Beowulf and King Arthur The Great Ones Reveled Numerous stories about numerous heroes have been told and then retold. All of these heroes do different things and all of them have a different set of qualities which make them heroes. Due to the fact that there are only so many heroic adventures and qualities, most are shared in part with at least one other hero. Such is the case between the great hero, Beowulf, from the epic poem Beowulf and King Arthur from the story of Morte dArthur. These great heroes have strong similarities and a great deal of differences. Once their similarities have been compared and then dismissed it is evident that Beowulf is the greater hero of the two. True heroes do good things for good people. Such is the case in Beowulf, Beowulf leaves his homeland to help the Danish people rid themselves of the human eating monster, Grendel. This heroic quality is also evident in Morte d'Arthur, as Arthur consciously rides into a battle in order to rid his people of an evil knight who would not allow others to pass. Both heroes are displaying their concern for others by risking themselves in battle for the greater good. In the same aspect they are also striving for love and respect from the people they protect. In order to obtain maximum respect per battle, both Beowulf and Arthur enter into battle somewhat alone. Beowulf specifically asks, That [he], alone and with the help of [his] men, / May purge all evil from [the] hall (Beowulf, line 165-166). His request is granted by Hrothgar, King of the Danes, so he and his man enter into the battle themselves and when Grendel is defeated, the glory, love and respect belong solely to Beowulf and his men. Arthur does the same, he met with his man and his horse, and so mounted up and dressed his shield and took his spear, and bade his chamberlain tarry there till he came again (Morte dArthur paragraph 20). Although Arthur begins his journey alone he does meet up with Merlin, the court magician and faithful companion, who accompanies him. Much like Beowulf, Arthur gains great respect and praise from all men of worship by fighting alone, even though it is not necessarily the smartest thing to do. The characteristic of being fearless when faced with death is often a trait of heroes because it is associated with courage and strength. King Arthur and Beowulf are not afraid to die, thus showing their courage to their adversaries and peers. When Arthur is faced with death he declares, welcome be it when it cometh, but to yield me unto thee as [cowardly] I had liefer die than to be so shamed. (Morte dArthur, paragraph 34). Simply put he would rather die than admit to defeat and being cowardly. Beowulf feels much the same way about death. He illustrates this by showing no fear for his own life but instead expressing concern for the honor of King Higlac by asking that, if death does take [him], send the hammered / Mail of [his] armor to Higlac (Beowulf, line 186-187). In sending his King his armor it recommits himself to his country and lets his King be reminded of his bravery every time he looks upon it. That is the extent to which Beowulf and King Arthur are similar. Beowulf has way more confidence in his fighting ability then Arthur has in his. This is evident in the fact that Beowulf fights Grendel unarmed, he says my hands / Alone shall fight for me, struggle for life (Beowulf, line 172-173). His reasoning behind this is that Grendels, scorn of men / Is so great that he needs no weapons and fears none [so] / Nor will [he] (Beowulf, line 167-169). By facing Grendel unarmed to shows that he is brave and more importantly unafraid to be equal to Grendel. Since Grendel is going to fight without the use of weapons, Beowulf creates equality and therefore more respect upon himself by doing the same. Were as the much less confident Arthur fights only with weapons and once his wounds were amended his first thought was, I have no sword (Morte dArthur, paragraph 41) followed by the task of finding him a sword. This demonstrates Arthurs weakness in his dependence of weapons and thus Beowulfs greatness in comparison. Beowulf is indeed the greater hero as the help he received from his men was useless, not by fault of his men but by the simple fact that Grendel, had bewitched all mens weapons, laid spells / That blunted every mortal mans blade (Beowulf, line 322-323). Since Beowulfs men could give him no help due to Grendels spell, he had to defeat the monster by himself with his bear hands. Arthur on the other hand lost his battle. First Arthur lost a jousting match then lost on the ground when the knight smote King Arthurs sword in two pieces (Morte dArthur, paragraph 32). Merlin had to come to his rescue at this point and by using his magic he put the knight to sleep for a period of three hours. So to recap Beowulf defeated a monster with no aid from his companions and Arthur could not even defeat a knight, he instead he had to rely on the aid of magic from Merlin. Even thought both King Arthur and Beowulf are great heroes, Beowulf emerges as the greater of the two. He does this through his successful feats only, not through his heroic qualities. For when comparing the heroic qualities of Arthur and Beowulf they come up pretty even. Both demonstrate a great love for others as they both try to do good things for commendable people. Their differences in heroism might be due to the fact that Arthur is a young hero in comparison to Beowulf who is an experienced hero. Either way they, like most heroes, have similarities and differences, this makes them who they are, commendable and memorable fantasy characters.
