Sir Gawain's Growth

3 Pages 857 Words

Sir Gawain’s Growth

In the poem, “Sir Gawain and The Green Knight”, Sir Gawain was a knight from Arthur’s round table that accepted the challenge by the mysterious Green Knight for Arthur and Camelot’s honor. The Green Knight proposed a challenge because he felt that the knights have been growing arrogant and self absorbed of their accomplishments that they have forgotten to be humble. Gawain accepted the challenge, of beheading the Green Knight and meeting him in the Green chapel in a year, to earn Arthur’s trust and to keep the round table’s honor intact. Gawain’s acceptance of the quest were praised by the other knights, because it was a noble and courageous deed, but Gawain doubted himself more than anyone did as he explains, “I am the weakest, well I know, and of wit feeblest; and the loss of my life would be least of any” (165). The hero believed he was weak and was doubtful of his abilities, but throughout his quest for the Green chapel, the hero grew stronger than he ever thought.
The search for the Green chapel was not an easy task, Sir Gawain had to face the dangers of the unknown outside the walls of Camelot, but his inner strength helped him get through the obstacles along the way. Gawain traveled alone across the country, far away from what he has been accustomed to in Camelot, he slept outdoors in the cold nights, no food to eat and no feasts with his fellow knights. Sir Gawain did not only have to struggle to survive from hunger and sleep deprivation, but he also had to fight for his survival in the wilderness that surrounded him, as it states in lines 720-723 “Now with serpents he wars, now with savage wolves, now with wild men of the woods, that watched from the rocks, both with bulls and with bears, and with boars besides, And giants that came gibbering from the jagged steeps”. Although the dangers ahead of him were great, Gawain endured the long journey to keep his word of comple...