A villainous knight disturbs the court of King Arthur and proclaims that he is holding knights and ladies hostage. He challenges Arthur to send his Queen under the escort of one of his knights in order to free them. Kay tricks Arthur into letting him take Guinevere into the forest alone to meet the challenge.

Gawain rushes to follow them and meets up with Lancelot who rides two horses to death to pursue Guinevere. The two men begin a perilous quest to free the Queen. Gawain is driven by chivalry, while Lancelot is driven by a consuming love for his lady. Against all reason and the code of conduct for a knight, Lancelot rides in a cart, which is reserved for lowly criminals. He will suffer any penalty, or shame, to save the Queen.

Comments:

Begins with a discussion of courtly love and chivalry and how they impact the story. Also contrasts the two heroic knights Gawain, who is rational, and Lancelot, who is emotional. Both are renowned in battle and beloved of King Arthur, yet Lancelot is love sick for Queen Guinevere. Gawain is not willing to debase himself in order to save the Queen, whereas Lancelot will do anything.

Also, the author Chrétien de Troyes makes a point to say that the Countess Marie, his patroness, provided the material and manner of telling the story. Is he just flattering her? Is he trying to avoid responsibility for this story? We have no answer, but it does color the way in which we interpret the text.