I can see why some people didn't get into The Green Knight but I love it.
I also love The Canterbury Tales and of course A Knight's Tale.
I donno if anyone else got this out of the film but I saw it as a portrayal of the other side of the Golden Rule that I feel that philosophies and society fail to acknowledge.
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"
Should you expect to be treated as you have done unto others?
The green scarf is defying that expectation.
I agree. I don't think any of us have an honest choice in the matter because there's a large level of coercion behind social expectations. I should have used a different word than "choose," but I actually think your insight makes my reading stronger.
Even if he did "choose" not to play, the movie doesn't present a positive outcome for doing this.
Also, I love Tolkien, but his writing is full of analogies lol.