The Faithful Companion Sir Gawain
- Role: The Loyal Knight
- Gawain is often the archetype of the steadfast friend, a knight known for his bravery, loyalty, and sense of justice.
- Symbolism: Gawain represents the virtues of brotherhood and perseverance. His tale often explores themes of honor and redemption, such as in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
“Another dimension of the Grail Temple, known as the Castle of Wonders, offers a different kind of adventure, that of Gawain and the magic chessboard. Gawain, a sun hero whose strength grows greater towards midday and subsides towards evening, enters the feminine realm of the circular castle, where he finds a square chessboard set out with pieces that move of their own accord at the will of either opponent. Gawain proceeds to play a game against an unseen adversary—and loses. Angrily, he tries to throw the board and the pieces out of the window of the castle into the moat, and it is at this moment that a woman rises from the water to prevent him. She is identified by her raiment, which is either red or black, spangled with stars, as an aspect of the Goddess, and after first rebuking Gawain for his anger and thoughtlessness, she becomes his ally and tutor, reappearing later in a different guise as his guide on the Grail Quest” - Arthurian Magic, John Matthews, Virginia Chandler