As Custom Requires...

""Dry winds of autumn force the dust to fly / From the face of the earth high into the air; / Fierce winds of heaven wrestle with the sun...Then all ripens and rots that had sprung up at first, / And in so many yesterdays the year wears away, / And winter comes round again, as custom requires, / in truth"" (II. 523-531).

I feel like this passage encapsulates the poem's repetitive focus on nature, chronology, and images. Considering our previous readings, these lines not only hint at the inevitable prophecy of Gawain's duel, but also of the natural magic, or order, of the event by relating it so strongly to the change of the seasons. Despite the court's reaction to the green knight's beheading, the text itself is not overly concerned with magic and its existence. It's another 'required custom' for telling the story.

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2007/12/16/books/hirsch-600.jpg