By Nick Dlugos (Fall 2022)
The idea of a perfect hero, especially in medieval literature, often manifests itself in the ideas of knights like Sir Lancelot or many of the other knights of the roundtable. However, one knight of the roundtable, Sir Gawain, isn’t the same as his peers. When Sir Gawain and the Green Knight was written in the 14th century, the legends of King Arthur and his virtuous knights were known throughout England and were inspirations to people everywhere. Gawain’s tale, in particular, was written by an unknown author and has since become one of the most famous and enduring stories in Arthurian legend. Though the unknown nature of the author isn’t the only thing that sets the story apart from the rest of Arthurian legend. Gawain does something that his peers don’t: learn from his mistakes and act genuinely, which is clearly seen through his emotions and actions. Even from the get-go, he feels that his position at the roundtable is undeserved because he hasn’t done any great feat to earn a spot there. This leads him to what is essentially a death march of a quest to make good on his foolishness. Throughout the story, Gawain and the emotions he exhibits through his actions and interactions with others allow him to be a throughline for emotion and shows how he is a deeply relatable character.
Gawain’s entire journey happens because he feels underqualified. His position as Arthur’s nephew gives him his seat at the roundtable without needing to earn it, something that eats away at the young knight. When the titular Green Knight arrives in Camelot and challenges his uncle to a game of blows; a game where one person attacks another and then the blow is returned. Gawain decides that he must take Arthur’s place in the game to avoid his king being injured, or worse, killed. A feeling is awakened within the young man, who admits that even though he is “the weakest … and of wit feeblest” he wants to do something about this situation; he’s aware that “Only inasmuch as you are my uncle, am I praised” (Pressbooks, Part I, 16). The language he uses to describe himself shows that he is nothing but willing to do anything he can, even if it results in “the loss of my life” (Pressbooks, Part I, 16)–something he is prepared to risk if it means earning his seat. Gawain’s desire to be more than he is, is deeply reflective of the human drive to succeed, a trait that can and will always be found in people. The self-deprecating nature in the way that he talks about himself further shows that he isn’t a perfect hero. He is very aware of his limits. Gawain is also naive and cocky, leading him to cut off the Green Knight’s head–effectively ending the game. However, this isn’t the case. The knight picks up his severed head off the ground and tells Gawain that the game is still on, and in a year he’ll have to seek out the Green Chapel and have his own head cut off. He will now have to face the ultimate challenge, a journey to his own death; something that will prevent him from realizing the honor he has sought out in the first place.
When the time comes for Gawain to leave Camelot and find the Green Chapel, he tells his uncle in a moment of lucidity, “Why should I falter? Such destinies foul or fair, what can men do but suffer?” (Pressbooks, Part II, 24), he solemnly sees his fate for what it is; the end. Gawain’s journey to the ultimate is something they can find solace in. It shows that people need to take responsibility. He could run away and never fulfill his end of the deal, but his sense of morality keeps that idea in check. Gawain is a regular person who wants to earn his place in the world, and is willing to do what it takes, at least for now. Gawain is also described as being “found faultless in his five senses” (Pressbooks, Part II, 28), referring to the five virtues needed to be a good knight: Free-handedness, Friendship, Continence, Courtesy, and Piety. All of which are absolutely essential to Gawain as a person. There is no doubt Gawain is a good man–and this is proof–though, it doesn’t stop him from constantly showing his human imperfections. As Gawain’s story spreads throughout the land while he travels, they begin to realize that he’s only on this ill-fated quest because of his own “arrogant pride” (Pressbooks, Part II, 29). Across the land, it’s clear that Gawain is just a kid in over his head. Later, after Gawain has left the beaten path, he “cries for his misdeeds” (Pressbooks, Part II, 32) to himself. He knows he’s messed up and he cannot go back, no matter how much he wants to. At this point Gawain is at his lowest. Luckily, like in the real world, the only way to go from the bottom, is up.
While wandering, Gawain finds refuge in the nearby castle of Lord Bertilak, a kind and just man who offers his guest to play a game with him. Bertilak says that he will feed the roaming knight with the wild game he hunts each day as long as Gawain also gives everything he earns in the day to him. A gift for a gift. He also tells Gawain that the Green Chapel is very close by, and he’ll only need to travel a few miles, so he should rest for the last few days before he must make the final leg of the journey. Gawain’s stay in the castle becomes difficult when Bertilak’s beautiful wife tries to seduce him, saying “You are welcome to my body, your pleasure to take all” (Pressbooks, Part III, 49). Gawain, knowing that he can’t give this woman what she wants, turns her down. He dedicated to his virtues even though he could easily throw them to the side and be with this gorgeous woman. Instead, he opts to let her kiss him on the cheek, something that “befits a knight, and further, lest I displease you, so plead no more.” (Pressbooks, Part III, 52). He doesn’t want to disrespect her, but he will let her kiss him to make her happy. Gawain’s gift does in fact get returned unto Bertilak when he comes back from his hunt. This occurs three more times, one extra kiss each day for the next three days. Gawain could’ve easily done the worst possible thing, but he resisted and shows that there’s more to being virtuous than being like the other knight of the roundtable. For instance, Sir Lancelot may have saved Guinivere from abduction, but became her lover, cheating on Arthur with one of his knights. Bertilak doesn’t question the kisses, but on the last day, Gawain is given a gift and breaks his promise to return it upon his host.
