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Essay on grendel's mother from beowulf
Anglo saxon period
Beowulf as the legacy of Anglo Saxon
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To begin, here is some history and background information on Beowulf. Beowulf was written in the Anglo Saxon time period. These people had a different outlook on life and how you should act. They had much respect for anyone that was older than you. They felt before you die, you needed to have some kind of glory for others to remember you by. If you had something good, people would forever remember you, like a last name that will last forever if you are lucky. Beowulf is the nephew of King Hygelac in the land of the Geats. He has never been to Denmark, or the land of the Danes. When Beowulf hears about the monster, Grendel, in the land of the Danes, he feels an obligation to go and defend these people. However, why? He doesn’t know these people. They do not even know he exists, he is a nobody. So why would he risk his life to save people that don’t even live in his land? Well isn’t this the million dollar question. In this essay I will be discussing why Beowulf traveled across the ocean to fight Grendel, Grendel’s Mother and the dragon.
Grendel is supposedly a descendent of Cain. He ...
In Beowulf, the protagonist Beowulf is shown as a hero with extrodinary strength. This is not what makes him a hero. By definition, a hero is a man of exceptional quality. However this term does not do Beowulf justice. His self-imposed purpose in life is to help others, and eventually sacrifices his own life in doing so. Beowulf’s battle with the dragon serves as a critique of the notion that Beowulf is a hero. The Dragon section displays many of Beowulf’s heoric characteristics. Beowulf establishes himself as a hero by fighting the dragon, exemplifing strength and courage when fighting the dragon, and sacrificing himself so that others can live.
Beowulf is one of the most bravest legends. He has no fear! This man will go and fight whoever needs to be fought, with or without help. As soon as Grendel's mother came to get her son’s arm back, Beowulf immediately set out to go find and kill her. He went to the place where she lives and after he plunged into the water, Beowulf swam all the way down to her lair. After he reached the lair, “Beowulf got ready, / donned his war-gear, indifferent to death; / his mighty, hand-forged, fine-webbed mail / would soon meet with the menace underwater” (1442-1445). This task also seems to be a death sentence written all over it, but Beowulf looks death in the face, and goes after his mother. He knows that they are immortal, but right next to Grendel’s mother, is the only sword that can kill them. Beowulf is brave enough to grab that powerful sword, and kill both Grendel and his mother. Men today would not do that. Beowulf does not just stop at Grendel and his mother: he continues to fight more monsters to defend what is his. He then took a break and now decides to come home to Sweden. The son of Ecgtheow bids Denmark farewell, and has a moment with Hrothgar. Hrothgar says, “You are strong in body and mature in mind, / impressive in speech. If it should come to pass / that Hrethel’s descendent dies beneath a spear, / … and you are still alive, then I firmly believe / the seafaring Geats won’t find a
The character of Beowulf stands as a hero to the ancient Danes because of his actions. He is constantly being cited as a "war-chief" and a "gold-giver" (61). Beowulf has achieved fame through what he has done with his own hands. His identity as a leader is based upon the Danish society’s emphasis on personal action, as opposed to the delegation of responsibility through conscious thought. It is this very sense which spurs Beowulf to fight the dragon: "In my youth I engaged in many wars. Old guardian of the people, I shall still seek battle, perform a deed of fame, if the evil-doer will come to me..." (59). Beowulf derives his power from a strong link to the past. Without his history of glorious deeds, he would see himself bereft of the very power which qualifies him to be a good King. Beowulf’s bravery never comes in to question, he does meet every challenge head-on, with deadly attention. The society which labels Beowulf as a legendary hero, recognizes his actions and his bravery as a integral part of his definition as a hero. Without the society to support th...
