To start off with, my question is regarding a full-length, spacefaring rendition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I've got most of the details ironed out regarding changing Arthur's court into a collection of military starship captains and the Green Knight himself into the mysterious leader of a huge, green vessel.
The problem I'm having is regarding the promise bound by chivalric honor in the medieval story. Originally, the Green Knight offers his ornate axe to any knight who would use it to strike a blow against him, with the caveat that the accepting knight will volunteer to be struck back at a later time. I need to figure out a modern/futuristic reason that this sort of construct would hold true outside of an environment of rigid, knightly honor.
My "axe" in the story is a weapon of mass destruction. If my stand-in for Sir Gawain accepts the challenge and gets a hold of it, it will swing the tide of a stalemate war in favor of his faction. That's all well and good. The problem is, I can't figure out good motivations for my MC. He's not an actual knight, and the war he wages is much dirtier than the battles in Arthurian myths.
What should his motivation be to keep his promise to the Green Knight? And more importantly, what should the promise even be? The original knight struggled between chivalric duty and primal desire for self-preservation. But without such a rigid code of honor, I need a reason for my MC to offer up his neck. As it stands now, the Green Knight offers the deal simply, letting the MC scoff at the thought that he'd actually follow through with his end. But as the story unfolds, possible pressure for upholding the deal with it will be revealed, likely in the form of sacrificing himself to save the cause of the enemy faction.
So what do you think? Is the internal conflict of self preservation versus general desire to do good a strong enough motivation for the main character? I've just been tossing around too many thoughts as to what would drive the actions of a space navy captain and how he may be similar to King Arthur's nephew. :S Apologies if this is long and convoluted, also.
The problem I'm having is regarding the promise bound by chivalric honor in the medieval story. Originally, the Green Knight offers his ornate axe to any knight who would use it to strike a blow against him, with the caveat that the accepting knight will volunteer to be struck back at a later time. I need to figure out a modern/futuristic reason that this sort of construct would hold true outside of an environment of rigid, knightly honor.
My "axe" in the story is a weapon of mass destruction. If my stand-in for Sir Gawain accepts the challenge and gets a hold of it, it will swing the tide of a stalemate war in favor of his faction. That's all well and good. The problem is, I can't figure out good motivations for my MC. He's not an actual knight, and the war he wages is much dirtier than the battles in Arthurian myths.
What should his motivation be to keep his promise to the Green Knight? And more importantly, what should the promise even be? The original knight struggled between chivalric duty and primal desire for self-preservation. But without such a rigid code of honor, I need a reason for my MC to offer up his neck. As it stands now, the Green Knight offers the deal simply, letting the MC scoff at the thought that he'd actually follow through with his end. But as the story unfolds, possible pressure for upholding the deal with it will be revealed, likely in the form of sacrificing himself to save the cause of the enemy faction.
So what do you think? Is the internal conflict of self preservation versus general desire to do good a strong enough motivation for the main character? I've just been tossing around too many thoughts as to what would drive the actions of a space navy captain and how he may be similar to King Arthur's nephew. :S Apologies if this is long and convoluted, also.