Analysis Of Sir Gawain's Character Essay

​In the beginning of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain is introduced as a courtly knight with a sense of perfection. The author does this to compare it to his failures, which are later displayed through Gawain’s acts at Morgan le Fay’s castle. Gawain is portrayed to be a chivalrous knight with honor and courage. Gawain is presented with a challenge: accept the game to cut off the Green Knight’s head, and in a test of courage and honor, set out to allow the Green Knight to return the favor to him in a year and a day. This initially shows the knightly characteristics of Gawain which presents him as noble and honorable, which allows the author to shock the audience when Gawain falls under pressure to actions that contradict the chivalrous code. The first of these actions taken by Gawain in opposition to his morals is the temptation

Essay with Outline  Loyalty, courage, honor, purity, and courtesy are all attributes of a knight that displays chivalry. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is truly a story of the test of these attributes. In order to have a true test of these attributes, there must first be a knight worthy of being tested, meaning that the knight must possess chivalric attributes to begin with. Sir Gawain is self admittedly not the best knight around. He says "I am the weakest, well I know, and of wit feeblest; / and the loss of my life [will] be least of any" (Sir Gawain, l. 354-355). To continue on testing a knight that does not seem worthy certainly will not result in much of a story, or in

Throughout the Arthurian legends, Sir Gawain seems to be the epitome of a noble knight. He is always putting his king before himself, repeatedly sacrificing his own life in some way for King Arthur. He is an honorable knight that lives up to his word. This is evident in both Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and "The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell." In these stories, Gawain lives up to the expectations of a knight belonging to the legendary Round Table.

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a classic example of the behaviors of a medieval knight and how the code of chivalry works within the courts and towards women. When Sir Gawain visits Bertiak’s castle, he respectfully treats the elderly woman and Bertiak’s beautiful young wife with the same level of dignity. “To the elder in homage he humbly bows; the lovelier he salutes with a light embrace. They welcome him warmly, and straightaway he asks to be received as their servant, if they so desire” (lines 973-976). The treatment of women is an essential part of the code of chivalry. If Sir Gawain had only given attention to the pretty young woman, then he would not have been abiding by the knight’s code of honor. He also keeps the code of chivalry intact when he says “Lover have I none, nor will have, yet awhile” (line 1790). Sir Gawain says this to Bertiak’s attractive wife, when she tries seducing him in the bedroom, which proved Sir Gawain’s loyalty to Bertiak, upholding his chivalric code. Honorable Sir Gawain demonstrates the knightly code of chivalry throughout the poem.

The story of Sir Gawain works on an opposite level from that of Beowulf. Just as Beowulf emphasizes outward strength, the character of Gawain stands as a paradigm of inner strength as a path to outward glory. The battles Gawain fights occur inside his mind. The chivalric code is one concerned with honor and duty within a society of corruption and sin. The role of chivalry was one concerned with example. A chivalric Knight, such as Gawain, must abide by the inner code of morality in order to remain true to his self, his lord, and his God. Sin, for Gawain, would begin in the mind, and lead to dishonorable deeds in the outside world. Throughout Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain travels on a path which is as much one of inner contemplation, as it is of actual travel. We see Gawain at the beginning of his journey being,"...faultless in his five senses,/Nor found ever to fail in his five fingers,"(640-1). Gawain’s traits being likened to the five wounds of Christ sets up his eventual fall from the very start. However, like Christ, Gawain is reborn to a new life through the "scratch" the Green Knight gives him (2312). From that small wound, Gawain realizes that he cannot live up to the perfect image of chivalry he has sworn to uphold. To Gawain, this wound comes very close to being the death knell of the entire moral system Gawain has dedicated his life to.

    Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a tale that takes place in the medieval period. During this time period, knights were considered very common and were expected to follow one main code of law, chivalry. This code mainly stated that a knight must be loyal to his king, honest, modest, and brave. Chivalry is practiced in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in the form of tests that are given to Gawain to reveal his true character, and what is valued most to him. Throughout these tests, Sir Gawain proves that he values his honor over his life and will not fall to temptations displayed to him.

Sir Gawain shows a lot of honor by staying true to his word and following through with his deal with the Green Knight. He mentally prepares himself for the year leading up to his journey to seek out the Green Knight, braves through the forest, is met with the temptations of the lady of the castle, and holds true to his deal with the

The tale of “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” focuses primarily on beliefs of honor, bravery, and chivalry. The main character, Sir Gawain, embodies these qualities. His character is meant to be a model of chivalry. He emanates honor when he offers to fight the Green Knight for King Arthur. Medieval people would admire this courageous act. In his struggles to keep his promise Gawain demonstrates chivalry and loyalty until his honor is assessed, in the end, by the Green Knight’s schemes. This tale also includes a larger-than-life character who commands respect, the Green Knight. This superhuman being defies all laws of nature when his head is chopped off, yet he still remains alive and alert. These characters and their extraordinary actions provide perspective for the values and interests of medieval people.

