Pagan Villainy: A Look into Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Anonymous College

The tale of Sir Gawain and his encounter with the Green Knight is a tale that weaves itself through deceit and trickery by characters who do not hold the same values that Sir Gawain does. His moral standing both as a knight and a Christian is tested several times by seemingly evil people. However, there could be a deeper root to this evil that is not directly addressed within the story. Although the role of the villain can be placed upon many characters within Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the true villain within the poem is Paganism.

Paganism, which is an umbrella term coined by Christians to define pre-Christian religions, makes its appearance in Sir Gawain’s tale in several forms (Stone, para 1). But before getting to that, it needs to be explained how these recurring Pagan acts and behaviors do play the villain and therefore ensue conflict for Sir Gawain. Firstly, Paganism doesn’t abide by Christian rules. First and foremost, Pagans are polytheistic, which directly contradicts the Christian belief that there is only one, supreme God. A second difference that plays a large role in this story is Pagans’ belief and use of magic to get things done. One could even argue that it is the belief in the individual that disagrees...