Beowulf has been living at his home land taking on challenges that others may not have wanted to take on. He has always been a man of action, always looking for adventure that challenges his strength. When Beowulf was told of the rumors that a demon is tormenting Hrothgar famous mead serving hall he accepted the wise men decisions to help him rid them of the demon. This is where step two of the hero’s journey comes into play. There is a call to adventure that affects the hero in some way. Beowulf may have formed a personal connection to the cries of Hrothgar reason being his father was once had history with Hrothgar . When Hrothgar helped Beowulf 's father settle things with the Wulfings Beowulf may have felt a need to repay his father’s debt. When Beowulf and his men finished the feast the king provided in the mead hall that was closed due to Grendel’s blood lust. ¨Epic heroes possess qualities that mere mortals lack. Bravery beyond compare, superhuman intelligence, strength or skills and a driving desire to find success¨(Connie Jankowski). In this part of the story Beowulf and his men have proven that they do contain the courage
The character Beowulf, “a man of great strength and bravery” (Magill 388), is a hero in the way he defends his neighboring country, Denmark. When the word that a hostile creature, known as Grendel, was killing tons in Denmark, Beowulf set sail to help defend the people and rid them of the hideous monster.
“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.
In today’s society when asked about heroes many would name contemporary heroes such as Spiderman, Superman, Batman, and many others, but early heroes are often overlooked. Early heroes are written about in many different societies including Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, and Anglo-Saxon England. One early epic poem delineated by the Anglo-Saxon’s in the eighth century is Beowulf. Beowulf is the tragic hero of the story, and a temerarious Geatish warrior, who fights three battles. As can be seen through his fights with Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon, Beowulf’s fights become progressively more difficult throughout the epic.
An epic is a long narrative poem on a serious subject. It usually is about
In every epic story, the center of attention will be on the epic hero. Usually all the epic heroes have some kind of special power, which keep them different from other characters. Later on, their epic journey these powers, help them to win the glory, which make them epic heroes. In Beowulf, Beowulf is truly an epic hero, because of his wisdom, strength and bravery.
What does it mean to be a hero? Like anything else in this world, the definition of the word hero can be argued. Some may say that a hero can be passive, that is if he or she refrains from doing a certain action it makes them heroic. Others would argue that to be truly heroic the character must never turn tail and always face the obstacle head on even though he or she may die in the process. So is Beowulf a hero? Yes, Beowulf is a great epic hero, but his greatness comes only from his sword and not from his mind.
What is a hero, that is a question many have asked for ages. According to Joseph Campbell, a hero is someone that goes through a number of steps in what he calls the Hero’s Journey. In the poem of Beowulf, author unknown and translated by Burton Raffel, the main character Beowulf plays the part of hero, taking on his own Hero’s Journey. In his poem Beowulf goes through many of the steps listed out by Joseph Campbell, such as crossing the threshold and the belly of the whale. These examples are clear in certain parts of the Poem of Beowulf in which they take place.
Archetypal warrior heroes share three qualities. They all share courage, cleverness, and sacrifice. They each set out on a journey to either protect or prove. Although each of the three had their troubles, they still fought for their causes.
The definition of “hero” has stayed about the same for many years. For example a well-known hero Beowulf, a man that fought a monster (Grendel) for the people of a nearby town. Although heroes from back then have many traits as heroes of today they are still divided by their strengths, reasoning for why they do what they do, and most of all how they became a hero.
It is said that history always repeats its self, and it is still valid to this day. Furthermore, society will always have the protagonist and the antagonist in any situation that takes place. Ordinarily the protagonist is usually the individual that doesn’t have much to offer but their loyalty and leadership, and in my eyes that’s way more valuable than gold. As individuals we should strive to embody those characteristic traits. Which leads to speak on Beowulf who lived in the Anglo-Saxon time and why he is my favorite character. Aside from saving the day on several occasions, he was the epitome of what an individual with great leadership skills possessed, he depicted ample of heroic qualities, and he was courageous, trustworthy, and admirable.
Beowulf’s first accomplishment as an epic hero was his battle with Grendel. Grendel was a huge beast, a descendent of Cain, who ruthlessly murdered innocent Danes because he felt pity for himself. Upon hearing of the Dane’s problem, Beowulf set off to help the Danish without having been called upon. Even though Beowulf had men backing him, He drew battle with Grendel alone and without armor or weapons. Yet, Beowulf emerged victorious with the arm of Grendel as his trophy. Beowulf then went on to kill Grendel’s vengeful mother and a huge fire-breathing dragon who thought it had been done wrong by the Geats. Alas, the killing of the dragon would be Beowulf’s last great battle for the dragon took Beowulf’s life in the struggle for his own.