Beowulf Formalism Analysis

The epic poem, Beowulf, provides an in depth look at a situation of a dual ordeal. Within this poem, the protagonist, Beowulf, is presented with a life full of both internal and external struggles. While Beowulf just battle his natural human predisposition and the vices of pride, greed, anger, cowardice, betrayal, and self-concern, he also must battle vicious and merciless supernatural creatures. Each external battle has a complex link to the internal battle waging within Beowulf himself. When analyzing this poem in terms of formalist criticism, it is clear that the story’s symbolism provides a deeper meaning for characterization, the specific diction of the author acts as a means of furthering their message, and the plot structure consistently supports the idea of the themes and messages conveyed. Through these conventions, Beowulf displays the battle against fiendish creatures as well as the battle against trying human tendencies. Through formalist criticism, one can distinctly analyze Beowulf in an alternative manner that helps illuminate previously unseen facets of the poem and the struggles that take place within it.

In the poem Beowulf, all three monsters’ actions are fueled by different variations of anger, such as revenge, greed, and hatred, with each having its own reasoning behind it.

The monsters that Beowulf must fight in this Old English poem shape the poem’s plot structure and seem to represent an inhuman or alien presence in society that must be exorcised for the society’s safety. They are all outsiders, existing beyond the boundaries of human realms. Grendel’s and his mother’s encroachment upon human society—they wreak havoc in Heorot—forces Beowulf to kill the two beasts for order to be restored. As the poem progresses, it is clear that through the happenings of the poem and more specifically, the ways in which each event is described helps to further the messages being