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theme of revenge in history
how war effects society
theme of revenge in history
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Demolished cities, torn families and decimated countries are a few of the destructive properties of war. Throughout history, the world has been through war after war, never ceasing. Two of the greatest and most destructive wars were World War I and World War II. These wars involved most of the world’s countries and ended with tragic results. The wars also left many soldiers with various mental and physical problems that ruined their social lives. John F. Kennedy once said that “Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.” For the most part, he is right; if war does not end, it will end humankind. The main problem with this is that most people barely even know how destructive war can be; people believe war is the only way to solve problems with other countries. The problem with that is that war often uncovers or starts new problems that can affect others more than the past problems. Literature has helped people grasp at the understanding of what happens during wars and the problems that it can create. Some go into deep aspects of significant wars while others go into wars that everyone fights within themselves. Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Beowulf and John Milton’s Paradise Lost are a few pieces of the thousands of works of literatures that capture the tragic, destructive power of war, global and small.
Sometimes, some of the most destructive wars are not fought on a global scale, but one that is fought between two people, one that is driven by revenge. Revenge is one of the many sources people find reason to fight one another and most of the time ends in tragedy. With Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, it is no different. In Frankenstein, a man named Victor Frankenstein becomes obsesse...
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...and defeated Grendel by himself, furthering his desire to become a major hero. After the death of Grendel, Beowulf and his crew left but soon returned when notice arrived saying that Grendel’s mother was now attacking. Beowulf returned to Denmark and there, vanquished Grendel’s mother adding more to his accomplishments. Beowulf fought for Denmark because he wanted to further increase his reputation and spread news of how great he was. During the story of Beowulf, we are informed that Beowulf thinks highly of himself, but takes no advantage of the people around him, “Thus Beowulf bore himself with valour; / he was formidable in battle yet behaved with honour / and took no advantage” (2177-2179). He believed if he helped, he would become a legend for Denmark. With this assumption, Beowulf is a good example of a man who fights by putting his own reasons before others.
“Now every road and highway…was littered with the corpses of human beings and animals…the wounded were left to die. Children ran frantically, shrieking for their mothers…there was no food, water, soap, or medical supplies. Like polluted waters became carriers of disease (Kasenkina 93).” This is a typical scene of war demonstrated in literary works. In literature war is a very common, yet important subject and it is generally demonstrated in plays, short stories, and novels. Some of the pieces of literature in where war is shown include: The Crucible by Arthur Miller, “The Minister’s Black Veil” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, and Leap to Freedom by Kasenkina. In these pieces of literature war is shown as a horrid event that always has both physically and psychologically bad outcomes. In many literary works including the ones mentioned above the good outcomes in war are misrepresented and suppressed by the bad outcomes in war.
The mighty warrior Beowulf volunteered to help fight off the monster, Grendel. Beowulf showed great bravery because even though Grendel over sized Beowulf, he still accepted the challenge. He also showed strength, Grendel’s head was so massive that four men each had to carry it, but Beowulf could handle the head all by himself. Lastly, Beowulf revealed loyalty by coming to Hrothgar’s assistance, to help with defeating Grendel. Even after Beowulf became King he went to his last battle to defeat the dragon without any help from his
Yet, Beowulf again puts his pride on a pedestal. As a king he has greater responsibilities and he should not jeopardize his life. The well being of his nation should come first. In addition, he should be a better leader to his people, who look for guidance and comfort in their king. The fight with the dragon proves that Beowulf is a fearless hero. His death is not his personal failure but it is a failure of a king. Tahmina Akhter shows what links Beowulf’s fight with Grendel to the fight with the dragon, “[a]s Beowulf silently observed his friend 's murder by Grendel in Heorot, only to prove himself the greatest hero, against the dragon his men also observe him to die, not providing any help to their dearest king”(Akhter). If Beowulf was a better leader and he respected the principles of comitatus, his companions would help him in every battle. He is himself guilty for his men turning back on him. It is his biggest mistake when he forbids his men to take part in the
The character Beowulf, “a man of great strength and bravery” (Magill 388), is a hero in the way he defends his neighboring country, Denmark. When the word that a hostile creature, known as Grendel, was killing tons in Denmark, Beowulf set sail to help defend the people and rid them of the hideous monster.
