Anglo Saxon’s history is well known for their loyalty, courage and bravery. Beowulf our protagonist is symbolized as a hero, who represents the Anglo Saxons at the time. Beowulf earns his fame and respect through battling creatures nobody else would want to face. These creatures symbolize the evil that lurks beyond the dark. Beowulf’s intense battle with these creatures’ symbolizes the epic battle of good versus evil. In the end good triumphs over evil but one cannot avoid death. Beowulf’s death can be symbolized as the death of the Anglo Saxons. Beowulf’s battle through the poem reflects the kind of culture that the Anglo Saxons had. The youth of a warrior to his maturity then the last fight which results in death. Beowulf wanted to be remembered and be told in stories that are passed on from generation to generation after his death. These story tellers relate to the Anglo Saxons time when they told stories about their great heroes. Beowulf’s generosity leads him to the shores of Heorot after hearing the news of Grendel’s gruesome murders. Beowulf being the kind warrior that he is offers his help to king Hrothgar. Beowulf explains that “...news of Grendel, hard to ignore, reached me at home: sailors brought stories of the plight you suffer in this legendary hall, how it lies deserted, empty and useless once the evening light hides itself infer heaven’s dome. So every elder and experienced councilman among my people supported my resolve to come here to you King Hrothgar, because all knew of my awesome strength…” (pg. 29). Beowulf’s battle with Grendel not only symbolizing his strengths, courage, and bravery but also the youth of a warrior. Beowulf proved that he was young and strong enough to face Grendel with out any weapons. ... ... middle of paper ... ...lized death. Beowulf stood strong against the dragon while his men were “No help or backing was to be had then from his high-born comrades; that hand-picked troop broke ranks and ran for their lives to the safety of the wood.” (pg.175). The event of the men backing out is the symbol for the Anglo Saxon’s fall of their culture. There was a hint of hope left when Wiglaf came to assist his king. The ending of Beowulf’s life can closely be related to the end of the Anglo Saxon’s era. Beowulf symbolizes the Anglo Saxons and their culture and social values. Beowulf through out the poem was closely related to what the Anglo Saxons had believe and what they valued. The creature Beowulf battled was creatures from the myths of the Anglo Saxons. Beowulf represents the greatness of the Anglo Saxons era from their time of glory to the end where they fall to their enemies.
The literature of the past can reveal a lot about the lives, culture, traditions, and history of the people who wrote it. Through a story, poem, or any other form of writing, lifestyles, people, and society can be described in great detail. Beowulf is a great example of this. Beowulf is one of the most important works in Anglo Saxon literature, being one of the few surviving works in Old English. It tells the story of a warrior named Beowulf, who travels to Denmark to help the Danes defeat a monster named Grendel. He then goes on to defeat Grendel’s mother and returns home to rule over his people as a great king for many years, until he is forced to fight a dragon attacking his land, dying in the process.Throughout the poem, elements and culture
Beowulf’s death at the end of the poem represents the idea that all men and all their works shall die. A great hero, the icon of northern warrior, is dead, but his legend lives on.
One of the first pieces of British literature recorded is the epic poem Beowulf. The poem concentrates on the life of the adventurous Geat warrior, Beowulf. Beowulf faces several challenges throughout the poem that depict him as a man who would go to extreme lengths to accumulate fame. While creating a legend for himself, Beowulf and other characters within the poem reveal several values of the Anglo-Saxons. These values include their belief in boasting, revenge, and loyalty.
In reading the epic poem, Beowulf, we read about his many battles and the famous warrior that he was. Our first reading was of his battle with Grendel and how Beowulf triumphed. Second, we read about how he turned an almost certain defeat into a victory of the battle with Grendel’s mother. Last we read of Beowulf’s ultimate death and his battle against the dragon.
The epic poem, Beowulf, is one of the oldest European epics in existence. When Beowulf was written, the writer incorporated many of the ideals of the Anglo-Saxons. Some of these ideals included loyalty, bravery, selflessness, and justice and were demonstrated in the hero. Both the characters Beowulf and Grendel represent aspects of both good and evil, Christianity and Paganism, and what occurs when they collide with one another. A characteristic of an epic poem is the concern over struggles that humans face, which is presented in a serious manner. The hero often embodies the religious, national, and cultural values of his homeland and abroad. The premise of the story is quite simple: the Danes were in distress because of the great monster Grendel, so Beowulf, a native of the Geats, sails to engage in battle with Grendel and become victorious in saving the seemingly faithless Danes. Throughout the epic, there are many instances where examples of the thirteen epic conventions are used in the writing of Beowulf and in describing both the ideals of the Anglo-Saxons and the underlying challenges with mortal problems, such as good versus evil.
Beowulf is one of the oldest known literary records of the beginnings of the English language. Beowulf is about a warrior who engages in a quest to help King Rothgar defeat a monster named Grendel. Throughout the whole story Beowulf is on a mission to destroy Grendel, and Grendel is out to murder and destroy life. In the end Beowulf is a hero and all rejoice. This reflects the Anglo-Saxon era in that there is a war between Grendel and Beowulf which end in death, also Grendel is a monster who is man eating which has to do with the violence and blood during this time.
