The Role of Wiglaf in Beowulf Seemingly minor character Wiglaf plays a central role in the conclusion of Beowulf. A young knight who has never before seen battle, Wiglaf steps forward to help his lord, hero, and cousin Beowulf in a time of peril. With his failure in battle and resulting death, the narrator shows that Beowulf is, after all, a prideful and mortal being; thus begins the transfer of heroic status from the old king to the young knight. The narrator argues that Wiglaf is worthy of
Beowulf: Wiglaf Wiglaf, along with Beowulf’s other warriors, watches Beowulf initiation his battle against the dragon. When the fight seems to be turning against Beowulf, however, all of the warriors except Wiglaf -flee. Wiglaf’s purpose in the poem, however , is more than simply someone to help Beowulf. Wiglaf is the model of a good warrior, and as a good warrior, Wiglaf demonstrates the importance of heroism to society and the necessity of loyalty to one’s kinsman and lord. He is willing
king Hrothgar is being helped by the young hero – Beowulf. In the second part, however, Beowulf himself is an old king and is being helped by Wiglaf. The question is, wether Wiglaf is simply a true Anglo-Saxon warrior, or, like Beowulf, he can be called a superhero. This essay will analyze this issue, by comparing the epithets used about Beowulf and Wiglaf, what they say and do. It can be clearly seen, that there are a lot of different epithets used about Beowulf. Mostly they describe Beowulf’s
great achievements cannot be matched by anything that they have done in their lives. Beowulf is a superior hero to Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf in the epic of Beowulf because he kills every monster that he fights, becomes a widely feared warrior and king, and dies in battle completing his final heroic act. Beowulf is superior to Hrothgar, Unferth, and Wiglaf because he kills every monster that he faces. When Herot was ravaged by Grendel and his mother, Hrothgar lacked both the strength and the
The poem tells about the accomplishments and deeds of a legendary Geatish hero who first rids the Danish kingdom of Hrothgar of two demonic monsters: Grendel and Grendel's mother. Later in the story, Beowulf meets a dragon, kills it with the help of Wiglaf, but dies of wounds. No one knows who wrote Beowulf. It was not really written in the way that literature is written now. It is an epic poem, meant to be spoken aloud, very few of them were ever written down, and very few of them survived into
Beowulf's actions, but by Wiglaf's. Although Wiglaf is by nationality Swedish, he identifies himself as Beowulf's kinsman when he says "I did begin to help my kinsman." (Chickering 64) Wiglaf, in coming to Beowulf's aid in the fight against the dragon, typifies several important heroic virtues. The most obvious of these is the importance of the relationship between lord and thane. In trying to persuade the other thanes to assist Beowulf, Wiglaf says, "Now the day has come that our liege lord
The Transformation of Beowulf In the length of the poem, Beowulf goes from abandoned child to gallant warrior to King. This transformation, expressed in the tone and content of the poem, shows the importance of the relationship between lord and thane and expresses the ultimate value of that connection. From the difference in battle scenes to Beowulf’s speeches, it is clear that he has gone from a somewhat self-loving hero to a selfless king. Within this change he also goes from serving a lord to
goes to the lake and takes on the challenge. He shows the great qualities of strength and power when, after fifty years, he takes on the dragon who has become a threat to the Geats. He always battles his enemies with pride. When Beowulf and wiglaf fight the dragon and everyone else becomes cowardly and runs off to the forest and hides. Through this it is shown that they possess courageous traits and are genuinely ready and willing to help. Often in an epic poem, the plot is complicated
further Christ's identification with the other glorious warriors Anglo-Saxon poems. When a hero meets his death, for example, he is usually surrounded by faithful retainers (as is Byrhtnoth) or at least one steadfast companion, such as Beowulf's Wiglaf. The gospel clearly states that Jesus died ignobly, in the most humiliating fashion possible, and that his disciples kept themselves from Golgotha in order not to be implicated alongside him. The crowd mocked Christ with fake veneration. The poet
in celebration of his reign. Grendel: A descendant of Cain and a man/monster, Grendel attacks Heorot after Beowulf's arrival. Beowulf eventually kills him, with his severed arm hung as a trophy in Heorot. Wulfgar: A loyal thans of Hrothgar, Wiglaf is a watchman for the Danes and the first to greet Beowulf and his men to the land of the Danes. He also deems the Geat visitors as people worthy enough to meet with Hrothgar. Ecgtheow: He is Beowulf's father. He is a Waegmunding by birth and a
