, and holding it by the haft
Swung it about sternly, as if to strike with it.
(Stanza 15)
Then a voice from the background calls out. It is Gawain who raises his voice and requests to be the one that answers the Green Knight. As is seen throughout the poem there is an extreme courtesy of speech from Arthur and particularly Gawain. Brian Stone notes that courtesy in the poem is an exemplification of inner goodness, that appearance is reality, that outer virtue is aligned with inner morals. We see this immediately in Gawain’s request, that, he is not offering his sword out of rage but from a place of humble servitude to keep the king from lowering himself to the foolish challenge. Gawain says,
I am the weakest, the most wanting in wisdom. I know,
And my life, if lost. would be least missed, truly.
Only through your being my uncle, am I to be valuedJ
No bounty but your blood in my body do I know.
And since this affair is too foolish to fall to you.
And I first asked it of you, make it over to me;
(Stanza 16)
Gawain hews off the head of the Green Knight who races away trailing sparks from his horse’s hooves and his echoing laughter. At this Arthur gives comforting words to Guinevere who is very troubled (as was Morgan la Fey’s intention of bringing about this magical wonder). Then Gawain and Arthur turn and laugh off the awe of the recent event and turn back to the feast which is now able to be enjoyed due to a “new adventure story” coming about.
At the Green Knight Gawain and King
Grinned and laughed again ;
But plainly approved the thing
As a marvel in the world of men.
(Stanza 20)
LSP: Over the course of one year, Gawain’s character changes little. He is aware of his contracted reunion with the Green Knight yet, Theseus heading off to Athens, this is not. There is a looming reluctance over Gawain’s outlook. The requests of his Lady, made as if to a soldier going off to war, to make their relationship public is met by an inaudible indecisiveness which speaks volumes to Gawain’s moral build. There is seemingly no George and Mary Bailey in this one-sided affair. “And so this is Christmas, I hope you have fun.”
Gawain obligatorily sets off with the Green Knight’s axe in hand with one unique addition to his attire; a green girdle gifted by his mother (Morgan la Fey, although this is not readily known through the screen play) which comes with a guarantee of safeguarding his life if it is worn. Along the way he asks those he meets if they know the location of The Green Chapel. He is conned by a scheming peasant, assists St. Winifred in regaining her head, takes some psilocybin laden toadstools, is guided by a mysterious fox across the cold barren landscape, and witnesses a race of naked giants migrating across a valley. The giants were supposedly included as that Lowery considered them as a mythical legend of the Welsh tradition.
TGK: One year is almost past and we come to the next Michaelmas moon and All Saints Day, ever the gallant knight prepares to settle his part of the game of fair exchange. Gawain’s noble reserve is admired by all the knights of the court who come to see him off.
Much searing sorrow was suffered in the hall
That such a gallant man as Gawain should go in quest
To suffer a savage blow, and his sword no more
Should bear.
Said Gawain, gay of cheer,
‘Whether fate be foul or fair,
Why falter I or fear?
What should man do but dare?’
(Stanza 24)
Sir Gawain’s Travels Amidst Screenplay and Manuscript Landscapes
As he rides off the throng of lords and ladies murmur their farewells to the young departing knight. And this section marks such a significant diversion from the screen play.
All who saw that seemly sight were sick at heart.
And all said to each other softly, in the same breath.
In care for that comely knight, ‘By Christ, it is evil
That yon lord should be lost, who lives so nobly.
(Stanza 26)
Gawain travels a long and lonely road almost to North Wales. There are notable fantastic legends abounding from that geographical area of the world. You can read about other intriguing Northern Wales legends here. My favorite is the Welsh Red Dragon of Dinas Emrys, a mountain that is remarkably similar to Middle Earth’s former home of Thror, King of the Mountain and infamous squatter, the dragon Smaug. Unlike the screen play, there is no list of giants yet there are adventures alluded to that Gawain undertakes along his way to the Green Chapel.
So many marvels did the man meet in the mountain
(Stanza 31)
It would be too tedious to tell a tenth of them
He had death-struggles with dragons, did battle with wolves
Warred with wild men who dwelt among the crags,
Battled with bulls and bears and boars at other times,
And ogres that panted after him on the high fells.
Had he not been doughty in endurance and dutiful to God
Doubtless he would have been done to death time and again.
Virtue Under Fire: Gawain at Bertilak’s Hautcastle: Screenplay and Manuscript
LSP: Gawain then comes across a magnificent castle rising out of a hill, the master of which is a burly noble, Sir Bertilak, who lives with a beautiful lady (in a poignant double role by Alicia Vikander, mirroring Gawain’s “girlfriend” but now in an elevated social class and as another man’s wife) as well as a seemingly blind and an infirm old woman. While Gawain recuperates at the castle there is another game of gains exchanged, of the sort initiated by the Green Knight, offered to him by Sir Bertilak.