In conclusion, although Beowulf possessed many heroic qualities he would not be considered a hero in today’s world. A hero varies from culture to culture. The Anglo-Saxon appreciated different things in a person that what do not we appreciate today. Many things have changed a lot with time, the requisites for being considered a hero have also changed. Today we do not like to solve problems with war. Pride and honor are not as important as the willingness one has to help others. Beowulf is not feeling that contact with people he doesn’t identify with them because he believes himself better, a part of a hero´s cycle is to be identified with the community. To be part
Blade Runner and New Brave World's Perspective's on Humanity Ridley Scott’s film “Blade Runner: Director’s Cut” and Aldous Huxley’s
9. Beowulf will only fight Grendel without weapons. Beowulf exclaims, “My lord Higlac might think less of me if I let my sword go where my feet were afraid to, if i hid behind some broad linden shield” (lines 29-33). He believes that “God must decide who will be given to death’s cold grip”(lines 34-35). Beowulf wants this battle to be fair so he can show his power and strength without having an advantage of weapons. He pronounces, “Grendel is no braver, no stronger than I am! I could kill him with my sword, I shall not”(lines 73-74). He anticipates that fate will
...in his willingness to lay down his life to fulfill the Green Knight’s request of King Arthur’s men. Beowulf is known among the people as a selfless hero in their times of need. Not only did Beowulf have immense physical strength, but he also had a burning desire for his people’s safety. It is for this selflessness and concern for others that Beowulf is the better hero.
While fighting the Dragon Beowulf shows feats of strength and courage that define him as a hero. The classical hero displays a special quality that separates him from the rest of
In every battle Beowulf fights, he fights honorably. When he fights Grendel, he uses no weapons because Grendel fights unarmed. He only uses weapons to fight the dragon and Grendel’s mother because he cannot win otherwise. He does not cheat. He does not use unfair advantages. Beowulf fights with honor. Throughout his life, Beowulf fought many heroic battle...
Another aspect of the movie “Bladerunner” is of those that broke away from the system. The “Nexus 6” were androids that developed emotions and escaped from slavery, because they wanted to live longer. Roy and Priss are good examples of androids showing that they have emotions. They were manipulative, passionate for what they wanted, and even had loving sides. Roy was the leader of the “Nexus 6” and Priss was his girlfriend
Like any other film based on a book Blade Runner takes several liberties with the original text Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Phillip K. Dick. Despite their differences however both book and film focus on the themes of humanity and morality. The main way this is done is by comparing and contrasting the different characters and how they portray a different argument about the theme. The main character of Richard Deckard as well as Rachel, Roy Batty, Pris Stratton, and Harry Bryant are found in the book and its adaptation. It is through each of these characters that we explore the ideas of humanity and morality.