The gift in question is Lady Bertilak’s green silk girdle, an item imbued with magic to protect its wearer from harm; something Gawain desperately needs to survive his encounter the next day. The two agree that “no one should know of it” (Pressbooks, Part III, 74) and when Bertilak comes back from his hunt, they leave it out of the exchange. Gawain simply kisses him on the cheek three times and doesn’t mention the belt. When the time comes for him to leave in the early morning, Gawain gets into his armor and rides to the Chapel with the directions of a helpful servant. Once Gawain enters into the Green Knight’s sight, he is commanded to take off his helmet and get ready to finish the game they started. Full of courage, and knowing he is at the end of his journey, Gawain abides his adversary and gets on his knees. Though, at the very moment of truth, “his shoulders shrank a little from the sharp edge” (Pressbooks, Part IV, 91), betraying his courage. For all his commendable traits, Gawain isn’t superhuman, and is afraid to die. The Green Knight harasses Gawain and reminds him of the deal he made when he took Arthur’s place. If the Green Knight didn’t flinch, then Gawain shouldn’t either. The notion of what is virtuous and required of a man is supposed to overshadow one’s instincts; and for Gawain isn’t able to do this.
Now, Gawain has learned from his mistake and lets the Green Knight “have my troth” (Pressbooks, Part IV, 92), which is essentially swearing on his very life and soul; something he is also literally giving by promising not to flinch. This time, Gawain doesn’t move and his executioner brings the ax down lightly on the back of his neck, after which he springs into action and gets ready to defend himself now that he still has his head. The Green Knight immediately shuts this down. He calms the young man by saying that he has absolutely no intention of killing him and also reveals that he is Lord Bertilak. He even tells Gawain he told his wife to try to seduce him. This means he also knows that while Gawain kept his promise the first two days, he failed the third and that is what he is being punished for. He’s not mad about the kissing, only that Gawain lied about the girdle. Though Bertilak makes note of an important fact, in general, Gawain is still better than his peers. Despite this, he feels terrible and says that he will keep all of his tokens “as a sign of my sin [and] I shall see it often … [to remember] the fault” (Pressbooks, Part IV, 98). He will not let himself be excused for his mistakes and here is where he learns how to be responsible for his actions.
This is why Gawain is so different from the other knights of the roundtable. He may have set himself on this quest to prove himself and did the most foolish thing possible, but was also the only one to take King Arthur’s spot. At every chance when he could’ve run away, he stuck to his word and pressed on. Even in the end, when he is let off the hook, his lucid emotionality is what keeps Gawain’s head level. This doesn’t make him perfect, but despite his mistakes he is still a relatable figure. An instance where the opposite of this happens is found in the story of Sir Lancelot, arguably the most famous Knight of the roundtable. Lancelot, however, for all his greatness and chivalry, also had flaws. Galahad the pure–Lancelot’s son–“displaced him as the greatest knight” (Editors/Sheetz, 2022) because of Lancelot’s flaws. These of which even went so far as to “fail in his quest for the holy grail” and “brought about the destruction” (Editors/Sheetz, 2022) of the roundtable. Everything about him is untouchable; even his failures are grand spectacles. Lancelot is simply too far removed from anything than can be achieved by a regular person. Even though the two men both did wrong in some way, Lancelot’s situation isn’t relatable. Nobody is both this amazing figure who is both the embodiment of an ideal but also destroys everything they stand for.
Gawain is a person that anyone can find something in common with; he’s a man of the people. He is always trying to make good on what he set out to do and when he cannot, he feels it. When he comes back to Camelot and tells his family and friends what happened, they “[laugh] loudly thereat” (Pressbooks, Part IV, 101), showing how the idea of Gawain feeling bad about his lie isn’t such a big deal. Gawain, for all his naivety, clearly takes simple things like these more seriously than his peers and it is ever-present in his actions and words. His clear emotionality is what sets him apart from his contemporaries and shows what it means to be lucid and genuine. He is not like his peers because he is more emotionally relatable and actively demonstrates it throughout the story.
This text matters today because it’s a demonstration of how a writer’s use of language can create relatability and connection to the audience within a character. It puts human imperfections on full display. By looking at how Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is constructed and how it develops, they can see how an ordinary person in extraordinary circumstances deals with their situation; which is vastly more interesting than someone who is equipped for it. Gawain himself is someone that the audience can see themselves in, as well as someone people should look up to because owning up to mistakes and staying true to oneself, are perhaps two of the most important virtues any person could have. Another component to his story is about being genuine about one’s emotions, something that can be so difficult, but in turn is extremely valuable. Even though a large part of Gawain’s story is about being honest to others, the lessons that he teaches about being oneself are in a way more important. This is why Gawain’s enduring legacy is so meaningful to anyone who cares about the human condition and how to accurately portray that in their work. Because anyone can find themselves in Gawain, it can also be said that anyone can find Gawain in themself. This means that despite the imperfection, there is also courage, honestly, and the drive to do the right thing.
Works Cited
Villarreal, Allegra. “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” An Open Companion to Early British Literature, Pressbooks, 22 Jan. 2019, https://pressbooks.pub/earlybritishlit/chapter/sir-gawain-part-i/.
Editors, and Kathleen Sheetz. “Lancelot.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 22 Nov. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lancelot.
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