Anglo Saxon : The Role Of Women In Anglo-Saxon

Another part of the text which is evidence to Grendel not being the monster he is made out to be, is the relationship dynamic between Grendel and his mother, and also his mother’s actions after his death. The actions of Grendel’s mother are not those of a monster, but those of any normal woman who has children. After her son was killed (murdered and then part of his body was taken as a trophy), she just wanted to seek revenge. “But now his mother/ had sailed forth on a savage journey,/grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge.” (1276-1278). Grendel’s mother displayed the emotions of complete sadness and despair over her son; it seems more of a human response rather than that belonging to a monster. Considering that the bond of a mother and son is supposed to be the strongest bond of all, her actions after his death are in a way justified. It is easy to see that the character of Grendel is much more than just a monster through his mother’s subsequent actions of taking down Grendel’s arm from hanging in Heorot, and feuding (in her own way she was trying to feud, to obey the code as it was in this time. When she went to Heorot to seek her revenge, she did not

A further example of Wealctheow being treated as a sexual object is right before Beowulf fights Grendel. If Beowulf kills Grendel, then Hrothgar will reward him with prizes. Hrothgar says to Beowulf, “If you destroy my Grendel for me, she’ll be yours forever and ever and ever.” The king is going to reward the hero with his precious horn and his precious queen. Wealctheow is clearly treated as an item in this situation. Later when Hrothgar commits suicide, the queen is passed on to Beowulf. She goes from king to king like an object. Wealctheow would be nothing without a king. As she gets passed along, the queen becomes a pawn and becomes more and more detached. Her resistance dies down as she is passed from king to king. When Beowulf is king, she acts very gloomy the younger woman tells Weachtheow, “What happened to us? Too many secrets.” Also, Weachtheor’s expression and tone of voice is very disconnected. Her resistance to Hrothgar ends up being useless because she still doesn’t gain equality at the end of the movie. The queen looses power because she isolates herself from the king and society.

Wealhtheow exists as the main female protagonist in the poem. She does not enter as a character until she is needed to fulfill her role as the cup-bearer for the first feast at Heorot. She is well-respected within the mead hall and in return respects the men of the hall "adorned in her gold, she graciously saluted / the men in the hall, then handed the cup / first to Hrothgar, their homeland's guardian" (ll. 614-616). However, as Wealhtheow continues her rounds of serving, it becomes apparent that Wealhtheow has more power than that of a common cup-bearer. This is evidenced when she is able to speak to the guests of the mead hall, and receives a respectful response from the guest of honor, Beowulf. In addition to the respect that she is given, it becomes apparent that Wealhtheow is well spoken and perhaps well educated: "With measured words she welcomed the Geat / and thanked God for granting her wish that a deliverer she could believe in would arrive / to ease their afflictions" (ll. 625-628). These descriptions of Wealhtheow's presence within the mead-hall show her obedience to her lord, Hrothgar, as well as the respect she has earned from the people fulfilling her role as gracious

Grendel’s mother is a swamp-hag who lives in a desolate lake. She comes to Heorot seeking revenge for her son’s death. She murders Aeschere, who is one of the king’s best friends and most-trusted advisers. After murdering him, she sinks back down into the lake to return to her house. Beowulf decides to pursue her into the lake to fight her in the underwater house. Beowulf kills her with a sword that was made for a giant. After killing her, he discovers Grendel's body in her underwater house. He cuts off Grendel's head and brings it back to the king as another prize to hang in the mead-hall as a

Within the pages of the well-known epic poem are many extraordinary and warring narratives of the Middle Ages. Beowulf is important because it is one of the most ancient European epics written in the vernacular, or native tongue. The seemingly super natural heroes of this exciting and famous writing have a great impact on the typical roles of their women. As declared through out the many lines of the astonishing poem, the women have many purposes and serve a variety of roles. Wealhtheow, Hygd, Hildeburh, Freawaru, and Grendel’s Mother give examples of the historical roles that are expected of the women of this ancient time. The women in “Beowulf” have the significant roles of hostess, peaceweaver, and mother.

