Sarah Lockett
English 401
Dr. Dzon
Beowulf
Beowulf was written around 700 A.D. by an Anglo-Saxon poet whose identity is unknown. It is part Christian and part Anglo-Saxon pagan because many Anglo-Saxons converted to Christianity in the late 500s A.D. The epic poem is separated into three parts, with each part centering around a monster that Beowulf has to fight. First Grendel, second Grendel's mother, and third the dragon. The Anglo Saxons had a rule of three, and that is represented in Beowulf.
Anglo-Saxon men have a heroic code and believe that only through great deeds of honor and bravery and strength will they be able to live forever because they will still be talked about even after death. They believe in fate, wyrd. They are patriarchal and patrilineal, and they place importance on who their father was. Beowulf, for example, goes to the Danes to help out Hrothgar because his father owed Hrothgar a debt. Men in their culture are the sons of their fathers. Male characters dominate Beowulf. On the other hand, there are only six female characters of importance in the epic poem, and they can be grouped as three sets of two, another rule of three. The first group, Wealhtheow and Hygd, are queens and hostesses, and they distribute mead cups in to their respective kings and warriors. They do not have any real political power, but they can attempt to further their interests through words, and their wishes may or may not be granted. The second group, Hildeburh and Freawaru, are peaceweavers, meaning that their job is to make peace by being a link between two peoples through marriage. Being married off furthers the interests of their people. The third group, Grendel's Mother and Thryth, are monstrous women, and they contrast ...
... middle of paper ...
...owulf returns to Geatland where his uncle, Hygelac, is king. Once his uncle and his uncle's son die, Beowulf becomes the king. After Beowulf has ruled for fifty years, a thief disturbs a dragon in its mound. Incensed, the dragon starts raining fire on the Geats. Wanting to protect his people, Beowulf and Wiglaf fight the dragon. All of the other warriors run away. Beowulf kills the dragon, his third monster, but not before the dragon bites Beowulf's neck and kills him with his venom. Beowulf transforms from a good fighter to a wise leader. The young Beowulf only wishes to make a name for himself. The old Beowulf parallels Hrothgar in that both wish to protect their people. However, the end questions Beowulf's actions as being a good warrior or a good king. He does protect his people from the dragon, but his death leaves them vulnerable to attacks from their enemies.
Beowulf is an epic poem that was written in the late tenth-century, at the kingdom of the West Saxons. The two main characters are Beowulf, a young man; and Grendel, a furious dragon. Beowulf's world is a very violent society with wars as a dominant part of daily life. Dragons and monsters are a constant threat to the Danes and the Geats. Warriors are a necessity to this war-like society. Beowulf is a hero as well as a great, and honorable, warrior.
Written before the tenth century A.D., Beowulf is the oldest surviving English work. It was believed to be composed orally between seven hundred A.D. and nine hundred A.D. and written down by monks in Old English by one thousand A.D. Beowulf tells the story of a Scandinavian warrior and his quest to help a neighboring kingdom. In the epic, the monster Grendel has been terrorizing Hrothgar’s kingdom each night. Beowulf hears about the trouble and gathers a group of men and sails to Denmark determined to defeat Grendel. After defeating Grendel, Beowulf also combats Grendel’s mother and succeeds. Upon his return to Geatland after defeating the monsters, Beowulf is rewarded greatly by his lord, Hygelac. He later ascends the throne after Hygelac and his son die.
Lots of works often presents insight into the time period in which it was written. Beowulf goes back many years ago when Christianity was just starting to become the more prominent religion instead of the old pagan ways. As Rich Lawson said, “Beowulf is a reflection of many Anglo-Saxon ideals and concepts.” This explains a lot of the contradictions between Paganism and Christianity throughout the epic poem. When you open the pages of Beowulf to begin to read, it states in the first page of the introduction that “The Poem called Beowulf was composed sometime between the middle of the seventh and the end of the tenth century of the first millennium…” it goes on to say “It’s narrative elements may belong to a previous age but as a work of art it li...
In the dark ages people were always looking for a deeper meaning in everything and rightly so, seeing as the authors of that time often wrote in allegories. Lacking technology and education, information was best spread through stories that could be easily recited. Different groups would use different influences, full of deep symbolism, to better illustrate their message. The monks flooded the pagan epic Beowulf with christian influence and reserved the last books as an allegory of Christ’s crucifixion. In this epic, the monks used uncanny and deliberate parallels with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ such as Beowulf’s twelve warriors abandoning him, his sacrificial death, being martyred for the will of God, and being a humble king whose followers offer them praise and glory.