Whatever the forest offers me, I will bring you home the best.
And you give me in turn whatever you might receive here.
Script
A series of enticing encounters and seductions with Lady Bertilak ensue. Here we see that Gawain’s moral mettle is of a soft and malleable sort as Lady Bertilak exposes his superficial sense of honor.
Lady Bertilak: And this is what you want most in life?
To be a knight.
Gawain: No, honor.
LB: (CHUCKLING) You are not very good with questions.
(SCOFFS)
G: It is part of the life I want.
LB: And this is all it takes for that part to be had?
You’ll do this one thing, you return home a changed man, an honorable man? Just like that?
G: Yes.
Script
Ultimately, Lady Bertilak, offers Gawain the same girdle which he had lost along his journey, although this time, instead of it being offered as a solely protective shield, it is used to highlight Gawain’s ineptitude and selfish desires by wanting to grow in reputation and prominence by surviving the game with the Green Knight. Lady Bertilak give sGawain the girdle with the accusation, “You’re no knight.”
TGK: In the poem however, the girdle is provided because Gawain abstained from the “ultimate courtesy” of succumbing to Lady Bertilak’s sexual advances.
But Sir Gawain was on guard in a gracious manner.
Though she was the winsomest woman the warrior had known,*
He was less love-laden because of the loss he must
Now face –
His destruction by the stroke,
For come it must was the case.
(Stanza 51)
Each night after Sir Bertilak returns from a hunt he richly offers Gawain the spoils in return for the gains assessed while absent from the castle.
Said Gawain, ‘For my true gains in this great house;
I am not loth to allow, must belong to you.’
And he put his arms round his handsome neck, hugging him.
And kissed him in the comeliest way he could think of.
(Stanza 55)
The second night Gawain exchanges a comely kiss to Bertilak, which seems a minuscule expression given the intense persuasion that Lady Bertilak bestowed upon Gawain earlier in the day. Yet, Sir Bertilak is most impressed by Gawain’s honesty and Gawain feels that his honor is maintained in a state of undimpled resolve. Sir Bertilak
Therefore remain in your room and rest in comfort,
While I fare hunting in the forest; in fulfilment of our oath
Exchanging what we achieve when the chase is over.
For twice I have tested you, and twice found you true.
Now “Third time, throw best! ” Think of that tomorrow!
(Stanza 67)
The third night was the most pressing seduction by Lady Bertilak, yet the “peril would have impended
Had [Mother] Mary not minded her knight.”
(Stanza 70)
Gawain’s virtue is tempted almost to breaking yet…
God shield me! That shall not happen, for sure,’ said the knight.
So with laughing love-talk he deflected gently
The downright declarations that dropped from her lips.
(Stanza 71)
When Lady Bertilak sees that her attempts at seduction are met with refusal, that Gawain will not sacrifice (put to death) his chastity, honor (which he is proud to admit that he already has, unlike the film’s version) and loyalty to the host of the house, Sir Bertilak, she admits to having to provide him something more than carnal delectations.
For you have deserved, forsooth, superabundantly
And rightfully, a richer reward than I could give.
(Stanza 72)
Gawain is much enticed by the new gift.
For the man that binds his body with this belt of green,
As long as he laps it closely about him,
No hero under heaven can hack him to pieces,
For he cannot be killed by any cunning on earth.’
Then the prince pondered, and it appeared to him
A precious gem to protect him in the peril appointed him
When he gained the Green Chapel to be given checkmate:
(Stanza 74)
However, unlike the “comely kisses” that Gawain had been openly exchanging with Sir Bertilak, Gawain swears to the Lady that this girdle will remain a secret. Personally, I see much in the way of similar typology with Jesus’s temptation by Satan. The devil takes Jesus to the top of a mountain (Gawain to Hautcastle on the mountain) and offers him the most attractive enticements for power and pleasure and ultimately tempts him to take his own life, knowing that angels will rescue him. Gawain is offered a chance to live through death and leaps at the chance to survive whereas the Christ chastised the tempter and maintained to drink from the cup given him. Between the screenplay and manuscript the manuscript provides us with a much more developed sense of the mythical grandeur of Bertilak’s castle. This also raises the issue of Lowery’s minimalist approach to dialogue; how the logos of the manuscript can carry a reader into an intense imaginary landscape beyond the visual images.
