13th Warrior/ Beowulf comparison essay In the Anglo-Saxon period the people had a warring culture with clans. In a society in Celtic religion that has many gods with the base of communal and ritual. Another prominent trait in Anglo-Saxon society is the heroic traits of strength, courage, honor, and humility. The 13th Warrior movie was made in 1999 by director John McTiernan. The Old English epic poem Beowulf by an anonymous author. 13th Warrior and Beowulf represent Anglo-Saxon society well with the differences in details such as supernatural, point of view, and character growth. The most noticeable difference in both stories is the main characters. In 13th Warrior, the main character is an Arab man called Ahmad, not accustomed to Anglo-Saxon …show more content…
Makes both the audience and Ahmad have a progressive learning experience of the Anglo-Saxon people. During battles and after, Ahmad visibly sees the traits of being a hero and their importance within the Anglo-Saxon society. Another difference between both stories is the use of the supernatural. Beowulf uses the supernatural, for example being Grendel and Grendel’s mother. Grendal being a monster and Grendal mother also a monster and a shapeshifter, both terrorize Hrothgar’s kingdom. 13th Warrior does use the trait of supernatural, but it was used as an assumption. Arriving at the kingdom where there are attacks from mysterious sources. The people attacking are fully painted, wearing bear fur, and imitating bear-like attitudes. Warriors assumed from first sight that they were demons or supernatural beings. Progressing in the movie, they notice that the bodies were man but with bear-like attitudes canceling the option of supernatural. Character progression in the stories is also different, mainly based on the main characters. Beowulf is known to be a hero that shows the ideal Anglo-Saxon hero traits, but in the story, there isn’t really any character