In the anonymous poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the character of Sir Gawain is portrayed as the flawed hero. Its flaws create interest and intrigue. Such qualities of imperfection cannot be found in the symbol of the pentacle, which he displays on his shield. This contrast between character and symbol is exhibited several times throughout the poem, allowing human qualities to emerge from Gawain's depiction of chivalry. The expectations presented by the pentacle prove too much for Gawain as he falls victim to black magic, turns away from God, is seduced by an adulterous woman, and ultimately breaks the code of chivalry by lying to the Green Knight. knot”, (630) is a five-pointed star enclosed in a circle, worn as an amulet to “ward off evil or bring good luck to the wearer” (Talisman, OED). The writer Eliphas Levi says that when the pentaangle faces upwards it represents spiritual dominion over the material. Presented the other way, the physical world dominates the spiritual world, often associated with dark magic (Pentagram, Wikipedia). This parallel foreshadows the deception played on Sir Gawain by the Green Knight. The Green Knight challenges Gawain to a "Christmas game" (283) in an attempt to humiliate him, tempting him with worldly pleasures and demonstrating that even the greatest of knights is not perfect. After finding the Green Chapel, Gawain suggests that "Here might / The devil himself be seen / ... at black midnight" (2186-8). The comparison between the Green Knight and the devil proves accurate because at the end of the play, the Green Knight confesses that "the count of thy kisses and thy conduct too, / And the wooing of my wife, was all my plan! " (2360-1). Describing Midnight as “black” (...... middle of paper ...... ain as a flawed hero makes him an interesting character and allows the reader to see his human qualities emerge in a moralistic story. tension between the two sides of a character trait is represented through contrast with the perfection of the pentaangle symbol: God and material possession, loyalty and seduction, and the knight and the human are all parallel to the two interconnected triangles depicted in the pentacle one without the other the interconnection of our senses, our bodies, our spirituality, our love, our emotions and our personality create a pentagram, linked by a circle: life perhaps poses too high an expectation on perfection and leaves no room for human flaws the flaws lead to Sir Gawain's downfall because he was unable to live up to the expectations of the symbol displayed on his shield.