Queering Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: Exploring Masculinity and Homoeroticism in the Medieval Tale

Abstract

In this essay I explore notions of sexuality and gender as they are presented in the medieval poem "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight." I show the poets preoccupation with masculinity and heteronormativity as represented through Christian ideology. I perform a close reading of the poem to examine the ways in which the characters and situations have been queered. Ultimately, I show that in the attempt to create a distinction between heteronormativity and destructive queerness, the poet unintentionally queers the heterosexual relationships and therefore fails to prove a rigid binary exists between the sexes and fails to exhibit an inherent danger in queerness.