tore out his surging heart.” After fifty years of kingship, when the fire dragon molested his people, Beowulf, the old man, did not lose his fierceness; he was “ready to die … life from body parted … I am brave in mind.” In the final battle brave Wiglaf showed his own fierceness and advanced to help his lord who was englulfed in flames: “With him I will embrace the fire … he doesn’t deserve to suffer alone.” The Anglo-Saxons were also fierce in the sense that they delighted in slaughter. George
runs throughout the poem. Beowulf and the dragon come together again. The dragon breathes fire again and, for the first time in the poem, “he who before had ruled a folk felt harsh pain.” (60) Meanwhile his men flee to the woods, except for one. Wiglaf, s... ... middle of paper ... ... writes; a draughtsman; a writer for another; especially, an offical or public writer; an amanuensis or secretary; a notary; a copyist. 2. (Jewish Hist.) A writer and doctor of the law; one skilled in the law and
In the epic poem Beowulf, the protagonist Beowulf is shown as a hero with extrodinary strength. This is not what makes him a hero. By definition, a hero is a man of exceptional quality. However this term does not do Beowulf justice. His self-imposed purpose in life is to help others, and eventually sacrifices his own life in doing so. Beowulf’s battle with the dragon serves as a critique of the notion that Beowulf is a hero. The Dragon section displays many of Beowulf’s heoric characteristics. Beowulf
Beowulf as a Pacifist Poem Social phenomena have always been narrated by artists. Art is a cathartic way to express one’s negative feelings; poems help poets and their readers or listeners to deal with people's frustrations. War, man's tendency to wage aggression upon each other, is the most criticized issue among intellectuals in the society. An artist's opinions, especially when conflicting with the established social norm of the dominant society, may be disguised and hidden beneath metaphors
The epic Beowulf shows us how a mans’ character is tested as he encounters difficult situations. The unknown author of Beowulf, leaves behind a mystique, an intriguing quality with which the character which hold our interest. The modern-day hero, Superman, also possesses these same qualities. Their modest actions are what helped these hero’s to become their peoples’ “ideal man.” The first quality that earns a person’s respect between Beowulf and Superman is wealth. Neither of these
Wiglaf vs. Unferth in Beowulf In the heroic poem Beowulf, not only does Wiglaf demonstrate the importance of heroism to society and the necessity of loyalty to one’s kinsman and lord, but he also sets the context of the final part of the poem. Unferth, on the other hand, presents a rude challenge to the hero, which is not without precedent in heroic poetry, and thus becomes in the eye of the audience a sort of villainous type. Let us consider the more noble of the two first. As Beowulf
the greatest accomplishment of their life. Similarly, in the poem, Beowulf and Wiglaf were also considered as the heroes of Danes because of their heroic acts after their fight against the dragon. Not just that fight with dragon reflects Beowulf and Wiglaf as the mirror image of each other, but also their shared genealogy and their loyalty to their own depicts some resemblance between them. Both Beowulf and Wiglaf has the same approached while fighting with the evil demons by showing their
warrior with the most courage happened to be Wiglaf. Beowulf protects Wiglaf. Wiglaf is the only warrior with the courage to give his own life in effort to save a king he loves and respects. Wiglaf is the hero in Beowulf. Wiglaf’s courageous character confirms that his attempt to defeat Grendel was not for his own good, but to honor his king. Wiglaf’s heroic behavior was in hope to save his lord, Beowulf from the dangerous fumes given off by Grendel. Wiglaf is the one and only warrior that began to
the hero. Society sees a savior as a hero in a story, Wiglaf could be considered a savior in Beowulf through the story by his physical and mental characteristics and his motivation. Yet, this changes in a modern interpretation
Wiglaf the Loyal Warrior Loyal, courageous, and strong are all characteristics of Wiglaf, warrior of the Geats. The Geats were the tribe of the great Beowulf, in the epic of Beowulf, which is set in the 8th century in modern day Denmark and Sweden. The author of the epic of Beowulf is still unknown, and it is an epic poem about the adventures of its main character, Beowulf. Wiglaf is a character that is not mentioned in the epic of Beowulf until near the end of the epic. So why did the author include