Stanzas 20-21 (ll. 444-491): Gawain and Arthur Wonder What Just Happened

Question 1

“dresses”

as in

“Toward the derrest on the dese he dresses the face,” (l. 445)

Answer 1

“directs”

Question 2

“loked ful brode”

as in

“And hit lyft up the iye-lyddes and loked ful brode” (l. 446)

Answer 2

“opened its eyes wide”

Question 3

“meled”

as in

“And meled thus much with his mouth as ye may now here:” (l. 447)

Answer 3

“spoke”

Question 4

“grayth”

as in

“Look, Gawan, thou be grayth to go as thou hettes,” (l. 448)

Answer 4

“willing”

Question 5

“hettes”

as in

“Look, Gawan, thou be grayth to go as thou hettes,” (l. 448)

Answer 5

“has promised”

Question 6

“And layte also lelly til thou me, lede, fynde
As thou has hyght in this halle, herande these knightes.” (ll. 449-50)

Answer 6

“and seek till you find me, sir, as faithfully as you have promised in this hall, [in the] hearing [of] these knights.”

(Key words: “layte” means “seek”; “lelly” means “faithfully”; “hyght” means “promised”; “herande” means “[in the] hearing [of]”. Word order is odd so be careful of this bit.)

Question 7

“chose”

as in

“To the Grene Chapel thou chose, I charge thee, to fette” (l. 451)

Answer 7

“go”

(Note: is imperative.)

Question 8

“fette”

as in

“To the Grene Chapel thou chose, I charge thee, to fette” (l. 451)

Answer 8

“receive”

(Lit. “fetch”)

Question 9

“disserved thou habbes
To be yederly yolden on New Yeres morne.” (ll. 452b-53)

Answer 9

” you deserve to be promptly repaid on New Year’s morning.”

Question 10

“Forthy me for to fynde if thou fraystes fayles thou never.” (l. 455)

Answer 10

“Therefore, if you try to find me, you’ll never fail.”

(Note: “fraystes” once again means “seek”; so here “if you seek to find me”, which is translated into more modern prose as above.)

Question 11

“Therefore com, or recreaunt be called thee behoves.” (l. 456)

Answer 11

“Therefore come, or it [will] be fitting that you are called a coward.”

(Note: “recreaunt” means “coward”. Word order is strange here.)

Question 12

“With a runische rout the raynes he turnes,” (l. 457)

Answer 12

“With a rough jerk [of] the reins he turns”

Question 13

“Haled out at the halle dor, his hed in his hande,
That the fire of the flynt flewe fro fole hoves.” (ll. 458-59)

Answer 13

“Went straight out the hall door, his head in his hand, [so swiftly] that sparks from the horse’s hooves flew from the hard stone.”

Question 14

“kyth he becom”

as in

“To what kyth he becom knewe non there,” (l. 460)

Answer 14

“land he goes to”

Question 15

“Never more then thay wyste from whethen he was sonnen.” (l. 461)

Answer 15

Any more than they knew where he had come from [before].”

Question 16

“breved”

as in

“Yet breved was hit ful bare” (l. 465)

Answer 16

“spoken of”

Question 17

“ful bare”

as in

“Yet breved was hit ful bare” (l. 465)

Answer 17

“manifestly”

Question 18

“Thagh Arthur the hende kyng at hert hade wonder,” (l. 467)

Answer 18

“Though Arthur, the courteous king, had amazement in his heart,”

Question 19

“He let no semblaunt be sene”

as in

“He let no semblaunt be sene, bot sayde ful highe” (l. 468)

Answer 19

“He let no sign of it be seen”

(C.f. to the description of the Green Knight earlier)

Question 20

“ful highe”

as in

“He let no semblaunt be sene, bot sayde ful highe” (l. 468)

Answer 20

“very loudly”

(Lit. “on very high”; a modern rendition would simply be “loudly”.)

Question 21

“Wel becomes such craft upon Cristmasse–” (l. 471)

Answer 21

“Such [an] event is suitable on Christmas—”

Question 22

“Laykyng of enterludes,”

as in

“Laykyng of enterludes, to laghe and to synge,” (l. 472)

Answer 22

“the playing of spectacles [such as this]”

Question 23

“selly”

as in

“For I have sene a selly, I may not forsake.” (l. 475)

Answer 23

“wonder”

Question 24

“forsake”

as in

“For I have sene a selly, I may not forsake.” (l. 475)

Answer 24

“deny”

Question 25

“gaynly”

as in

“He glent upon Sir Gawan and gaynly he sayde:” (l. 476)

Answer 25

“fittingly”

Question 26

“that has inogh hewen.’–”

as in

“‘Now, sir, heng up thyn axe, that has inogh hewen.’–” (l. 477)

Answer 26

“that has chopped enough.–”

Question 27

“And hit was done above the dese on doser to henge” (l. 478)

Answer 27

“And it was put on clothe to hang above the high table”

(“done”, meaning “put”, conjugates to “on doser”.)

Question 28

“for mervayl”

as in

“There all men for mervayl myght on hit loke” (l. 479)

Answer 28

“as a marvel”

Question 29

“And by true tytle theeof to telle the wonder.” (l. 480)

Answer 29

“and, by its true validation, tell [tales] of the wonder.”

Question 30

“bowed to a borde”

as in

“Then thay bowed to a borde, these burnes togeder–” (l. 481)

Answer 30

“came to a table”

(C.f. “bowed” to earlier in the poem.)

Question 31

“kene”

as in

“The kyng and the good knight–and kene men hem served” (l. 482)

Answer 31

“skilful”

Question 32

“Of all dayntyes double, as derrest myght falle.” (l. 483)

Answer 32

“double portions of all of the delicacies, as might properly befit [the occasion].”

Question 33

“With wele walt thay that day, til worthed an ende
In londe.” (ll. 485-86)

Answer 33

“they spent the day in happiness, until (there) came about an end in the land.”

(Key words: “wele” means “happiness”; “walt” means “spent”.)

Question 34

“Now thenk wel, Sir Gawayn,
For wothe that thou ne wonde
This aunter for to frayn
That thou has tan on honde.” (ll. 487-91)

Answer 34

“Now, think hard, Sir Gawain, [so] that you don’t draw back from danger and see this adventure, that you have taken in [your] hands, through.”

(Key words: “wothe” means “danger”; “wonde” means “draw back”; “aunter” means “adventure”; “frayn” means “see through”; “tan” is a contraction of “taken”.)