Beowulf And Sir Gawain Comparison

Danielle Trupia

Due: October 26, 2015

Professor Ireland

Midterm Analysis

As thinking back to my analysis of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, recognizing that both have extremely similar characteristics of heroism, nobility, strength and honor. Both stories focus on the different challenges they are being faced with and have legendary characters that showed their willingness to die with honor. Beowulf has more to do with a heroic theme showing his willingness to die for people as King, but Sir Gawain on the other hand is a knight willing to die for love. These two characters both are noble in nature and adventurous.

Although, both Beowulf and Sir Gawain were written hundreds of years apart, both stories are written in a narrative style share similar conflicts throughout their reading. Beowulf’s story was written in the Old English period, where Sir Gawain was written in the medieval time or during the Middle English period. Since Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a Medieval Romance tradition, it is too short to be considered an epic poem, as is Beowulf. Not only does it show through the text how these two time periods have evolved but it also shows how vocabulary and

Comparing these two hero ethics’ that we see, contrast each other very well. Beowulf seems to have great morals that he lives by. Beowulf has much pride in himself and great loyalty to his country as a noble. He shows characteristic of a hero throughout the entire reading, but also boasts about himself and how wonderful his is. Beowulf never truly shows the strength of his own heart, only the quest to better him. While Sir Gawain never shows a sign of arrogance, only selflessness and his loyalty to the Code of Chivalry. Sir Gawain stays true to his word and keeps his promise that was made to the Green