Something I found very effective in Mallory's text, is the way that he is able to immediately elevate Sir Gareth by his association and then knighting by Sir Lancelot. Even from his first arrival at the court, still with his linage unknown, has the favor and care of both Sir Lancelot and Sir Gawain. Malory's choice to explicitly state that Lancelot and Gawain even give him money so that he might be well dressed is an interesting choice. By providing for Gareth, Lancelot has in a fashion adopted him and taken him under wing even before Gareth asks Arthur to be knighted by Lancelot. Malory makes the most out of this association to elevate his fair unknown before his identity is even revealed, and who better could serve this purpose than Lancelot? Again, when Lancelot and Sir Gareth after Gareth strikes down Kay, their near matchedness elevates Sir Gareth's battle ability and nobility and the fact that his identity is sought after by Lancelot himself who pledges to knight him upon learning it, and who takes the time to establish explicitly that no other knight could question Gareth's worthiness maintains this status as well. Thinking back to the emphasis of Lancelot in the Vulgate cycle and the size of his chest, the emphasis of Gareth's hands would appear to be a similar symbolic fixture to his development, including the name given to him at the court. By being known by his hands, his ability to do work and control a great amount of power and strength is foreshadowed, and the hyperbolic strength and gruesome violence he wrecks on the multi-color coded knights is further evidence of this as a significant trait of Sir Gareth. In addition, I found amusement and fascination that in his requests, as well as his own marriage later, Sir Gareth is the only knight of the round table who knows what he wants and is actually satisfied when he gets it, which might be the wisest trait I've read in the entire canon.