The author of Beowulf is a mystery, as most poets of the Anglo-Saxon period are. He might have been a court poet, or
Beowulf, an epic poem, written by unknown and translated by Seamus Heaney, is an artifact of the Anglo-Saxon era because it is a piece of literature that was documented once. During the time it was written, writing was not common. The poem reveals a lot of the Anglo-Saxon practices and beliefs, but it also is compared to Christianity because was written down by a christian monk.
In conclusion, Beowulf is fighting his last battle between life and death. The young warrior Beowulf, a nobleman from the land of the Geats, travels to the kingdom of the Danes, where he saves the people of King Hrothgar by slaying the monster Grendel and his mother. In his later years, after becoming king in his homeland, Beowulf
Beowulf was written around 700 A.D. by an unknown author. While it is a part of English Literature, it does not take place in England. Instead, it tells the reader events that happened in Sweden and on the Danish island of Zealand. The pagan and Christian references suggest that the poem is most likely written about the time that the Anglo-Saxon society was converting from paganism to Christianity. Monasteries provided a place for learning and they also saved some of the manuscripts, such as the story Beowulf. Christianity does eventually replace pagan religion as far as Anglo-Saxons are concerned. Although the unknown author of Beowulf develops the main protagonist to represent both paganism and Christianity, the ideals conflict create a unique epic poem.
The story begins with Grendel taking the lives of countless innocent men. It seems to all that there is no one who can face this great monster who lives down in the swamp. The king, Hrothgar, becomes concerned for the health of his country and seeks out help from someone of great strength. In hearing this, Beowulf sees it as an opportunity to increase his popularity and fame. Upon arrival, he is anxious to come face to face with the great beast. In addition, he declares that he will fight Grendel without any weapons to prove who is truly the strongest. After his victory, Beowulf gets his fame and becomes king of another land for fifty years.
Somehow the story just takes a big fast forward jumping fifty years ahead to when Beowulf is now an elderly king of the Geats. Now a fierce dragon has settled in Beowulf’s kingdom and he declares that he will take it on.
Beowulf is a very brave hero, he has fought and killed many creatures before, but this battle was different. He knew this battle was of great importance to everyone, and that made him that much more nervous. This creature was fierce and had been tormenting their village for as long as they could remember, so her death would be a huge victory for Beowulf and it would be an even bigger relief for the villagers. All of the people in the village were cheering for Beowulf as he walked away headed off to the greatest battle of his life.
“It doesn’t take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle,” Norman Schwarzkopf. In the epic poem, Beowulf, an epic hero from Geats travels far out of his way to help the Danes with their fight against the nasty Grendel. However, in the story Beowulf encounters three monsters that he takes into his own hands and defeats them all. In doing so, Beowulf is rewarded greatly and becomes king and is looked up to by all. In his last battle, Beowulf defeats the dragon but dies soon afterwards, he is given an honorable burial. This poem was told throughout the era of the Vikings and was later written down as the first actually hard copy of the story. It was Burton
Beowulf begins with a history of the Danish kings. Hrothgar is the present king of the Danes. He builds a hall, called Heorot, to house his army. The Danish soldiers gather under its roof to celebrate and have fellowship with each other. Grendel, who lives at the bottom of a nearby swamp, is awakened and disgusted by the singing of Hrothgar's men. He comes to the hall late one night and kills thirty of the warriors in their sleep. For the next twelve years Grendel stalks the mead hall known as Heorot.
Beowulf is one of the greatest surviving epic poems. It was composed by Germanic people more than twelve hundred years ago. Although it is written in Old English, it deals with the Scandinavian forebears of the Anglo-Saxons, the Danes and the Geats. This epic poem concerns itself with Christianity, internal and external evils, and the warriors defeating monsters.
Beowulf is the single greatest story of Old English literature and one of the greatest epics of all time. Ironically, no one can lay claim to being the author of this amazing example of literature. The creator of this poem was said to be alive around 600 A.D. and the story was, since then, been passed down orally from generation to generation. When the first English monks heard the story, they took it upon themselves to write it down and add a bit of their own thoughts. Thus, a great epic and the beginning to English literature was born.