Wyrd
“Fate often saves an undoomed man when his courage is good.”-- Beowulf
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the Anglo-Saxon word “wyrd” means “the principal, power, or agency by which events are predetermined; fate, destiny.” The Anglo-Saxon understanding of fate is not all too different from our modern understanding and applies to both Christian and pagan beliefs. Fate is a force that controls a man’s life regardless of his actions. Fate is usually seen as three women, sometimes blind, who weave the thread of a man’s life and cut it when it is his time to die.
In Anglo-Saxon literature, fate, its power and the doom it can bring are often referred to. In “The Wanderer,” an elegy that laments the narrator’s dead lord, the narrator states that “All earth’s kingdom is wr...
Throughout this novel the relationship between Huck and Jim differs in and out of society because of Huck's feelings towards Jim. These two adventurers had planned to leave the Mississippi and go North, but missed their chance. The river took them farther and farther South. If Jim was caught, he would be in big trouble. If Huck didn't turn Jim in, he would also be in big trouble. Huck found himself battling with his conscience, when he realized how close Jim was to his freedom, "...I begun to get it through my head that he was most free-and who was to blame for it? Why, me. I couldn't get that out of my conscience, no how nor no way." (pg.85) Turning Jim in would be difficult, since he was a benevolent and amiable man. It was not righteous that he should be hurt, but if Huck helped Jim run away, he would have to turn his back on his own people. He would be saying slavery, and everyone who believed in it, was wrong. Huck came to the decision to tell someone about Jim that will force him back into slavery. Soon enough they encountered two white men on a skiff. During this incident Huck perceived that his feelings to protect Jim were stronger than his feelings to turn him in. He lied when the men asked if Jim was white or black.
At the beginning of Huck’s moral journey, Huck is no more than a young boy just starting to develop his understanding of what is right and what is wrong. Huck has grown up under the conflicting influences of his abusive, drunk father, Pap, and his guardian, Widow Douglas. The Widow tries her best to educate and civilize Huck, whereas Huck’s father tries to drag Huck down and feels that a son shouldn’t be better than a father. Up to this point in Huck’s life, Huck has never had to think about what is right or wrong; he was always told by the Widow or Pap. Huck’s moral journey begins when Huck breaks free from the influences of the Widow and Pap, and is finally able to begin to decide for himself what is right and wrong as well as to develop his own moral conscience.
The battle between fate and free will produces a lopsided victory by fate in Beowulf. A continuous reference is directed to fate by context as well as in elements of theme, plot, and character. The most prominent relation to fate is seen with Beowulf. From his early adventures as a warrior to his later rule as king, fate strongly influences Beowulf's beliefs and courage. He attributes the successful outcomes of his many fights and struggles to the reasons of fate. The lives and outcomes of Beowulf and his enemies are obvious examples of the Beowulf poet showing that God has the power to control everything, resulting in predetermined fate. "Fate goes ever as fate must."(Line 455)*
From the start, it is patent that Huck is somewhat an outcast who fails to agree with the morals and perceptions of society. As his bond with Jim tightens, Huck questions and disregards many of the lessons he has received about slavery and race. Rather than following the teachings of civilization, Huck decides to follow his own experience, logic, and conscience. At first, he struggles to decipher which is correct, society or his heart; but Huck decides that regardless of right or wrong, he is going to embrace his conscience in regards to Jim. In the beginning, Huck starts out seeing Jim as a worthless “nigger”, but he gradually defies the Jim Crow South by valuing and admiring the escaped slave. One sees Huck following his moral instincts when he battles social customs and accepts his ideas to help Jim in many dire situations. Regardless of feeling the pressures of having the social obligations to turn in a runaway slave, Huck remembers “how good [Jim] always was” (214) and is internally faced with the dilemma of trying to do what he perceives as right. More than once, Huck comes to the resolution, “All right, then, I’ll go to hell” (214), because he sees Jim as more of a father and friend than anyone he has previously encountered. For Huck, his time on the raft is where he truly receives his moral education because that is
Mother Teresa’s birthcity was Skopje in Macedonia and she was born on August 26, 1910. On August 27 1910 she was baptized by the name of Agnes Gonxha Bojazhiu, a name given by her parents (Mother Teresa, Biography [1]). Her parents, Nikola and Drana Bokaxhiu, were Albanian grocers (“Mother Teresa” Encyclopedia [1]) and weren’t very wealthy. When Mother Teresa was 8, in 1919, her father became ill and died. Throughout the rest of her life she was very close to her mother (Mother Teresa, Biography [1]). Her work for others started at home when every night her family would invite someone to eat dinner with them. Her mom would tell her “My child, never eat a single mouthful unless you are sharing it with others.” Not every night would they know the person they ate with sometimes it was just a person from the city. Lastly her family was very involved in their catholic church and the city politics (Mother, Biography [1]).
