British Literature has many different elements tha Essays

British Literature has many different elements that have been analyzed for thousands of years. The elements that will be analyzed in the paper today will be romance, women, and courtliness types. Romance is commonly misunderstood for love, but love is not the only subject for love. Stories of love and war typically lead the protagonists into encounters with the eerie, the marvelous, and the taboo. In romance, the anything is possible, you can move from a slow introduction into a vast range of imaginary topics. Romance seems to be a form of imaginative literature in which the medieval society could acknowledge the transgressions of its own ordering principles: adultery, incest, unmotivated marital violence. (Damrosch and Dettmar , 25) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a good poem that expresses romance. The poem first presents a dual between Authur and Sir Gawain, in which is to be resolved in one year. When it was time for Sir Gawain to set out to challenge the dual that could possibly end in death, Gawain encountered a temptation of character and sexuality. Gawain prays for warmth and some place to hear Mass for Christmas, in the distance he sees a shimmer of light, where the Lord warmly welcomes Gawain to the castle and to his lady. The Lord strikes a deal with Gawain, but little did the Lord know his lady will soon try to tempt Gawain, into a kiss so Gawain had to trade the Lords day hunt for a kiss because the deal was to trade the days hunt with Gawain's earning from the castle. The days go on getting one more kiss each day, until the third day when the Lady gave Gawain him a green silk girdle that is said to protect the person who wears it from death. Gawain did not give this to the Lord when they were exchanging his earning from the day, and eat up with guilt he feels he must leave the castle. Women were considered a possession until access to books increased the self-awareness of women. The roles of women in the society and cultural imagination of post- Conquest England are complex and contradictory. Women's powers seemed to decline, but an ambitious women could have great influence, especially when the seized upon moments of disruption. Although women couldn't go out and flaunt what they could do, women were worshiped and were often the main focus in literature, and were often the center of courtliness. Women are also thought to be the reason for fine manners, dressing and addressing a superior, because men would do all of this to gain a woman's attention. (Damrosch and Dettmar , 22) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight also shows a good representation of women and courtliness. The Lord used his Lady to kisses from Sir Gawain. Sir Gawain us courtliness because the Lady tried to tempt him to much more than just a kiss, but Sir Gawain rejected everything but a kiss, until the third day. Even though Sir Gawain was willing to reject many temptations, he couldn't resist the green silk girdle to protect his life. Courtliness is shown in many ways, and Sir Gawain knows he lied to the Lord by not giving him all his earnings, so he thought out of respect he would not stay under the same roof as the Lord, because he was lying to him. Romance, women, and courtliness all tie together in the end because women tie them all together. Women are usually looked at in a way of a trophy. The most powerful man usually won the woman in a romance, and the courtliest man usually attracted the woman. Work Cited Damrosch, David, and Kevin J. H Dettmar . The Longman Anthology Of British Literature . 1st ed . New York: Longman, 2010. Print.