Examine the character of Sir Gawain as shown in the romance Sir Gawain Essay

Examine the character of Sir Gawain as shown in the romance Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Essay Example seem to contain elements that are anti-Arthurian, ultimately the story should be probably best be taken as a stepping stone toward parody; that is, the story of Gawain exists in relation between the traditional tales and the contemporary retellings as a method for humanizing the impossible ideal of chivalric knighthood while at the same time retaining the heroic qualities inherent in them. The stories of King Arthur and his knights have been around so long, and been burned so insistently into human consciousness that even today a movie called King Arthur can be advertised with the tagline â€Å"The Untold True Story That Inspired The Legend† (Internet Movie Database) and nobody bats an eye. While legend is generally thought to be based upon a long forgotten fact, the specifics of the legend rarely correspond to any actual fact. In a sense, Gawain may be representative of this split between the fact and the fiction. The story seems more infused with supernatural qualities than most stories of the Arthurian legend and are also clearly meant to be read with an eye toward Christian allegory, such as the beginning of the story taking place around Christmas, Gawain’s solitary trek into the wilderness to face evil, and other aspects (Andrade). If the story is meant to be taken as Christian allegory, then Gawain’s reduction toward simple humanity rather t han chivalric ideal makes perfect sense. The Christian religion does not allow for perfection among humanity; that right is reserved solely for God. Yet, we are all inspired to reach for perfection and that is what Gawain tries to do throughout the story. In his celibacy and in his sacrifice of himself for the honor of the court, Gawain is very much trying to attain a Christ-like position. That he fails by yielding to minor temptations makes him all the more human, yet also delivers him from the fate of parody. and the Destruction of Ideals† Koster compares the story of Gawain to the film Monty Python and