Maintaining the VirtuesIn everyday life, people are faced with a wide range of decisions. Some of these decisions are transitional, like what clothes to wear. Other decisions we make can have lasting impacts not only on the person making the decision, but also on other people around them. An example would be drunk driving. The moral code often dictates what you should do in certain situations, but it is up to each individual to abide by that moral code and choose to make virtuous decisions. As I take on the challenge of living a virtuous life, I am taken back to the days of Sir Arthur and the Round Table. Specifically, I'm intrigued by Sir Gawain. In the story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, I admire how Sir Gawain attempts to be virtuous, but I also empathize when he fails to maintain these virtues. Although Sir Gawain fails to maintain his virtues throughout the story, his continued attempts to return to virtuous decisions make him a virtuous person. Sir Gawain is introduced to us at the beginning of the story when he takes Sir Arthur's place, in the Green. The knight's challenge. The Green Knight has openly challenged all the Knights of the Round Table to strike a single blow, and in return, the knight must allow the Green Knight to return the blow in exactly one year. Initially, none of the knights accept the challenge, forcing their leader, Sir Arthur, to accept. Sir Gawain performs the virtuous act of taking up the challenge in Sir Arthur's place to protect his lord from participating in an unusual challenge that could kill a man. In the story, Sir Gawain explains the reason he took his lord's place: "I consider that there is no more honest aim, no fairer figure on the field where the fighting takes place . I am the weakest. I am awake ... middle of paper ...... uses positive results and can prevent that person from making a bad decision. For me, the most notable measure of this story is Sir Gawain's continued return to virtuous decisions, even though not every decision he made was virtuous. It helped me realize that I could return to virtue after any of my failures. Additionally, I learned that by sharing the story of my failures, I can prevent others from choosing the wrong path and also help them stay virtuous. Works Cited Kadir, Djelal, Ursula K. Heise, David Damrosch, Sabry Hafez, and Pauline Yu. The Longman Anthology of World Literature. Second ed. Flight. AB. New York: Pearson, Longman, 2009. “Ramelle” print. We must save Private Ryan:. Online encyclopedia Saving Private Ryan, April 21, 2009. Web. April 6, 2014.Steven Spielberg. Real. We must save Private Ryan. Prod. Steven Spielberg. DreamWorks Pictures, 1998. DVD.