Editing Gawain (section)

==Modern portrayals==
[[File:Maid Avoraine.png|thumb|Sir Gawain bends over the exhausted Maid Avoraine in concern after she has proved her love by running after his horse for two days. [[John Everett Millais]]'s and [[Joseph Swain (engraver)|Joseph Swain]]'s wood engraving illustration for [[Robert Williams Buchanan]]'s poem "Maid Avoraine"<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/buchanan-maid-avoraine|title=Maid Avoraine {{!}} Robbins Library Digital Projects|website=d.lib.rochester.edu|access-date=2019-06-29}}</ref> published in ''Once a Week'' magazine in 1862]]

Gawain features frequently in modern literature and media. Modern depictions of him are often heavily influenced by Malory, though characterizations are inconsistent. [[Alfred, Lord Tennyson|Alfred Tennyson]] adapted episodes from Malory to present Gawain as a worldly and faithless knight in his ''[[Idylls of the King]]'' (1859–1885).<ref>Taylor & Brewer, pp. 107–08.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/tennyson/idylls/iotk4.html |title= Faithless Gawain |author= George P. Landow |date= 30 November 2004 |work= victorianweb.com|access-date=19 November 2012}}</ref><ref>Whiting, pp. 193–94</ref> Similarly, [[T. H. White]]'s novel ''[[The Once and Future King]]'' (1958) follows Malory, but presents Gawain as more churlish than Malory's torn and tragic portrayal.<ref>Blanch & Wasserman, pp. 186–87.</ref> In contrast, [[Thomas Berger (novelist)|Thomas Berger]]'s ''[[Arthur Rex]]'' (1978) portrays Gawain as open-minded and introspective about his flaws, qualities that make him the Round Table's greatest knight.<ref>Dentzien, pp. 219–21.</ref> Though he usually plays a supporting role, some works feature Gawain as the main character. [[Vera Chapman]]'s ''The Green Knight'' (1975) and Anne Crompton's ''Gawain and Lady Green'' (1997) offer modern retellings of ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight''.<ref>Mediavilla, pp. 65–67.</ref> Gwalchmei is the protagonist in [[Gillian Bradshaw]]'s Celtic-tinged ''[[Hawk of May]]'' (1980) and its sequels.<ref>Mediavilla, pp. 64–65.</ref> Gawain is a major character in ''The Squire's Tales'' series by [[Gerald Morris]], in which he is portrayed as a skilled knight, immensely loyal to Arthur, and an intelligent, kind-hearted, and occasionally sarcastic. Morris included many legends involving Gawain in the second book, ''[[The Squire, His Knight, and His Lady]]'' (1999), drawing in particular from ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight''. An aged Gawain is one of the central characters in [[Kazuo Ishiguro]]'s novel ''[[The Buried Giant]]'' (2015).<ref>{{cite news|last=Kakutani|first=Michiko|date=23 February 2015|title=Review: In 'The Buried Giant,' Ishiguro Revisits Memory and Denial|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/24/books/review-in-the-buried-giant-ishiguro-revisits-memory-and-denial.html|access-date=6 May 2015}}</ref> In the manga ''[[Four Knights of the Apocalypse]]'' (2022), a sequel to ''[[The Seven Deadly Sins (manga)|Seven Deadly Sins]]'', Gawain is a member of the eponymous Knights, portrayed as female, a hugely muscular and prideful niece of Arthur. Since Gawain is female this time, her womanizer traits and rivalry with Tristan because of Isolde and knightly ambitions began to have a distinct queer shade. He is also depicted in multiple episodes of BBC's ''[[Merlin (2008 TV series)|Merlin]]'' (2008–2012), where he is a Knight of the Round Table under King Arthur. In this adaptation he is loyal to King Arthur and portrayed as a cocky, funny, and skilled knight.  

Film portrayals of Gawain, and the Arthurian legend in general, are often heavily indebted to Malory; White's ''The Once and Future King'' also exerts a heavy influence. Gawain appears as a supporting character in films such as ''[[Knights of the Round Table (film)|Knights of the Round Table]]'' (1953, played by [[Robert Urquhart (actor)|Robert Urquhart]]) and ''[[Excalibur (film)|Excalibur]]'' (1981, played by [[Liam Neeson]]), all of which draw on elements of Gawain's traditional characterizations.<ref>Blanch & Wasserman, p. 185.</ref> Other films give Gawain a larger role. In the 1954 adaptation of ''[[Prince Valiant (1954 film)|Prince Valiant]]'', he is a somewhat boorish, though noble and good-natured, foil for his squire and friend, [[Prince Valiant|Valiant]].<ref>Blanch & Wasserman, pp. 187–88.</ref> He plays his traditional part in the 1963 film ''[[Lancelot and Guinevere|Sword of Lancelot]]'' (played by [[George Baker (British actor)|George Baker]]), seeking revenge when Lancelot kills his unarmed brother Gareth, but ultimately coming to Lancelot's aid when he uncovers Mordred's responsibility.<ref>Williams, p. 386.</ref> ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' has been adapted to film several times, including 1973's ''[[Gawain and the Green Knight (1973 film)|Gawain and the Green Knight]]'' (played by [[Murray Head]]) and 1984's ''[[Sword of the Valiant]]'' (played by [[Miles O'Keeffe]]), both directed by Stephen Weeks; neither film was well reviewed and both deviate substantially from the source material.<ref>Blanch & Wasserman, pp. 190–91</ref> A 1991 television adaptation by [[Thames Television]], ''Gawain and the Green Knight'', was both more faithful and better received.<ref>Blanch & Wasserman, pp. 191–93.</ref> Gawain's more recent film and television portrayals include the roles of Robert Gwyn Davin in ''[[First Knight]]'' (1995), [[Anthony Hickox]] in ''[[Prince Valiant (1997 film)|Prince Valiant]]'' (1997), [[Sebastian Roché]] in ''[[Merlin (miniseries)|Merlin]]'' (1998), [[Noah Huntley]] in ''[[The Mists of Avalon (TV miniseries)|The Mists of Avalon]]'' (2001), [[Joel Edgerton]] in ''[[King Arthur (2004 film)|King Arthur]]'' (2004), [[Eoin Macken]] in ''[[Merlin (2008 TV series)|Merlin]]'' (2008), [[Clive Standen]] in ''[[Camelot (TV series)|Camelot]]'' (2011), [[Matt Stokoe]] in ''[[Cursed (2020 TV series)|Cursed]]'' (2020), and [[Takahiro Mizushima]] in  ''[[Fate/Extra Last Encore]]'' (2020). Another ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' film adaptation starred [[Dev Patel]] as Gawain in [[The Green Knight (film)|''The Green Knight'']] (2021).

The character has appeared in a number of stage productions and operas, mostly interpretations of ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight''. Particularly notable among them is the 1991 opera ''[[Gawain (opera)|Gawain]]'', with music by [[Harrison Birtwistle]] and a libretto by [[David Harsent]].<ref>Windeatt, pp. 373–83.</ref> Gawain furthermore appeared in a number of video games, including as the protagonist of ''[[Chronicles of the Sword]]'' (1997).