The castle grounds are an unusual contrast to the surrounding winter landscape, and this is the first of many unusual characteristics that the mysterious castle has. The castle grounds are described as: “fair and green, in a goodly park with a palisade of palings planted about for two miles and more, round many a fair tree” (Norton, 312). The description of a castle surrounded by lush fauna in the middle of winter is anything but normal. Sir Gawain rides to the great castle and is quickly greeted by a porter. He asks the porter to tell the lord he seeks harbor, and he is soon granted permission to enter the castle. Gawain is royally greeted by the castle’s inhabitants; however, the treatment he receives from the attendants and knights is most unusual because no one knows who Sir Gawain is (or at least they shouldn’t; however, they seem to know that Gawain is a great knight). The lord of the castle soon comes to greet Gawain. Gawain is then taken to a luxurious room where he is undressed, given new clothing, and eats a magnificent dinner while warming by a fire. The following day Gawain identifies himself to the lord and his court. The people laugh and are in high spirits. They seem as if they already know who Gawain is, and know the purpose of his visit. The castle’s inhabitants describe Gawain as “the father of fine manners” (Norton, 315), and he seems to be highly regarded by all of the people of this strange stronghold.

The first chivalric expression of Sir Gawain in Arthur’s court is his loyalty. It was Christmas at Camelot-King Arthur’s court, where all the Round Table knights had gathered. An uninvited guest appeared-entirely emerald green, called Green Knight. For a knight, the most important is to remain loyal to God, King, and Lady Guinevere. When Green Knight challenge the court, Arthur initially was going to accept his challenge, but Sir Gawain stepped forth and said:

In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, by an unknown author referred to as the “Pearl Poet,” we are introduced to Sir Gawain. Gawain is a knight of the Round Table and he is also the nephew of King Arthur. As a knight, Gawain is expected to possess and abide by many chivalrous facets. Throughout the poem he portrays many of the qualities a knight should possess, such as bravery, courtesy, and honor among others. Because of his ability to possess these virtues even when tempted to stray away from them, Sir Gawain is a true knight.

The story also mentions the idea of chivalry by displaying honesty. Honesty, once again, is one of the main factors in the knight’s code. In the article, The Tenets of Chivalry -- The Knights Codeen, lightens, “A Knight doesn't make promises lightly, but once he gives his word, he always keeps it,” (VR-TechSolutions). After a year has passed in Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, Gawain keeps the promise he made with the Green Knight. He stays honest to his word and promise in the deal and heads to the knight’s house. Before he does so, king Arthur has a celebration for Gawain winning the challenge. He then informs Gawain, “Now

On the contrary, this type of modesty would invoke feelings of pity.Regardless of what others were thinking at the time, Gawain is determined to bare the cross of his deed in order to gain high renown among his peers and the devotion of the king. King Arthur's demonstrates his appreciation through his words of praise and the feast celebrating Gawain's courage.This is because he is expected, as a knight, to excel at humility and modesty due to the importance of the Christian state of mind in this epic poem. Gawain is a humble knight with a brave heart and many human flaws. Along with humility, the many traits of a good Christian Knight, such as chastity, are shown through Gawain’s encounter with Lady Bertilak. When speaking to lady Bertilak, Gawain admires her in a respectful and sacred approach. “As myself ever can, however long I may live/ would be absolute folly, noble lady, on my word/ I will carry out your desires with all my power/ as I am in all duty bound, and always will be/ the servant of your wishes” (Fitt 3.1544-1548). He assures her that for as long as he shall live, he will remain her noble servant attending to her every wish. Interestingly, although he has promised her to do as she pleases; he rejects her desire of a sexual encounter. He shows humility towards her for he is “completely unworthy” (Fitt 3.1244) of her seduction. He wants to remain true to his word, but cannot come to terms of allowing himself to

Gawain, a knight of the famed King Arthur, is depicted as the most noble of knights in the poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Nonetheless, he is not without fault or punishment, and is certainly susceptible to conflict. Gawain, bound to chivalry, is torn between his knightly edicts, his courtly obligations, and his mortal thoughts of self-preservation. This conflict is most evident in his failure of the tests presented to him. With devious tests of temptation and courage, Morgan le Fay is able to create a mockery of Gawain’s courtly and knightly ideals. Through the knight Gawain, the poem is able to reveal that even knights are human too with less than romantic traits.

The character of the Green Knight, Sir Bertilak, wholly opposes the Christian, honorable characterization of Gawain. When Gawain comes to meet the Green Knight, he exclaims: “‘Can this be the Chapel Green?/Alack!’ ...Here might/The devil himself be seen/Saying matins at black midnight” (2185-2188). The Green Knight is a fairy, who resides in a parody of a church. His pagan figure contrasts sharply with this characterization of Gawain, who is strongly connected with his Christian faith. Gawain is also a foil to the Green Knight in that Gawain epitomizes courtly manners, whereas the Green Knight lacks courtesy. He traipses into Camelot and acts as though he cannot tell Arthur is king (224-231), and later refers to the courtiers as “beardless children” (280), showing a great lack of manners. Later, as Sir Bertilak is hosting Gawain, it seems that the Green Knight does actually possess courtesy. However, boarding Gawain is revealed to be a part of a grand scheme to shame prideful knights of the Round Table (2456-2459). The illegitimacy of his courtesy toward Gawain shows that the Green Knight lacks the honesty attributed to truly courteous knights. The Green Knight, a pagan figure that shuns the manners of the court, is inverted by the character of Gawain, who epitomizes honorable knighthood in this