The epic poem, Beowulf, a work of fiction, offers more insight into Ancient Anglo-Saxon English culture than the work of Bede, who wrote, A History of the English Church and People. The epic poem Beowulf gives an enhanced illustration and clearer understanding of the culture of the Ancient Anglo-Saxon’s. The epic poem gives the audience a picture of what the Ancient Anglo-Saxon English valued; seafaring, warriors, heroes, and paganism.
First, I will start off with the tale of Beowulf. The poem opens up with a description of the genealogy of the high King Hrothgar of Denmark. This king builds a great mead-hall named Heorot, a place where warriors from all over can gather for a night of drinking and eating. This time of prosperity though soon came to the end. Grendel, a fierce monster with mighty strength, started killing the Danes, some sort of complaint about the noise. Once word gets out of how these warriors are being killed off ruthlessly without any successful attempts at retaliation against this demon, a Geatish warrior named Beowulf steps into the scene. Once Beowulf arrives, he is welcomed warmly by king Hrothgar into his mead-hall. Beowulf’s men were treated to a feast, but during the event, Beowulf was taunted...
Beowulf is the earliest known epic written in Old English, one of the earlier forms of English that was used by Anglo-Saxons. Beowulf was created to show the culture of Anglo-Saxons, and was shared for hundreds of years before being written. Fame and honor are both important characteristics of Anglo-Saxon culture. They lived in a violent society where warriors were expected to battle for fame and die for honor. The greatest death was achieved in battle, fallen warriors were given great respect and honored for their sacrifice. Fame and honor are both shown in Beowulf in the fight with Grendel, the fight with the dragon, Beowulf’s death, and the monument built for Beowulf.
Upon hearing about his battle with Grendel’s mother he proclaims “let us go, as quickly as we can, and have a look at this lady monster”(). Beowulf still has the same amount of drive and will during his second battle. Before his actual fight he tells Hrothgar to “ “() . Beowulf shows some doubt in his survival. The uncertainty of his survival of the battle is more than likely due to the amount of monsters he will have to encounter on the way to Grendel’s mothers cave. He is beginning to care more about the welfare of his people instead of his own reputation, so he doesn’t allow any others to come with him. Beowulf is aware of his possible death, but still goes into the fight fearless. Beowulf is still young during this fight so he still possess great strength. During the battle, “Beowulf struggled unlike his fairly easy kill against Grendel. Beowulf “angrily throws his sword to the side” and was “held helpless” at one point. Beowulf attributes his finding the Giants sword to God himself, all throughout the battle Beowulf never fails to keep his faith in God. Beowulf’s struggle to defeat the lady monster weakens his confidence for future battles and somewhat foreshadows his fate in his battle with the
In history, evil men have reigned supreme across many cultures. Some people say that being evil is inherent in every human. If this is true, then writing may be the ultimate way of releasing hatred of the world without hurting anyone. In Beowulf, all of society's evil men can be personified within the demons of Cain. The main demon presented in Beowulf is Grendel. Grendel personifies the exact opposite of what the Anglo-Saxons held dear. Beowulf, the story's hero, is the embodiment of what every Anglo-Saxon strove to become in their lifetime. Grendel is constantly angry, afraid and unsure of himself; while Beowulf is fearless and loyal to his king.
For more than a millennium, literary excavators and scholars have been deciphering and intensively studying the epic Beowulf. The suspenseful and dramatic narrative takes place in Scandinavia where the Danes are experiencing the wrath of a monster known as Grendel. The titular eponymous King of the Geats gives the King Hrothgar necessary assistance to combat this ruthless and belligerent creature. After being killed, the hero Beowulf defeats Grendel’s mother in a watery underworld called her lair after she strikes Herot Hall. In the final scene, after serving five decades as Geatland’s generous and amiable king, he defeats the infamous dragon. Unfortunately, Beowulf suffers severe wounds from the battle. After briefly summarizing and analyzing
Beowulf is an interesting story in that it has a meaning that is firmly rooted in fantasy creatures based in mythical origins while providing insight into religious ideals and practices of the time. It also speaks of tradition and the struggle of man against things perceived as evil. In this tradition especially, Beowulf is an incredible allegory regarding the struggle of good and evil in the Christian tradition.
Symbolism is the practice of representing things by means of symbols or of attributing symbolic meanings or significance to objects, events, or ideas. Symbolism is one of the most common practices of writing, and has been used for centuries. Symbols can often tell a story better than a human can because of there deeper meaning. When epic poems became popular during the Anglo-Saxon period they were filled with harrowing tales of bravery, and courage. Epic poems are long narrative poems that often have characters facing impossible tasks and still finding courage to defeat them. While many marvel at the original Anglo-Saxon dialect of Beowulf, Seamus Heany's modern English translation allows all readers to enjoy this tale.
On the surface, the poem Beowulf seems to be a simple tale of a brave hero who triumphs over three monsters and who engages in several other battles in order to preserve what is just and right. A more thorough reading, however, reveals that the epic poem is filled with events that symbolize historical and social conditions that prevailed during the European reign of the Scandinavians in the seventh century to around the ninth century, following the Danish invasion of England (Sisson 1996).