Since the fall of Adam, humanity has always been keenly aware of the existence of good and evil, right and wrong, justice and injustice. Any person who has been betrayed or abused has felt the weight of injustice. Anyone who has been mistreated has experienced the desire for vengeance. However, opinions begin to differ when defining the boundaries of justified revenge. Varying perceptions prevents humans from viewing and validating the motives of others. In Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, the two main characters were driven to madness by their desire for revenge against each other. In the book, Victor Frankenstein and his creature both relayed the same story; however their individual perspectives drastically shift the roles of the perpetrator and the victim. Mary Shelly’s brilliant juxtaposition between the Creature and his Creator demonstrated the relativity of justified revenge.
Beowulf, Ecgtheow's son, is strong in mind and body. He is born a true hero.. He backs up his extraordinary feats with a powerful sense of social responsibility and morality. He is also engaging and humane. These good qualities often blind readers to his other traits. He, in my opinion, is a selfish, power hungry, and attention grabbing fool. He never asks for help even when he needs it, he prefers recognition rather than doing the right thing, and he puts others at danger to prove himself worthy. As a young man, he is a bit wild and reckless, who swims for seven days in the open sea to satisfy a foolish wager. Beowulf later admits that it was his false pride that made him accept the bet. When Hrothgar asks Beowulf to fight Grendel, he does not hesitate. His only request is that if he is killed, his armor should be returned to Hygelac, for he is loyal to the King of Geatland. Once Grendel has been wounded and chased away, Beowulf agrees to fight Grendel's mother, who wants vengeance for her son's death. When he succeeds in killing her, he severs her head and the head of the dead Grendel to show as a symbol of his success and bravery. At a young age, Beowulf was strong. He was physically and mentally able to fight Grendel and Grendel's mother. He triumphed over them and won great fame. But this all went straight to his head. 50 years later, as an old and weak man, he puts himself at risk once again to fight the dragon. His mental and physical stamina are nowhere near his old self, but being stubborn, he fights the dragon anyway.
Beowulf fought for his people by taking the initiative to fight Grendel and save those who were being attacked. In Beowulf, the protagonist, Beowulf, bravely protects his people. The best example of this is when he fought the dragon. When it gets to this point of the story, Beowulf is an old man. Beowulf knows that luck or fate will not be enough to win this battle with the dragon, but he realizes that no one else has a chance of defeating this monster. Beowulf states, "No one but myself can fight this monster” (Breeden, 71). Facing death, he still does not hesitate to fight the dragon to save his own people, the Geats. With the dragon still alive, there was no doubt that it would continue to ruin their land and Beowulf feels that it is his duty to protect his people. An additional way Beowulf defends his people takes place in the last moments before his death. Despite the fact that he eliminates the dragon, he is actually mortally wounded. Although zero of his men, besides Wiglaf, assisted him in the fight, he still instructs Wiglaf that the dragon's hoard must be utilized to take care of his people. He titles Wiglaf as the following ruler simply because he is
“When I reflected on his crimes and malice, my hatred and revenge burst all bounds of moderation. I would have made a pilgrimage to the highest peak of the Andes, could I when there have precipitated him to their base.” (Shelley 104) Robert Walton captaining a ship when he gets stuck in the north pole and it stumbles upon a man named victor Frankenstein, then victor tells his story about his occurrence with the monster. The theme of revenge in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein relates to modern life in the areas of nature, knowledge, and ambition.
He is loyal to the king of the Danes as he once helped his father. He vowed to battle Grendel single handed due to his use of no weapons. He takes on a position that many of the king's subjects tried but neither succeeded in the task. He then takes on Grendel as he said with no weapons. His actions cause fear to Grendel. There are some negative comments about Beowulf's doing but he was a brave hero nevertheless.
