The Theme of Beowulf
Interpretations of Beowulf vary. In this essay I hope to state clearly some of the popularly mentioned themes running through the poem.
“Many critics feel that the speech of Hrothgar between lines 1700 and 1784 encapsulates the moral of the poem….’He does not know the worse – till inside him great arrogance grows and spreads’” (Shippey 38). Hrothgar’s ominous words do come back to haunt the hero more than once. Beowulf is a braggart; he is proud, and nothing seems able to change his basic proud outlook derived from his all-powerful physical strength. Even shortly before his own defeat against the fire-dragon, our hero is recalling his killing of the great hero of the Hugas with his bare hands:
ever since the time, in front of the hosts,
I slew Daeghrefn, the champion of the Hugas,
with my bare hands. He never brought back
his breast-ornament to the Frisian king:
the standard-bearer fell in combat
a prince, in valor; no edge killed him
my hand-grip crushed his beating heart,
his life’s bone-house (2501-09).
Yes, Beowulf was full of pride and self-confidence; this made him impetuous in his actions. Regarding the dragon, “its strength and fire seemed nothing at all to the strong old king”(2348-49); before facing the dragon, he was reminiscing about his valour in combat against the Hetware and how he alone had escaped:
Lines 2354-68: Nor was it the least
hand-to-hand comba...
... middle of paper ...
...some of the viewpoints on this topic.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Chickering, Howell D.. Beowulf A dual-Language Edition. New York: Anchor Books, 1977.
Kaske, R.E.. “The Governing Theme of Beowulf.” In Beowulf: The Donaldson Translation, edited by Joseph F. Tuso. New York, W.W.Norton and Co.: 1975
Leyerle, John. “The Conflicting Demands of Heroic Strength and Kingly Wisdom.” In Readings on Beowulf, edited by Stephen P. Thompson. San Diego: Greenhaven Press,1998.
Shippey, T.A.. “The World of the Poem.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Tolkien, J.R.R.. “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Bloom, Harold. “Introduction.” In Modern Critical Interpretations: Beowulf, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Damrosch, David, and David L. Pike. “Beowulf.” The Longman Anthology of World Literature, Compact Edition. New York: Pearson, Longman, 2008. 929-970. Print.
Schucking, Levin L. "The Ideal of Kingship in Beowulf." In An Anthology of Beowulf Criticism, edited by Lewis E. Nicholson. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1963.
Shippey, T.A.. “The World of the Poem.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987..
Shippey, T.A.. “The World of the Poem.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987..
Beowulf. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume A. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2006. 34-100.
Tolkien, J.R.R.. “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.” In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809. His parents, who were actors, died when Poe was a small child. Poe was then adopted and raised by John Allan, a tobacco exporter, and Frances Allan in Richmond, Virginia (Magill, 1640). Poe was sent to the best schools because of Allan’s job. When Poe was six years old he was sent to private school. Poe kept studying and went to the University of Virginia for one year. After one year in the University Poe quit school because Allan refused to pay his debts, and he did not have money to pay for Poe’s education. Later, Poe left Boston in 1827 where he enlisted in the army. Poe served two years in the military after he quit school. After two years in the military Poe was dismissed for neglect of duty. His foster father then disowned him permanently. He stayed very little time there because Allan, once again, refused to send Poe any money. (Hoffman, Daniel)
In 1811, Elizabeth Poe passed away. Edgar Allan Poe was only 2 when this tragedy occurred. His father abandoned his siblings and him not too long after. After being abandoned by his father, he was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. John Allan. His sister, was adopted by another family. Starting from a young age, Edgar Allan Poe was parentless and had no family connections. Growing up with Mr. and Mrs. John Allan, Poe lived a luxurious life. He went to nice private schools and lived in a nice home. However, when Poe attended college, he was not given enough enough money to survive. This angered him, and he began to drink, gamble, and fall in debt. Not too long after, Poe dropped out of school. It is known that Poe sent many letters to John asking for help but did not receive any. Poe was not mentioned in John’s will when he passed away in 1834. When his foster father died in 1834, the death had major negative effects on Poe’s
Emily Dickinson was born December 10th, 1830 in her family home on main street in Amherst, Massachusetts to her two parents Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. The homestead in which she was born was a family home owned by her grandparents who, soon after her sister’s birth in 1833, sold it out of the family. The Dickinson’s held residence in the home as tenants for the next seven years. Once her father’s political career took off, around the age she was nine, they moved to, and bought a new house in the same town. Dickinson was very close to her siblings, her older brother Austin and younger sister Lavinia. She had a strong attachment to her home and spent a lot of her time doing domestic duties such as baking and gardening. Dickinson also had good schooling experiences of a girl in the early nineteenth century. She started out her education in an Amherst district school, then from there she attended Amherst Academy with her sister for about seven years. At this school it is said that she was an extraordinary student with very unique writing talent. From there she attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary for a year in 1847. this year was the longest she had spent away from home. In her youth, Dickinson displayed a social s...
We have learned our own individual personality can drive our sense of direction. The choices James made during his childhood where not his fought, he did not have the parental guidance during his developmental stage. Amazingly, he conquered all to obstacles to become successful.
Poe had an unstable family life. The insecure place he held at home interfered with his emotional stability. He was born as the son of actors. “The two were not notably talented; they played minor roles in third-rate theatrical companies.” (Buranalli 7) Between them they barely managed to make a living. Poe was the second of their three children. About the time the third child was born, the father died, or disappeared, and Mrs. Poe went to Richmond, Virginia with the two youngest children. The oldest child, William Henry, had been left in the care of his grandparents in Baltimore shortly after his birth. Mrs. Poe was overtaken by a fatal illness (tuberculosis). Devastated by the disease and worn out with the struggle to support her children, she died. Edgar, two years old, and the infant, Rosaline, were orphaned.
Emily Dickinson lived the rich life life in American society. Dickinson was born on December 10,1830. She was born to Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. She was the middle child with an older brother and a younger sister. She was born and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts. “Dickinson came from a family that encouraged learning,”(Dickinson) She had very few friends because she came across being proper, shy, and meek. Although Dickinson was not very social, she still had a different way of thinking which made her the writer that she was.
Frank, Roberta. 1982. “The Beowulf Poet’s Sense of History.” in Beowulf: Critical Interpretation. Harold Bloom, ed. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers.
Edgar Allen Poe was born in Boston Massachusetts in the early nineteenth century. It is well known that Poe endured a difficult life, and tragedy began at an early age. At three years old, he witnessed his mother’s death (Bloom). Then, he was taken into custody of the Allen family who remained his benefactors until he attended the University of Virginia. However, Poe did not remain at the university past 1826 because his foster father would not pay off a debt that Poe had, and he also would not pay tuition (bloom). From the University, Poe traveled back to Massachusetts where he joined the army. It was in the army in 1827 that Poe published his first work, called Tamerlane and Other Poems under anonymous (Merriman). Not long after his first publication, tragedy struck again. His foster mother died in 1829, the same year his second book was published. It was only two years later that Poe met his future wife while living with his aunt and his brother. Henry, his brother, died of tuberculosis just like their mother did soon after Poe moved in (Merriman). The next few years, Poe published several works and became an editor at th...