This is not truly an issue for Beowulf, as he has the bravery and strength to defeat Grendel alone. This is different from Gilgamesh’s approach in the fact that Beowulf is completely alone; all he has to depend on is his Wyrd and his might, both of which could work against him. On the other hand, Beowulf is still quite similar to Gilgamesh in the aspect of his dedication. Beowulf is “grieved [...] sore / [t]hat the man beast himself [the Danes] may not see” (Gilgamesh lines 35-36). He is upset with himself because he was not able to display the fact he killed Grendel, and he remains dedicated to doing so. After fifty years, he defeats Grendel’s mother, permitting him “[to take] / [...] Grendel’s head” (Beowulf lines 586-587). This proves Beowulf’s devotion, and it is almost as extreme as that of Gilgamesh. Though it is ultimately for different reasons, the two characters are fueled by their ambitions and define nobleness. Gilgamesh and Beowulf are the true definitions of a hero, and this comes through in the similarities and differences in their
The greatest value of Beowulf is his bravery, some may say bravado. There is no doubt that he is a great warrior. Beowulf's heroism belongs to a different time than that of King Arthur or Sir Gawain. For that reason his bragging about his prowess might seem decidedly unheroic. When he tells Unferth "I count it true that I had more courage, More strength in swimming than any other man" (514-15 (41) it might be interpreted in a poor way. What he is saying though is true. In addition, in order for him to succeed he must orally deliver his resume. Nevertheless, bragging aside, Beowulf is undoubtedly a brave man. When Beowulf sets out to kill Grendel's mother he simply "donned his armor for battle, Heeded not the danger..." (1328-29 60). When his sword fails him he uses his physical strength: "On the might of his hand, as a man must do Who thinks to win in the welter of battle Enduring glory; he fears not death" (1420-23 62). Certainly he is in search of fame. Though this is true it must not discount his brave actions. He gains his fame truthfully by doing battle with menaces to society. He does not lie or manipulate to achieve fame, he uses what is rightfully his, his bravery. Beowulf's bravery differs from that of King Arthur's for several reasons. King Arthur by being king must be brave, to rule the state people must respect him. Beowulf's bravery carries the story. One because it details his ascension in fame and secondly it also outlines his downfall.
...be, as the Tyrell Corporation advertises, “more human than human.” Ridley Scott uses eye imagery to juxtapose the tremendous emotion of the replicants with the soullessness of the future’s humans. By doing so, Scott demonstrates that our emotions and yearning for life are the characteristics that fundamentally make us human, and that in his vision of our dystopian future, we will lose these distinctly human characteristics. We are ultimately losing the emotion and will to live that makes us human, consequently making us the mechanistic, soulless creatures of Scott’s dystopia. Blade Runner’s eye motif helps us understand the loss of humanness that our society is heading towards. In addition, the motif represents Ridley Scott’s call to action for us to hold onto our fundamental human characteristics in order to prevent the emergence of the film’s dystopian future.
The most supporting quote from the epic poem Beowulf, is on page 48, lines 264-269. Beowulf says, “My lord Higlac might think less of me if I let my sword go where my feet were too afraid to, if I hid behind some broad linden shield: my hands alone shall fight for me, struggle for life against the monster.” It is in this moment that Beowulf shows that he doesn’t want Higlac’s respect for him to drop or be any less. He would rather fight by hand than to let someone, especially the lord think any less of him or lose any respect. To Beowulf, it seems that respect from not only highly respected people, but the common people as well, means a lot to him. He earned the respect that he has and to do something to make him seem like a weaker or lesser person is not an option for him. Although Beowulf uses armor and weapons to fight other monsters, this does not lower anyone’s thoughts for him. This is due to the fact that both Grendel’s mother and the dragon are stronger, more difficult battles to face and the people don’t want to see him fail. Simply by being able to defeat these monsters and keep the Dane’s safe earns their respect for him. Although Beowulf may not have known it, he was extremely respected, even in death. So much that they buried him with the silvers, jewels and treasures that were taken once he killed the dragon. It’s quite clear that Beowulf was respected throughout
It examines the impact of the ever rising technology advances on human society. Replicants, who are genetically engineered human cyborgs who possess human like qualities obtaining greater intelligence and strength than humans. Blade runner defines what makes one human while providing a philosophical focus on the dilemma by a contemporary society which investigates a vital question confronting us on how we can maintain humanity in the face of overwhelming technologies that tend to dehumanise us. There were many symbols in the film representing various messages which may help viewers stay connected through the film.
mixing blacks and whites. The manager says that outside the ring a black man is
The lethargy in which people live is mainly due to the passivity of the crowded environment of the world. Society tend to conform by focusing their lives on material things and elements that make lose sensitivity to the issues that surround today's society. In the movie Blade Runner by Ridley Scott, it exists beneath the superficiality of the city a society totally alienated due to technology. The film represents an overcrowded society and individually isolated. This is one of the paradoxes of modern life. Meanwhile people are more depended on technology; at the same time, they are dehumanized; that is, people devalue the circumstances and chances that make them feel alive, free and true. These circumstances are represente...