The character of Beowulf stands as a hero to the ancient Danes because of his actions. He is constantly being cited as a "war-chief" and a "gold-giver" (61). Beowulf has achieved fame through what he has done with his own hands. His identity as a leader is based upon the Danish society’s emphasis on personal action, as opposed to the delegation of responsibility through conscious thought. It is this very sense which spurs Beowulf to fight the dragon: "In my youth I engaged in many wars. Old guardian of the people, I shall still seek battle, perform a deed of fame, if the evil-doer will come to me..." (59). Beowulf derives his power from a strong link to the past. Without his history of glorious deeds, he would see himself bereft of the very power which qualifies him to be a good King. Beowulf’s bravery never comes in to question, he does meet every challenge head-on, with deadly attention. The society which labels Beowulf as a legendary hero, recognizes his actions and his bravery as a integral part of his definition as a hero. Without the society to support th...
Fighting is a big part of the Anglo-Saxon life. Battles are fought over feuds but also for conquest. Within the battles are warriors who fight to show loyalty to their king and increase their fame. One warrior in particular, Beowulf, goes into many battles and puts himself in difficult situations because of his desire for fame. These brave choices he decides to take create circumstances that can lead a man to his end. When fighting Grendel, Beowulf insists
He was looking for a way to become known, so he arrived with his fellow Geats to help the Danes. Beowulf had access to many weapons, armor, and warriors, but he still decided to take on the deadly challenge alone and without protection. He doesn’t think of the consequences, or abilities of the opponent. “‘When it comes to fighting, I count myself as dangerous any day as Grendel.’” (47: 677-678). Beowulf is overconfident in his abilities, and doesn’t take into consideration how many people Grendel has killed. He goes in with his own men not expecting to see him again. “None of them expected he would ever see his homeland again.” (47: 691-692). This is why the inner threat of Beowulf was more barbaric. Grendel was indeed a worthy opponent, and very dangerous, but Beowulf’s careless actions could have
The romanticism of war is separate and opposite of romanticism for life. They cannot exist at the same time. War stands for death and destruction and life is the opposite. There is a constant clash between the love of decency: courage and devotion to your fellow men, and the love of life free of the horrors of war. War, and all things that propel war, is inherently evil. Beliefs in heroism, honor, and dignity are all idealistic. To the soldier on the field of battler their sole purpose is self-preservation. The only way that soldiers can persevere through the God awful shitty mess of war is through the brotherhood between the soldiers. This bond does not negate the hypocrisy of war; instead, it allows the men to survive it. The brotherhood is love for the sake of self-preservation. At its core, war dehumanizes people and one cannot have love for life if they are less than human.
Beowulf’s first accomplishment as an epic hero was his battle with Grendel. Grendel was a huge beast, a descendent of Cain, who ruthlessly murdered innocent Danes because he felt pity for himself. Upon hearing of the Dane’s problem, Beowulf set off to help the Danish without having been called upon. Even though Beowulf had men backing him, He drew battle with Grendel alone and without armor or weapons. Yet, Beowulf emerged victorious with the arm of Grendel as his trophy. Beowulf then went on to kill Grendel’s vengeful mother and a huge fire-breathing dragon who thought it had been done wrong by the Geats. Alas, the killing of the dragon would be Beowulf’s last great battle for the dragon took Beowulf’s life in the struggle for his own.
War has been around for centuries. From the time modern civilizations began, war has played an integral part in human history. It shaped the world into the modern world we live in. War has been said to be a great motivator, for example, the Great Wall of China was built to fend off the attackers from the north. However, the negative aspects of war far outweighs any positive effects it might have. The destruction of civilizations, cities and countries, mass killings of men, woman and children alike, the disastrous effect it has on economy and the after effects of war can last for centuries.