God's Use Of Alliteration In Beowulf

Shattered dreams, crippled bodies, and pulverized bones paint the scene as the devil’s spawn slaughters everyone in sight. In Beowulf, the unknown poet tells the tale of Beowulf, king of the Geats, and his afflictions. Throughout the poem, Beowulf endures hardships that take him on a journey of a lifetime. Beowulf grows stronger spiritually and physically through every tribulation he prevails. The reader travels the journey alongside Beowulf through the author’s use of alliteration, epithets, and vivid imagery. These literary devices convey the concept that, against the worst odds, God’s presence is more powerful than any weapon in existence.

The author depicts Beowulf’s importance through alliteration, epithets and vivid imagery. As a

boy, Beowulf was poorly regarded and viewed worthless by the Geats. But battle by battle, Beowulf earned his worth and was crowned as the mightiest of men and the strongest soldier of any other on Earth. Every failure and success Beowulf had, fabricated the respected warrior he turned out to be. One honorable battle that added to Beowulf’s worth was with the devil’s spawn. Beowulf traveled to Danish soil in hopes of purging Herot, the dwelling place of the Danish king Hrothgar. After the Danes and the Geats introduced themselves, they trusted each other with friendship. Hrothgar welcomed Beowulf and his men into Herot and asked for protection from the horrendous monster. When the day was over and everyone fell into a deep sleep, Beowulf eagerly waited for his enemy to arrive. The author uses vivid imagery to orchestrate a mental image of the confrontation between Grendel and Beowulf. “Out from the marsh, from the foot of misty hills and bogs, bearing God’s hatred” (710-711), Grendel entered Herot hoping to kill anyone he could find. The author goes on to tell us that Grendel snatched up the first Geat he came to and “cut his body to bits with powerful jaws, drank the blood from his veins and bolted him down...snapping life shut” (739-745). Through these examples, the poet reveals what a life without God is like. The imagery allows the reader to understand how hellish Grendel is. Because Grendel descended from a long line of nefarious creatures, he had no presence of God inside him and therefore was a true creation of evil. The author then used the epithet “shepherd of evil” (750), to describe Beowulf. This epithet expresses that Beowulf is a protector of men and that no evil, not even Grendel, is a match for his strength. Beowulf acknowledged that all his victories came from God’s guidance and that without God he would not be the shepherd of anything. Living with God’s presence inside him, Beowulf was able to defeat Grendel. Not only does the author use epithets, to show how victories come from God’s help, but he also uses alliteration. Beowulf remembered “God’s grace and the strength he’d given him” (1269-1270) and was able to injure his enemy so badly that the “tears..” were “...torn out of Grendel’s taut throat” (787-788). The use of alliteration in this passage of the poem is to prove that with God’s presence, the most monstrous demons can be defeated. The purpose of these literary devices during this battle is to show how Beowulf’s trust in God allowed him to fight for the good of others and protect them in a selfless way. After Beowulf inflicted a fatal blow upon Grendel, that sent him running in fear, the people began to feel safe again. However, they got too comfortable too soon.
Beowulf’s second honorable battle is also described through a series of alliterations, epithets, and imagery.

Beowulf’s new problem was Grendel’s mother. She had a heart full of sadness and greed that sent her on the pathway of revenge. The “female horror” (1259) and “mighty water witch” (1519) took it upon herself to avenge her son’s death. The she-wolf inhabited a “...murky cold lake assigned her since Cain had killed his only brother… God drove him off… and branded him with a murderer’s mark” (1260-1264). This section of the poem exhibits all three literary devices. The first literary devices that can be identified are epithets. The two epithets classify Grendel’s mother as the awful horror and witch she is. Nobody with the presence of God inside them could be so disgraceful. Secondly, vivid imagery is used to illustrate the home of Grendel’s mother. The imagery also gives a little history of how and why she occupies the lake The lines of the poem explain that Grendel’s mother was assigned to the cold murky lake since Cain killed his brother. Lastly, alliteration emphasizes how dishonorable Cain’s descendants are by their murderer’s mark.. Each of these literary devices have their own way of supporting the idea that God grants victory. Grendel and his mother were so blinded by their own wishes and did not know the love of God. In fighting Grendel’s mom, and even Grendel, Beowulf had trust in God. For a moment however, during the battle with Grendel’s mother, he was

blinded by fame and losing his battle. The author describes that Holy God sent Beowulf victory, protected him from death, gave judgement, and gave Beowulf the strength to keep on fighting. Without God inside his heart, Beowulf ultimately would have lost the battle with Grendel’s mother. But with the blessings of God, Beowulf made it out of the lake safely and all was peaceful in Denmark. And so Beowulf’s work in Denmark was done and it was time for him to return home. Hrothgar thanked and rewarded Beowulf with a banquet and the finest of treasures. Everything was going good for Beowulf until selfishness consumed him and he cared more about himself than the good of others.
Beowulf’s time as king of Geatland had come after his lord had fallen.

Beowulf served as king for fifty winters until a dragon denied him victory in battle, and ended his reign. The dragon was awoken from its slumber when a runaway slave stumbled upon a hidden path that led to its’ den. The slave stole a cup from the dragon’s treasure in hopes to buy his master’s forgiveness. The cup pardoned the slave’s punishment from his master but resulted in terror for the rest of Geatland. Beowulf’s pride and supremacy led him to fight the dragon alone. Beowulf did not fight the dragon to protect others, but rather for fame. The poet’s narration of the battle includes literary devices that reinforce the concept that failures occur when we lose sight of God.The battle begins with the dragon breathing fire as Beowulf repeatedly swings his sword. Beowulf struck the dragon with his sword, but the sword broke before injuring the dragon. The vivid imagery, “the dragon leaped with pain, thrashed and beat at him, spouting murderous flames, spreading them everywhere” (2580-2582), allows the reader to imagine Beowulf’s last battle. Alliteration also proves that Beowulf is losing the battle. The author says, “and for the first time in his life that famous prince fought with fate against him” (2573-2574), to emphasize Beowulf’s decline and defeat. Beowulf knew that his life was coming to an end, for he had lost God’s presence and started fighting for his own gain and glory. The last piece of

evidence that proves God is the most powerful weapon to have is an epithet that describes Beowulf at the end of the battle. At the dragon’s last breath, Beowulf fell and suffered as the “beaten warrior” (2596) he now was. Throughout his lifetime Beowulf was many things, king of the Geats, strongest of all soldiers, and even the protector of men. God made all those things possible and at the end of his time, Beowulf became prideful and lost sight of what was right. The epithet confirms that straying God’s guidance inevitably caused Beowulf to lose the fight with life.