¿Honi soit qui mal y pense.¿ Evil be to him who evil thinks.

The first time I saw these words, I did not know what to think. The translation, yes, told me what the words meant, but what did they stand for? Evil be to him who evil thinks. In relation to the work we just read, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, in my mind the words directly apply to Gawain and his foundation of right and wrong. From the beginning Gawain is the good knight, in fact he is the perfect knight. No wrong does do, nor is any true wrong done to him. For instance, when he does set to leave Arthur¿s court he has his shield which depicts the five point star or pentangle. The description the author gives of such things is what makes the reader wonder about how perfect Gawain truly is, ¿For always faithful in five ways, and five times in each case, Gawain was reputed as virtuous, like refined gold.¿ (37) Is it possible for one to be that perfect and pure? No, is the pragmatic answer, and the author soon shows us that we are correct in that assumption. The repetition of the number five causes a great deal of attention to be drawn to the shield, and eventually Gawain¿s five perfections become five failures. He is unable to sustain the basic foundation of himself, and instead reverses everyone¿s preconceived notions of him. But is it ¿evil¿ that he ¿thinks¿? Initially I would like to say no, that Gawain is a good person who accidentally makes a few wrong decisions. Evil however is defined as ¿morally objectionable behavior and tending to cause great harm.¿ There is no way to deny that Gawain¿s behavior at the castle is truly morally objectionable. Therefore proving that although, ¿first he was judged perfect in his five senses,¿ Gawain (as well as anyone) is not perfect. (37)

What do these words mean to me? Life currently is not easy. I have been pledging this semester, which is incredibly emotionally straining and draining. When nothing seems to be going right, I have to remind myself that it is all worth it, and good things will result from all my hard work. Lately, however, in light of this past weeks events, everything seems so insignificant and trivial. Why am I doing this to myself? This question I have struggled with recently, and have had a lot of trouble formulating a response. Evil be to him who evil thinks. To trust, and to question only when it serves a purpose. That is how I relate these words to myself. Having a little faith is something I have always found strength in, and questioning at this rate will not produce any tangible results. While the Green Knight¿s chapel may ¿look evil, with grass overgrown; Here fittingly might the man dressed in green perform his devotions, in devilish ways,¿ it is only evil after Gawain himself decides that it is. (125) The power of mind can overcome many obstacles, and while my Pentangle may come in the shape of a small triangular pin, I face the same road Gawain faced. Do you let evil get the best of you, no, or at least you try not to. Is it possible to never think this way? No, we are all flawed, as the book pointed out, but it is a lesson many of us still have to learn.