In Beowulf's first battle against Grendel, he is rather confident and attains a high level of pride in himself. At first, it was stated that Beowulf agreed to fight Grendel due to the fact that he had prior to that, defeated powerful creatures such as sea monsters and giants. For Beowulf, Grendel appears to be a relatively easy defeat. Before their altercation, Beowulf spoke to Hrothgar, the protector of Scydlings stating "I in my youth have undertaken many heroic deeds" (Paragraph 23, Line 8-9). He explains his former accomplishments to clarify that Grendel is no challenge to him. It is no secret that Beowulf contained an abnormal amount of power as he explains that the many people who had counseled him "knew the power of my strength,
they saw it themselves" (paragraph 23, line 15). He explains that throughout all his former battles those who were the "best of men in their wisdom" saw the strength in Beowulf before he knew the power of his own strength. As a trait that any king possesses, Beowulf is determined in defending his reputation. One of the sole reasons that Beowulf is fighting Grendel is for the glory in doing so. However, although he knows that there is a slight possibility that Grendel may defeat him, he accepts his fate. "Fate ever goes as it must" (Paragraph 23...). He faces the reality of the situation by demonstrating an ambitious attitude and a positive outlook on this open ended battle.
From the moment he is introduced, it is clear that Beowulf is confident in his abilities. He boldly tells Hrothgar that he will fight Grendel, the monster causing trouble for the Danes, “hand to hand.” Beowulf also seems at peace with whatever the outcome of the battle may be, stating that “Wyrd,” also known as fate,
For ages, humanity has always told stories of the classic struggle between man and monster. The battle between Beowulf and Grendel is a prime example of this archetype, but is Grendel only purely a monster? In his article “Gardner’s Grendel and Beowulf: Humanizing the Monster”, Jay Ruud makes a point that Grendel is a hybridization of both monster and man, particularly in John Gardner’s novel Grendel. In the poem Beowulf, Grendel is depicted as a purely evil monster who terrorizes Hrothgar and his people, but the novel provides a more humanistic backstory to the fiend. Throughout the novel, Grendel tells of his internal struggle between his thoughts of filling the role of the monster versus attempting to make amends with the humans. This conflict
Grendel had changed drastically from all the way from the start of the book all the way to the end of the book. Grendel began very immature almost child like from the beginning of the book. The way he talked and viewed all things such as plants and animals was very child like. The difference between him and a human would be his monstrous height and strength. Grendel’s first major change was when Grendel heard the words of the Shaper. Grendel would evaluate the Shaper as he would tell his stories in the mead hall, he would do so for many nights. Many times though Grendel would not agree with the stories the Shaper would say and tell to the others, sometimes he felt as if the Shaper was trying to manipulate the others around him. This would anger
as men. She has been sleeping down in her dark and dingy cave below the world
Beowulf wants to fight Grendel, a monster wreaking havoc, and is boasting that he is more powerful and courageous.
No one knows who wrote Beowulf but we do know who wrote Grendel. John Gardner took the epic Beowulf and added more to the brilliant story. Grendel takes on the same story as Beowulf but from the perspective of Grendel, the beast in Beowulf. The story of Grendel is very interesting because from reading Beowulf it is completely uninspected. In Beowulf Grendel is said to be a disgusting monster that’s only job is to kill. In Grendel we really see him as very nice but turns to be evil because he is pushed into that direction.
He does not act like the blood hungry beast he is seen as in Beowulf. In
Grendels death was quiet unexpected. For many people tried killing him but all failed. Until one day, a young man came and succeeded.
Beowulf is proud to be chosen by the Geats to represent them and fight for Herot’s safety. He is also proud of himself for all of his past achievements and how he is lord Higlac’s “brave warrior”. He “swam in the blackness of night, hunting monsters out of the ocean, and killing them one by one”(lines 15-16). Beowulf is extremely proud of himself and how much stronger he is than all men on Earth. Beowulf is also humble in a way. He does not brag about he is going to win the battle and destroy Grendel, he believes God will choose who deserves to win. “Let God in His wisdom extend his hand where he wills, reward whom he chooses!” (lines 81-83). Beowulf was humble enough to sacrifice himself for his people and the
“In my youth I engaged in many wars”, Beowulf boasts to his warriors, which is certainly true. Throughout his life, he faces many deadly foes, all of which he handily defeats, save one. His story focuses on the most challenging, as well as morally significant of foes, Grendel and the dragon. These creatures reveal much about society as well as Christian virtue at the time. Even after Grendel and the dragon are defeated physically, the two monsters pose a new threat to the hero on a higher plane. Beowulf is not only at risk of losing his life, but his humanity, virtue, and even spirituality.
To begin, Beowulf exhibited many characteristics that suggested proper heroic qualities. “ He was strong, an outstanding fighter and very loyal to all who came into his presence” (Killenbeck, and Orci). When Beowulf had to present himself to kill Grendel, he made sure he did it with the upmost care to the people, their belongings, and Heorot. The people of Heorot, which made his determination to defeat Grendel even more powerful, invited him into a great feast before the battle. After he defeated the great Grendel, he was praised for his work and this only made Beowulf more loyal to these people of Heorot. Another great heroic aspect of Beowulf was the fact “he believed that no fighter should have the upper hand” (Killenbeck and Orci). Any fight that took place was thought to be as fair as possible. When Beowulf had to fight Grendel he knew that
Beowulf and Grendel (Gunnarsson 2005) depicts a very different protagonist than the one in the epic (Heaney 2000). The Beowulf in the film learns how to have mercy as the movie progresses, while the epic Beowulf is very flat. This is due to the fact that the modern culture is very different from that of the epic. Our culture isn't content with such characters. We want our characters to have more lifelike characteristics such as emotions and a change of heart.
Beowulf is so focused on keeping his great status that once again he puts his life in danger. When Beowulf met Hrothgar, king of the Danes, he specified very clearly that he was not going to use any weapon or armor to defeat Grendel, “… I hereby renounce sword… hand-to-hand is how it will be, a life-and-death fight with the fiend” (Heaney 50). Being aware of the number of people Grendel has killed, Beowulf is still determined to fight him with his bare hands. Beowulf’s impulsive desires to be the best make him believe that the most dangerous way towards a situation will be keep him high in the eyes of
“I have heard moreover that the monster scorns in his reckless way to use weapons, therefore; to heighten Hygelac’s fame and gladden his heart, I hereby renounce sword and the shelter of the broad shield, the heavy war-board: hand-to-hand is how it will be, a life-and-a death fight with the fiend” (lines 433-440). When Beowulf heard of Hrothgar’s assailant, he left to rescue the Danes, risking his own life. Once he descended upon the land of the Danes and learned about the monster’s terrorism, he planned his attack. When Grendel enters Herot, Beowulf pretended to be asleep, watching as Grendel ate one of his men. Beowulf’s bravery is the reason he left to help the Danes. Without his bravery, Grendel would have wiped out the entire country, then moved on to the next. Risking one's own life for others is brave, but to fight a Hellion without strength is a death sentence. Luckily for Beowulf, he had the strength,
Throughout any motion picture, it always displays the same, more intense, or soother sense of the reading it was produced from. The movie Beowulf and the textual reading, Beowulf is very different; in addition, the fight scene that is displayed in the movie and analysis, happens to be very comparable. Of course, as any movie there are differences in setting, and overall displacement in the movie; however, Beowulf and Grendel's fight scene is very unique. To start off, Grendel had only wanted to kill at Heriot because of a rumor he had heard, and treasures that were stolen. However, in the movie, they displayed he was “hurt” and “angered” because his father had left him.