Femininity In Beowulf

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Although distinct in their characteristics, the female characters who appear in Beowulf all serve a common purpose in providing an outlet for the poet’s expression of his views on marriage. The mother of the demon Grendel, an unwedded monster, has her depravity attributed to the absence of a husband-figure. Additionally Queen Modthryth, whose transformation from a scorn-worthy draconian ruler to a compassionate queen after marriage demonstrates the poet’s positive regard towards the custom. On the other hand, Queen Hygd is a role model in the poem because of her docility towards her husband Hygelac and the visiting Geats. Thus, the portrayal of these female characters as admirable or wretched based on their conformity to marital traditions …show more content…

After emphasizing the absence of a father figure in Grendel’s lineage as a way to explain his monstrosity, the poet portrays Grendel’s mother as “that swamp-thing from hell, the tarn-hag in all her terrible strength” (1518-1519). The gendered insult “hag,” has strong imagery of an ugly old woman associated with it, and generates a feeling of disgust in the reader. The poet’s use of such a derogatory term suggests that he is not exclusively attacking the demon mother for her actions, as he does not use this word in his description of Grendel. The poet uses the word “hag” because she is an ugly aberration--a female who hasn’t committed her life to the whim of a man in marriage. Being biased against the unmarried mother shows that the poet holds marriage to a high regard, as refusing to be wed to a husband is abnormal and worth of …show more content…

The poet characterizes Hygd, saying “Her mind was thoughtful and her manners sure. Haereth’s daughter behaved generously and stinted nothing when she distributed bounty to the Geats” (1928-1931). This description completely contradicts the poet’s description of Modthryth, and he portrays Hygd as the model queen, a woman who is not ambitious or independent in any way, but accommodating of men who enter her life. Hygd’s conformity towards Anglo-Saxon norms is something to be valued, and the poet emphasizes this by positively representing

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