What Are The Emotions In Beowulf

The story of Beowulf revolves around three major battles, all similar and differing in certain ways, with differing motivations and outcomes. The poem opens with the explanation of Grendel, a terrible monster who had been terrorizing the Danes for 12 years, killing 30 men at a time. Upon hearing of the destruction wrought by the monster, he decides to leave Geatland to visit the king Hrothgar to aid in Grendel’s defeat. He is successful, however, his victory triggers the fury of another monster: Grendel’s mother. He is able to defeat her as well with the help of a magical sword, and in return for his victory, he ascends the throne of King Hygelac upon his passing. Fifty years later, when Beowulf is much older, he is faced with the battle that results in his demise. An agitated dragon wreaks havoc in a fury from having a golden goblet stolen from him. Fully armored, he engages in a battle with the dragon. He manages to strike him down, but not without retribution. He dies from the

venom of the dragon’s bite. Looking at Beowulf’s life, one might wonder why he repeatedly chose to risk his life to take on these loathsome creatures. Upon further analysis, one might find that the motivations behind each battle go far beyond the desire to simply be a hero.
The first 300 lines of the poem reveal much about the age of brave warriors and how they came to be.

It begins with a prologue of sorts, detailing the ancestry of King Hrothgar in relation to Beowulf’s. The story commences this way to give the reader a sense of the importance of patriarchal lineage to this particular time period. Until a man created a notable reputation for himself, he was often referred to as his father’s son. In Beowulf’s case, he spent the first several years of his life as “Ecgtheow’s son”, despite his father dying when he was very young. This could be a factor in his desire to act heroically throughout his entire life. In addition, a warrior’s greatness was often measured by their number of triumphs and their ability to perform heroic deeds for their respective communities. This could explain Beowulf’s desire to travel to the Danes in their time of need. There was also the possibility of him receiving compensation for his deeds, though it was not his main

motive.
Upon Beowulf’s arrival, the reader learns that Ecgtheow was a close friend of King Hrothgar, establishing a sense of obligation between their two families. Before going into battle, Beowulf is promised a compensation in the form of money for any of the men he might lose in the process.
When the time comes, Beowulf chose to fight without any weapons or armor. This fight is the first climax of the poem, and is narrated more from Grendel’s fearful perspective, making Beowulf seem invulnerable and unstoppable. The battle after this one was against Grendel’s vengeful mother, which required Beowulf to use a magical sword. His final battle, against a dragon, was fought with weapons and in full armor. With each battle, Beowulf used more weaponry and armor rather than his seemingly inhuman strength alone as he did in the first fight. This demonstrates the effects of his aging over the years, and how his strength diminished.
Another frequent theme in Beowulf is the “equal but opposite” idea. When Beowulf and Grendel came together, they had no advantages over one another, as Grendel took 30 men at a time when he attacked, and Beowulf had the strength of 30 men in his arms. Throughout the narration of the scene, Beowulf is described in a way that makes him seem godlike, and Grendel is a demon descendent of Cain. Later when Beowulf fights Grendel’s mother, her actions are justifiable by the same revenge code that warriors like Beowulf follow, making them “equal” in terms of their motives. Grendel and his mother are set apart from the protagonists of the story by aberrating from the patriarchally structured ancestry line that all of their reputations rely on. By making Grendel’s mother his strong parent and giving no mention to a father of any sort, those characters are automatically malevolent to a society that emphasizes a sacredness to advertising one’s lineage.
Another contrast is the dynamic of Beowulf’s character from the first battle in the story to the last. Majority of his reputation relied on how boastful he was, for it was believed that all notable warriors must act that way. This is reflected in how confidently he fought Grendel, and how he spoke of his victory afterwards. However, the final battle with the dragon is narrated in a very nostalgic way, continually hinting at Beowulf’s impending demise. He was weaker in his old age than he used to be, and his thought process was centered more around the possibility of death rather than his ego. However, the fact that he faced the dragon on open ground gives a subtle nod to his youthful decision to go unarmed into battle with Grendel. Beowulf’s spirit may not have been the same as then, but his heroic code and sense of fate never altered throughout his life. As he lay dying, he reminisced about his most victorious days when he was seemingly unstoppable, and acknowledged that all life, no matter how powerful, must come to an end.
Beowulf’s battles may seem like just three typical climatic fight scenes one could find in any heroic story. In actuality, they all contained different undertones of intention and symbolism that could be compared and contrasted to different themes and ideas throughout the story.