Question

Which of the following events from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight conveys a sense of the supernatural? Cite a detail from the poem to support your answer choice.

a. The Green Knight challenges King Arthur’s Knights.
b. Sir Gawain arrives at the Green Castle and finds it hideous.
c. The Green Knight does not die from Sir Gawain’s blow.
d. The Green Knight only scratches Sir Gawain with his ax.

Answer 1

c, Explanation: The Green Knight is decapitated by Sir Gawain, but he picks up his head, which continues to speak. The poem says, “Yet all who saw it say ‘twas a wonder past compare.”

Answer 2

The correct answer is C.

When the Green Knight does not die from Sir Gawain's blow, the reader has a major clue that something supernatural is going on.

Gawain does not give him a little scratch -- he delivers a major blow and cuts off the Green Knight's head. The fact that the Green Knight continues to live, speak, and move after losing his head indicates a sense of the supernatural..