Choose one of the two topics detailed below for your essay:
a medieval romance is a kind of writing that has a mysterious, supernatural setting, idealizes chivalry and courtly love, and may involve masking a character's real identity. usually the hero of a medieval romance is a knight who takes an unusual challenge and whose triumph brings glory to the king and the nation. reread the selection from sir gawain and the green knight (or you may choose to read more of it from an online source), and write an analytical essay that examines how the poem fits into the genre of medieval romances.
in the canterbury tales, pilgrims relate the stories on their way to the shrine of thomas becket in canterbury. however, the stories often have an irreverent tone. examine to what extent “the pardoner’s tale” or “the nun's priest’s tale” (or another section of another story if you want to read more online) seems to mock aspects of religion in general or christian beliefs and church practices of the time in particular.