Authors
True or false: SGGK was unnoticed for many years after its writing, but is now considered to be a masterpiece.
True
The Song of Roland is based on the Battle of Roncesvalles, which took place in _____ A.D.
778
SGGK is written in the "____________ revival" style.
alliterative
What important historical event was going on just as The Song of Roland was being written down?
the First Crusade
The Song of Roland is loosely based on the Battle of ____________________. (spell it)
Roncesvalles
True or false: We do not know the name of the author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
True
The Song of Roland was written in _____ __________.
Old French
SGGK features two poetic devices which we also saw in earlier, Old English poetry: __________________ (repetition of similar consonant sounds), and ________________ (a kind of break or pause in the middle of the line of poetry).
alliteration
caesuras
Which is NOT one of the themes of SGGK?
1. temptation and testing
2. nature and chivalry
3. feudalism
3. feudalism
Chanson de geste translates literally to _______________.
song of heroic deeds
We do not know the name of the author of The Song of Roland, but the name ____________ appears on the manuscript.
a. Terence
b. Tomaso
c. Tulords
d. Turoldus
d. Turoldus
How is the number 3 used repeatedly to give order and coherent design to the plot of SGGK? List at least three examples.
three tests
three temptations
three hunts
three swipes with the axe
Which is NOT one of the themes of The Song of Roland?
1. Feudalism
2. The danger of hasty decisions
3. Chivalry
4. Christianity vs. paganism and the Crusading spirit
2. the danger of hasty decisions
The special ending to the stanzas in SGGK is called the ________ and the __________.
bob; wheel
SGGK was written around the year _________ A.D. (Hint: it's a nice round number.)
1400
In reality, the Battle of Roncesvalles took place between the French army and the _________, who ambushed the French army in the Pyrenees.
Basques
What does the pentangle on Gawain's shield symbolize?
The unity of virtue, and also all the sets of 5 that are important to knights
What three types of folk stories does SGGK combine?
1: beheading game
2: exchange of winnings
3: seduction attempt
The Song of Roland is a medieval ________________ _________ poem. (two more important adjectives)
narrative, epic
The Song of Roland is set in late 700s, but was actually written down around ______ to _______ A.D.
1098-1100
SGGK is a chivalric romance. What is a chivalric romance?
A story about a knight who goes on a quest to test his prowess
The stanzas in SGGK is written in _______________ (metrical form).
Hint: it's one of the most famous and commonly used metrical forms in English poetry.
iambic pentameter
Which is NOT part of the subject matter of The Song of Roland? (more than one answer possible)
1. French history
2. Legend
3. Prophecies about the end times
4. The theological problems with Islam
5. Fate of nations
6. Feudal relationships
7. Battles
4. Prophecies about the end times
5. The theological problems with Islam
In the poetic meter of SGGK, the ______ is a very short line announcing the start of the ___________.
The ___________ is written in trimeter instead of pentameter and has the rhyming scheme ______________.
bob; wheel
wheel; ABABA