Epic poems and literature provide a glimpse into the hopes and aspirations of a civilization; an author crystallizes society’s myriad quirks of idealism and valued traits from the abstract ether of imagination into a single, concrete entity—the hero. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is no less a window into the mind of 14th century England via the character of Gawain, who exemplifies Arthurian chivalry, courage, and honor. By no means is the position of the hero filled only with armed and armored knights who can hold their own both at court and on the battlefield, however—equally important is the heroism represented by Frodo in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. While a three-foot tall halfling and the jewel of Arthur’s court might at first seem to have little to nothing in common, both characters represent very similar loci of privileged traits.
A sense of ethics and morality is one of the areas in which Gawain and Frodo are most similar, though they receive uniquely different circumstances in which to display it. Gawain—very much a product of his time period—is at his most moral when he can display his honesty and resistance to temptation. Gawain’s keeping his bargain is in and of itself a virtuous act, as he divorces the act from anything more than keeping his word and sets forth to find the Green Chapel and uphold his end of the Green Knight’s bargain, telling Arthur, “The terms of this task too well you know / To count the cost over concerns me nothing / But I am bound forth betimes to bear a stroke” (546-548). Gawain also proves his moral mettle when the lady tries to seduce him, couched by the narrator specifically in terms of resistance to sin:
Then she tested his temper and tried many a time,
Whatever her true intent, to entice him to sin,
But so fair was his defense that no fault appeared,
Nor evil on either hand, but only bliss (1549-1552)
Frodo’s morality manifests in a much more metaphorical representation of temptation—that of the Ring, through which he could wield great personal power and even possibly overcome Sauron himself at the cost of allowing it to work evil through him. Though Frodo is presented time and time again with the ability to use the Ring for his own gain, he chooses not to do so. While the Ring is possibly a more elemental evil than Gawain’s charming companion, his subordination of his own gain to the greater good is one that is very much the same. An instructive point illustrated by both heroes is that neither of them is perfect—Frodo eventually puts on the Ring at the Cracks of Doom, and Gawain accepts the girdle from the lady. The ethical similarity shared by Gawain and Frodo is not so much that morality means an unfailing defense as that the act of resistance has inherent value.
While morality is a foundational trait of heroes and these two in particular, it remains nothing more than theory unless they also share the courage to put that morality into action—one’s theorizing about morality could stand as a shining beacon of goodness in the blackest cesspit of evil and not matter a whit unless that morality can be translated into deeds. Gawain’s most poignant example of that courage comes when a stranger tells him where to find the Green Chapel and refuses to flee despite the man’s offer of covering up Gawain’s cowardice, saying, “But though you never told the tale, if I turned back now / Forsook this place for fear, and fled, as you say / I were a caitiff coward; I could not be excused” (2129-2131). It is Gawain’s own honor, not the expectations of his courtly fellows or fear for his reputation, that forces Gawain onward despite the knowledge of his swift-coming and potentially grisly end. Frodo has a moment of foredoomed glory of his own at the Council of Elrond, where the Wise have gathered to decide the fate of the Ring. When the Council turns into a screaming match between the participants, Frodo takes matters into his own hands and says, “I will take the Ring to Mordor, though I do not know the way” (add cite here). Frodo’s magnificently self-sacrificing, altruistic gesture mirrors Gawain’s in that both know that they likely will not survive the scenarios into which they are throwing themselves—the hopelessness of both is what makes their courage all the more important.
Sir Gawain and Frodo have innumerable differences—Gawain is confident, powerful, and has already secured a reputation for himself, while Frodo is small, comparatively weak, and known only by a few. Despite those differences, both heroes possess a similar constellation of traits that is common to, and perhaps required for, northern European epic literature. Through courage, humility, and morality, both characters represent the best of what their respective civilizations have to offer.