LaPierre, D. (1997). Mother Teresa and the leprosy of the soul. New Perspectives Quarterly, 14(4), 35.
This is also why I think they should just ban all use of cell phones. “13% of drivers age 18-20 involved in car wrecks admitted to texting or talking on the phone at the time of the crash. 34% of teens say they have texted while behind the wheel of the car, 82% of Americans age 16-17 own a cell phone. 52% say they have talked on the phone while driving.” (Texting ad driving Blog) These numbers could be reduced if we applied the changes I have stated to the
The belief in fate for the Anglo-Saxon’s is everything to them. For example, when Beowulf is about to fight Grendel: “fate intended him to gnaw the bones of his last human supper”(295). So Grendel’s fate has already been determined that he was going to lose and die to Beowulf. Also, this is a biblical allusion referring to Jesus’s last supper indicating that Grendel will perish because it was already decided for him that fate was not on Grendel’s side anymore but on Beowulf’s. For the Anglo-Saxons their belief in fate was one of the most important traits of their culture. When Beowulf is fighting the dragon he can tell that fate has switched its loyalty. For example, in the epic poem Beowulf’s shield fails him from the start which is indicating slightly that fate is no longer on his side; best said by Renee Yewdaev: “A great warrior can fight his best but if fate is not on his side that day, then he will lose.” (Beowulf). With this being said no matter how good of a fighter you are will not matter if fate is not on your side. As seen in the epic poem, when Beowulf’s shield fails completely allowing the dragon to strike and inflict Beowulf with poison; thus ending his life. However, looking back before Beowulf was slain he would fight as if it were his last. As Anglo-Saxon view fate the same way as specified by Rene Yewdaev:”After all, if a man has not already been predetermined to die, the his
Fate can be defined many different ways. Webster's Dictionary defines fate as a power that supposedly predetermines events. Fate is synonymous to the word destiny, which suggests that events are unavoidable and unchangeable. Whatever happens in life is meant to be and cannot be changed by mankind. In Shakespeare's Macbeth, fate plays an important role in the lives of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and Banquo.
Statistics in Parkview Trauma Centers, say that “Individuals who drive while sending or reading text messages are 23 percent more likely to be involved in a car crash than other drivers” (Don 't Text & Drive). In Parkview Trauma Centers at the end of their statistic page they
In this class one key point kept coming up in the readings for me, and that was fate. Fate is an idea that nothing you do will change your final out come in life. Are we able to truly have free will in the way we live and die? Or is it fate and our life’s outcome is out of our control? Is the characters desire to go against fate what truly lead them to this path? In the readings I was never able to say either way but I lean in favor of fate. My three examples of this are the charters Loki, Odin and Oedipus. These three are said to have been fated on how they live, die and even kill in a way that is predestined.
Fate is the development of events beyond a person’s control that is determined by a supernatural power, whereas God’s providence is the plan, or guardianship, that God has for every creature. The difference in definition is subtle, yet it makes a large difference in application. Pagans have little or no religious beliefs and base everything off of their observations of the world around them. While surrounded by disasters caused by the forces of nature, it w...
Texting while driving is referred to as distracted driving. "Distracted driving continues to be the number one leading cause of car accidents in America. Talking on the phone, texting, eating, reading, grooming, and talking are just some of the ways drivers get distracted behind the wheel. Drivers who use a hand-held device are 4 times more likely to get into a car accident than drivers that pay attention to the road ahead. Individuals who text message while driving are 23 times more likely to get into an accident. Do not risk your safety or your life. Put everything down and pay attention to the road ahead. It is the single most important thing you can do today to reduce your risk of getting into a
Fate is defined as a natural power that causes or controls events and actions and the results cannot change or be controlled. It is a theory created within
Have you ever had to choose between living a life of luxury and plenty or choose one that contained hardship and want, but you were able to help the poor? Mother Teresa, in the book Something Beautiful for God, written by Malcum Muggeridge, had to face this same issue. Everyone believes that Mother Teresa helped the poor, but some believe that Mother Teresa should have helped them and some believe they should have not.