Gawain’s Exchange with the Green Knight: Screenplay and Manuscript
LSP: Gawain continues his journey, led by the, until now, silent Reynard who offers Gawain a chance to slip away without facing the Green Knight. The fox implies that Gawain, because he wears the enchanted girdle, is the sort of man who would wish to walk away from the challenge bearing his shame, “with head held high, to end his song as he saw fit”. Once there, he finds the Green Knight who will repay the axe stroke one year hence. Gawain, balks thrice over at giving his neck to the Knight. Ultimately, Gawain has an epiphany that if he does not submit to his side of the game of fair exchange he will only continue as a straw man, a hollow leader, a Prince Rillian without the fortitude that comes from self-reflection in the underworld, a life without substance. Upon this reflection he realizes that “To lose one’s life is to gain it.” Gawain acquiesces and leans over to expose his neck for the fatal blow, for, unlike the spook’s ability to laugh away a decapitation, Gawain has no reason to believe that he will survive the blow. He removes the protective green girdle, embraces the sum of his life thus far, embraces the inevitable death, and relinquishes his hold. At the removal of the girdle the Green Knight leans in, puts down the axe, and with a smile, a wink and a bell chime, seems to say, “That, is what the test was all about, dear boy.” The End.
Yet, the story continues.
TGK: In the poem though Sir Gawain is offered an escape from meeting the Green Knight and resolutely moves forward to see the game through. Once presented to the Green Knight Sir Gawain still resolutely embraces the coming blow without remorse or bitterness (perhaps, because he thought that the girdle protected him). Gawain nobly pronounces to the Green Knight,
The grievous gash to come I grudge you not at all;
Strike but the one stroke and I shall stand still
And offer you no hindrance ; you may act freely,
I swear.’
Head bent, Sir Gawain bowed,
And showed the bright flesh bare.
He behaved as if uncowed,
Being loth to display his care.
(Stanza 90)
In the manuscript there is described a series of incredibly intense exchanges between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The reader can feel the tension become taught as Gawain strains to maintain his noble demeanor. Yet, the Green Knight sees Gawain’s facade starting to crumble under the pressure and taunts his submitted counterpart to fully embrace the inevitable. The Green Knight gives two feinted blows at Gawain and finally, seeing Gawain’s acceptance of things raises his axe for the finale time. Through this comparison between the screenplay and the manuscript one can see how Lowery misses the plot development potential provided by dialogue with the Green Knight. This climactic moments and verbal exchange doesn’t Then on the third swing of the axe the climax of the story is reached! One can just hear the intense orchestration the rising, rushing of blood and heart in the ears of Gawain.
Gawain waited unswerving, with not a wavering limb,
But stood still as a stone or the stump of a tree
Gripping the rocky ground with a hundred grappling roots.
Then again the green knight began to gird:
‘So now you have a whole heart I must hit you.
May the high knighthood which Arthur conferred
Preserve you and save your neck, if so it avail you!
(Stanza 92)
Yet, the axe falls but only nicks Gawain’s neck. Gawain is astounded that his life was preserved. At this the Green Knight reveals the underlying forces that were at play through the story, that Morgan la Fey had brought him to life as a sort of mystical faerie, that Sir Bertilak and he were one and the same, that Lady Bertilak was employed to seduce Gawain and if successful would have resulted in his demise, that Gawain’s secret girdle was no so secret. It was for the honor Gawain showed in his loyalty to Bertilak by exchanging a kiss for a kiss that the first two blows did not fall.
When told of the girdle, Gawain is thrown into a deep state of penitence and shame. Yet, the Green Knight, who sees Gawain’s contrite heart says that having succumbed to the Lady’s seduction would have been the greater sin and that virtue of desiring to hold onto life is forgivable and the “less blameworthy” act.
At this Gawain looks at the girdle with despise and casts it to the ground.
There is the false thing, foul fortune befall it!
I was craven about our encounter, and cowardice taught me
To accord with covetousness and corrupt my nature
And the liberality and loyalty belonging to chivalry.
I acknowledge, knight, how ill
I behaved, and take the blame.
Award what penance you will:
Henceforth I’ll shun ill-fame.’
(Stanza 95)
As opposed to the screenplay the manuscript tells us that Gawain returns home and recounts his tale to King Arthur and the knights. For Gawain, the girdle is a mark of weakness that is coupled by the scar on his neck. In a way, this continues the concept that intrinsic character is made extrinsic by appearance; the lapse in virtue is exhibited by a physical scar.
King Arthur and the knights were impressed with the mettle that Gawain showed and his action applauded or in fact referred to with a fraternal and jocular appreciation. For Arthur then declared that all the men should wear a similar girdle about their waist, whether this was in jest or as a sign to hence forward, if ever to be found in fault may it only be found in fault of embracing life.
What do you take away from a comparison between the screen play and the manuscript of The Green Knight? What do you think of Lowery’s version? If you read the manuscript what do you think a film adaptation might have looked like? Was it similar to Lowery’s version?