Part one of term paper
utilizes the convention of the French-influenced romance. What sets this work apart from regular Arthurian or chivalric romances is the poet's departure from this convention. The clearest departure takes place at the resolution of the piece as the hero, Sir Gawain, is stricken with shame and remorse rather than modest knightly pride, even ...

Part two of term paper
... the author would choose to work within such guidelines and what the significance is of breaching those guidelines. By employing the chivalric convention in romantic literature and then going beyond it to reveal other ways of thinking, the writer challenges the very notion of chivalric conventions of the surrounding social climate. He demonstrates throughout the work a need for balance. As symbolied by the pentangle worn by Sir Gawain, representing the balanced points of chivalric virture, each ...