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The poem, Beowulf, centers around the epic battles between man and demon. The poem deals with a hero’s journey and the battles he faces. Each monster brings a different set of obstacles and tactics that Beowulf must use to defeat it. Beowulf fights Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and a dragon, each battle had its own set reasons, preparation, and outcome, however there are some similarities between them.
After, Hrothgar became king of the Danes, their kingdom enjoyed a period of peace and prosperity. Hrothgar had a mead-hall, Heorot, constructed as a monument to the kingdom’s success, there the men gather with their lord to drink. But one night, a demon, Grendel, descends upon the hall and slaughters the men inside because of their celebrations,
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The dragon goes on a rampage, trying to find the goblet. When the dragon threatens Beowulf’s kingdom, Beowulf prepares for a battle. As Beowulf prepares, he puts on a mail-shirt and helmet before setting off. Once Beowulf arrives at the dragon’s lair, he shouts a challenge to it and awaits the battle. The dragon’s scales protect the dragon from the attacks from Beowulf’s sword. Beowulf strikes the dragon on the head with his sword and the sword breaks. Meanwhile the dragon bites Beowulf on the neck. In turn, Beowulf stabs the dragon with a dagger, and the dragon dies. Beowulf wins the battle but pays the ultimate price for his heroic deeds, he dies from the poisonous bite of the …show more content…
In each battle Beowulf acts to avenge what has been done to other people. Beowulf fights Grendel because Grendel attacks the mead-hall and kills the people inside the hall. The only reason Beowulf goes after Grendel’s mother is because Hrothgar pleads with Beowulf to right the death of his friend by killing Grendel’s mother. Lastly, Beowulf goes after the dragon because it has attacked his kingdom and he must protect his people. Beowulf goes into battle to protect and avenge not because he likes it. Beowulf never denies a battle but instead accepts each challenge thrown his way. In every battle Beowulf is able to defeat the monster and become victorious. He manages to rid the people of the threat in every situation and bring peace back to the kingdom. While there are similarities between the battles, each battle has its own
After fighting and winning many battles, Beowulf's life enters a new stage when he finally becomes king of his homeland, Geatland. Even in his old age, his code of honor still obligates him to fight against an evil, fiery dragon. For fifty years he has governed his kingdom well. While Beowulf is governing, the dragon "...kept watch over a hoard, a steep stone-barrow" (Norton 55). Under it lays a path concealed from the sight of men. Over centuries no one had disturbed the dragon’s kingdom until one day when a thief broke into the treasure, laid hand on a cup fretted with gold, which infuriated the dragon. "The fiery dragon had destroyed the people's stronghold, the land along the sea, the heart of the country" (Norton 57).
When the dragon awakes after three hundred years of sleep, he discovers that his cup has been stolen. The dragon, also known as the worm, fills with anger and rage. Even though he is so angry, he does like the idea of battle: “Yet he took joy in the thought of war, in the work of fighting” (Donaldson 40). The dragon cannot wait to ravage the land of the people where one man has stolen from him: “The hoard-guard waited restless until evening came; then the barrow-keeper was in rage: he would requite that precious drinking cup with vengeful fire” (Donaldson 40). The dragon destroys the land and kills everyone around. The dragon even destroys Beowulf’s home.
Beowulf, a mortal human, is described with “God-sent strength” (2184) and as being one of the strongest men alive. While the dragon is a monster and a representation of greed and wrath, he still manages to kill Beowulf. As Beowulf is dying, Wiglaf tries to keep him alive through splashing water on him, yet it is to no avail: “Much as he wanted to, there was no way / He could preserve his lord’s life on earth / Or alter in the least the Almighty’s will. / What God judged right would rule what happened / To every man, as it does to this day” (2855-2859). It was Beowulf’s fate to die fighting the dragon. Although some might minimize Beowulf’s achievements due to the fact that they were decided by God, there was no divine intervention or help from God, making Beowulf’s accomplishments completely of his own free will. The dragon too met its fate by dying at the hands of Beowulf. When Beowulf’s men come back to see Beowulf’s body, they see the dead dragon lying next to him: The serpent on the ground, gruesome and vile, / Lying facing him. The fire-dragon / Was scare some burnt, scorched all colors. / From head to tail, his entire length / Was fifty feet. He had shimmered forth / On the night air once, then winged back / Down to his den; but death owned him now, / He would never enter his earth-gallery again ” (3039-3027). The poet emphasizes the beauty of the dragon throughout the passage, describing how
Beowulf outlines turmoil between three opponents: Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the Dragon. These separate discords each serve to fulfill different metaphoric purposes. Grendel’s character epitomizes the adverse persona of how an Anglo-Saxon warrior should not be. His mother represents everything that a woman during the time era should seldom be. Lastly, the Dragon embodies all the values that an Anglo-Saxon king should not dare retain. Without a doubt, the symbolic implications of the monsters in Beowulf bring the context to a new level of understanding.
Beowulf’s life was truly epic struggle. The monsters he battled made it so. Grendel and the dragon, capable of crushing men physically, stood for evils that could just as easily crush men in spirit. These two beasts represented society’s greatest fears, as well as detriments, and Beowulf fearlessly took them on. Grendel taught the hero a valuable lesson about maintaining one’s humanity in a world dominated by the dogs of war. The dragon, showed Beowulf’s mortality, his imperfection, but the hero eradicates it nonetheless, saving his people from not only physical threat, but sin. Bringing in such spiritual and moral dimensions, these two beasts certainly give the story of Beowulf depth.
