Sir Gawain and Lord Bertilak's. . . Courtship?

Nothing too serious, but an interesting read on their strange relationship

For diversity's sake, we will set aside my typical emphasis on Christianity and environmental/ecological-centered discussion for this week’s post. There is something much more ~ riveting ~ (or juicy if you will) to be found between the lines of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

---

When Sir Gawain is at his physical limits, and he prays for sanctuary, it is Lord Bertilak’s “castle” that appears to him by the grace of God.

This haven turns out to be laden with sensual traps, which plague our pious protagonist and are meant to catch him straying from his morally-Christian (sorry, can’t not mention it) code.

And though the main scenes revolve around Lady Bertilak’s seductions and sensual sparrings, unapologetic and boldly erotic, daily attacks which accost Sir Gawain (awakening him from his slumbers thrice times, no less), it is really Lord Bertilak’s interactions with Sir Gawain each time he returns home from his hunting trips that I am most keen on examining within this post.

There is a natural progression that I wish to make clear through the course of their relationship and growing intimacy; so, we will begin with their first greeting scene (I am reading Simon Armitage’s translation).

We see their first physical contact in lines 840 to 841:

Then firmly, like good friends, they hugged and held awhile.

There is a lingering quality that follows this initial contact, as well, which we may glean from Sir Gawain’s stare and the description of Lord Bertilak that ensues:

Gawain gazed at the lord who greeted him so gracefully, the great one who governed that grand estate, powerful and large, in the prime of his life, with a bushy beard as red as a beaver's, steady in his stance, solid of build, with a fiery face but with fine conversation: a man quite capable, it occurred to Gawain, of keeping such a castle and captaining his knights. (842-849)

As the two begin familiarizing, the lord becomes awestruck, for “Once the master [had] gathered that his guest [was] Gawain, he thinks it so thrilling he laughs out loud” (908-909). How cute.

This emotion is further qualified by:

All the men of that manor were of the same mind, being keen and quick to appear in his presence. . . “. . . grant that we welcome Gawain as our guest. . . We few shall learn a lesson here in tact and manners true, and hopefully we'll hear love's tender language, too.” (910-927)

In adding “all the men” that were present at this banquet “were of the same mind”, we can gather that what follows implies, or is inclusive of, the lord’s state of mind; the lord, as well, is “hopeful” that he “will hear / love’s tender language, too” (926-927).

Both Lady and Lord Bertilak prove to be bold courters, for when Gawain goes to leave that first banquet, the lord pulls him aside and Gawain is “ushered by his host / to his host’s own chamber and the heat of its chimney” (1029-1030). The figurative implications of “heat” and the “chimney” in the context of the lord’s chamber are. . . intimate, to say the least.

And after pulling him aside, the lord “profoundly and profusely” thanks Sir Gawain for “honoring his house”, and Lord Bertilak states plainly: “For as long as I live my life shall be better / that Gawain was my guest at God’s own feast” to which Sir Gawain responds, “By God, [ ] but the gratitude goes to you. . . / Your requests are now this knight’s commands / I am bound by your bidding, no boon is too high” (1035-1040).

Of course, in the context of chilvarous knightly duties, this is the appropriate response; but it is the context, the scene, that I am setting this dialogue against that leads me to ask what is implied in these “requests” that Sir Gawain is so willing to do, these requests he is “bound” to, requests which can’t possibly be “too high” no matter what the lord asks of him (1039-1040).

Before the end of the second fitt, Lord Bertilak strikes a wager with Sir Gawain, too; and the terms can be read as mildly flirtatious: “What I win in the woods will be yours, / and what you gain while I’m gone you will give to me” (1106-1107). There is a sort of orthodox relationship dynamic in this as well, which becomes more pronounced as we see this deal in application.

---

Dialogue aside, we have various moments of physical touch sprinkled in that are significant in and of themselves; again, during feast, “the lord squeezed Gawain’s arm and seated him at his side. . . / there was pleasure aplenty in their private talk” (1083-1085). Could their dinner-side conversation be the “love’s tender langauge” Lord Bertilak was so eager to hear upon Sir Gawain’s arrival?

Their romance picks up here, and the foreplay up until this point sets up the quickly progressive turn in their relationship:

After the lord graciously gifts Sir Gawain with his “haul”–mind you, the largest that he has brought home “out of season, for several years”–, Sir Gawain receives his gifts graciously (1381-1382). In return, “he held out his arms and hugged his lord and kissed him in the kindliest way he could” (1388-1389). Though the kiss is technically Lady Bertilak’s kiss bestowed upon Sir Gawain and then passed onto Lord Bertilak, regardless, the lord and the knight still kissed. I think word choice is important to note as well; the kiss is given in a “kindliest way”. The nature of these exchanged kisses only become more romantic from here.

The gender roles are especially clear upon the conclusion of the second hunt and the presentation of gifts; Lord Bertilak has hunted a boar and brings home to Sir Gawain “prime pieces of perfect pork” (1631). Literally, the man is “bringing home the bacon”.

And what is Sir Gawain’s response?

“. . .And graciously I shall give you my gains in exchange.” He catches [Lord Bertilak] by the neck and courteously kisses him, then a second time kisses him in a similar style. (1638-1640)

The touch is key to the difference in their exchange, here. Though the kiss maintains a “courtly” appearance, Sir Gawain “catches” his lord “by the neck”, an impassioned and carnal move (1639). He kisses him both times in this way.

Furthermore, we see a reversal the third time, a moment of weakness, perhaps, where Sir Gawain is unable to hold back his excitement. In fact, he runs up and kisses the lord before even receiving his gifts:

He meets the master in the middle of the room, greets him graciously, with Gawain saying: “I shall first fulfill our formal agreement which we fixed in words when the drink flowed freely.” (1932-1935)

And then, in a move that is shockingly bold for a pious knight such as himself, Sir Gawain “clasps [Lord Bertilak] tight and kisses him three times / with as much emotion as a man could muster” (1936-1937). The “tight” hold and the ~ emotion ~ added into the kiss is not something to miss.

---

Consider this; recall from where their relationship started, with coy private flirtations. These quickly over the course of a few days evolve into bold, flaunting displays of affection that require us no longer to read between lines or hunt for details. Instead, we just need to pay attention.

Photo by Wim van 't Einde on Unsplash

What do you think of their romance, dear reader?

Am I forcing its existence, or are you, too, convinced of its possibility?