The epic poem, Beowulf, depicts the battles and victories of the Anglo-Saxon warrior Beowulf, over man-eating monsters. The noble defender, Beowulf, constantly fought monsters and beasts to rid the land of evil. The most significant of these monsters, Grendel, represents Beowulf's shadow, the Jungian archetype explored in the essay collection, Meeting the Shadow.
The society that he terrorized was happy and always rejoicing. “As now warriors sang of their pleasure/ So Hrothgar’s men lived happily in this hall… (11)”
Hrothgar and the Danes hold a celebration after they finished of their new mead hall, named Heorot. During the celebration Grendel, a monster in the swamps, hears the loud cheers of the Danes singing and chanting as the festivities take place. Grendel becomes furious from
Beowulf begins with Grendel attacking the Danes out of vengeance and hatred. Grendel is the relative of Cain which means that he is outcast to eternal darkness as punishment for the crime of Cain killing his brother Abel. Therefore, when Grendel hears laughter in the hall named Heorot, he is angry and a little envious, so he goes on a killing spree in order to put an end to the warriors’ happiness. Because of Grendel’s attack upon the Danes, Beowulf arrives in order to put an end to the killing spree: “And now alone I shall settle affairs with Grendel the monster, the demon” (Donaldson, p.8). The author offers no other solution to solving this issue with Grendel but battle, and after the battle is fought and Beowulf wins, Grendel’s hand is preserved as a trophy. Beowulf is rewarded with gifts for his courage, and now the Danes are at peace.
The battle with Grendel represents the youth of Beowulf's life. The typical youth is very brave and fights for fame. Beowulf shows how the battle with Grendel is a representation of the youth of Beowulf's life by going to Hrothgar and asking him if he can fight Grendel for him and his people. Beowulf shows this trait when he says,
When the story begins, Beowulf has gone to the land of the Danes to kill Grendel for the people, not for the glory. Beowulf brings his own hand picked, group of soldiers with him throughout his battles, and refuses to allow help from others. Beowulf also tells the readers he will not use weapons unless necessary. Before the battle against Grendel, a Denmark officer states, “A chosen warrior who bravely does battle with the creature haunting our people, who survives that horror unhurt, and goes home bearing our love” (ln. 210). Also, when Beowulf’s men abandon him in the battle against the dragon, he does not choose to run in fear, but to continue fighting. In this moment much like in his past, Beowulf shows how honorable he really
The first fight depicted in the poem is between Beowulf and Grendel, who is described as a “cruel spirit” and an “unhappy being” (102-4). Grendel is a monster descended from Cain (106-7), who murdered his brother and was condemned by God. Grendel attacks the Hrothgar’s kingdom because he is envious the joyfulness of Hrothgar’s mead hall (86-99), thus Grendel represents envy. Beowulf fights Grendel without neither weapon nor armour because he is fair and brave. He fights against Grendel to save other people, not because of any personal gain, which shows his generosity and. He believes in God and thus is worthy of his strength. Beowulf is considered the strongest man on earth, therefore he does not envy. As a result, Beowulf easily wins the fight and kills Grendel (808-814). This first fight shows that there are similarities between Christian heroism and pagan heroism. Even though Beowulf is a pagan, his courage, kindness and aversion towards envy are eviden...
The dragon lands among Beowulf body and bites his ooze out his neck, Wiglaf rushes to Beowulf side. Wiglaf stabbed the dragon in the stomach, causing the dragon to lash out with flames of hell. Lifeless Beowulf grabs a knife out his belt and stabs into the dragon deeply into the dragon flank. Already to late Beowulf started to realize the dragons bit was venomous and he was dying. Beowulf sends Wiglaf to retreat the the dragon's treasure.
Beowulf wants to prove his strength to the people, and he wants fame, while he is away fighting with Grendel. He shows everyone, including the Queen his strength. While she praises him for defeating Grendel, she also ask him to remember the rights that her sons have while living in the Danish kingdom. “Be acclaimed for strength, for kindly guidance to these two boys, and your bounty will be sure.”( Anonymous 1219-1220). Grendel also has some intrinsic motivations. For example, Grendel hated when the danes were happy, therefore he decided to attack the danes. It is also motivated by his evilness. “The monster relished his savage war On the Danes, keeping the bloody feud Alive, seeking no peace, offering No truce, accepting no settlement, no price In gold or land, and paying the living For one crime only with another. No one Waited for reparation from his plundering claws: That shadow of death hunted in the darkness, Stalked Hrothgar's warriors.”(Anonymous 86-94). Grendel usually only has intrinsic motivations, because he does not like anyone, and anger is within yourself not within other people. Therefore, he does not have many extrinsic motivations. On the other hand, Beowulf does have some extrinsic
Good and Evil- The entire poem of Beowulf deals with the battle of good verses evil, good being Beowulf, his followers, Hrothgar, and Hrothgar's people, and evil being Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon. In this poem the power of good overcomes all the evils, but not without the lose of life. These lives include that of Beowulf, Aeschere, and many of Hrothgar's people. The clashing of good and evil forces was the main method of creating interest and suspense in the poem.