    Throughout the epic Beowulf, the importance of male heroism is far exceeding than that of the significance of women. The idea that women are obedient and docile is a likely thought in medieval Britain, although the women of Beowulf  are different, being known as noble, powerful, and assertive. Throughout the text there are major women that play integral roles in society: Grendel's Mother, and Hildeburh. “These women entertain, bring peace, and contradict societal expectations of the female gender, either directly or indirectly, … and illustrate the major roles for the women in the society: the Peace-weavers, and the Goaders ” (TheDomesticBeast). Although there is little mention of women throughout this epic, their fundamental roles within the society were clearly immense.

She is the reason why Grendel doesn’t kill during the winter. Grendel’s obsession with Wealtheow gets dangerous. Since he has never seen someone so pure, so beautiful it makes him angry. It also makes him angry that she could keep peace between two kingdoms and between all of the men. The more he studies Wealtheow the angrier he gets. One Night, he storms through the meadhall doors killing men along the way to the Queen’s room and snatches the Queen from her bed. During his attack on her, he ripped her out of bed by her feet as if he was going to split her in half. He wanted to kill her but he was torn by his feelings for her. He was "tortured by the red of her hair and the set of her chin and the white of her shoulders" (108). He wanted to "cook the ugly hole between her legs, and squeeze out her feces with his fists" (109). He let go of the Queen’s feet to justify that the people’s theories of him were incorrect and unjust.

Beowulf is an epic poem that connotes the contents of the world including history, terrorism, different cultures, and gender roles through the life events of the character Beowulf. Among the contents, gender roles played a significant role throughout the story of Beowulf. In the story, the conceptions of the male and female roles are emphasized through the diverse characters, which give a glimpse the similarity and dissimilarity of the gender roles in modern-day society. During the post-war era, the women's characteristics and attitudes of the roles in society were circumscribed and unnoticeable, but the men's roles compare to the women's roles were desirable and prosperous. However, gender roles in the modern-day society, the new generations, distinctly altered the roles compared to the post-war era just as Beowulf, who represents older generations, passed as Wiglaf, who represents newer generations, approached. While the gender roles in Beowulf's era were restricted and definite, the gender roles in modern-day society are unconstrained and diverse compared to Beowulf's age that can be proved by historical and global evidence.

Thus, a second hint leading readers to assume that it was a male-dominated society comes into play when talking about identities. In the story of Beowulf, everyone is identified by being the son, daughter, or the wife of a particular man. Even the only officially introduced woman is referred to as “Grendel’s mother.” Thus, she has no name, or at least she is not identified by it. The reader again realizes that value of women is set in relation to men. A similar kind of identification is exemplified in the title of “The Wife of Bath’s Tale”: referred to as a “wife”. Even before starting to read the story, one is introduced to Alisoun as the wife of a man. And until very late on in the story, one does not learn her name. Additionally, the queen, who seems to wield the most power in the tale, lacks her name and identified as being the “queen” of a man. All of these examples show that the image of a woman as a “mother,” “wife” or a “queen” was more important than her individuality as a person during medieval

Grendel’s mother: Griselda, I cannot imagine how hard it must be for you. You are having a tough time because of your husband! How dare he makes you naked in front of everyone and ride horse as a test? Although it is a test to make sure you are a righteous woman, but it is a shame to treat you like that. I know Hrothgar 's queen is the one every man thinks of righteous and beautiful, I do not think she has any autonomy! Hildeburh, daughter of the Danish king Hoc also did not do anything but mourn when she her son and brother were “killed in the first battle with [her husband]” (1259). I understand that they had to be submissive and be quiet for if they refuse to offer themselves as a pleasing gift of men, they will be treated like Great Queen Modthryth who punished a man if he ever look her in the face (1279). Still, it is not a tolerable behavior of him to see you low because of your class. Why were you so silent? I heard that he killed your children, and still you were silent? I revenged since I could not stand Beowulf, and that made me feel better even though I failed.

The roles Anglo-Saxon women played in their society depended on the status they had in their community. As in most cultures, the roles of women in Anglo-Saxon society included mother, wife, caregiver, and teacher. Because Anglo-Saxon women had many different roles, I will only focus here on marriage, divorce, and their daily life in their society.

The major women that appear in Beowulf are: Wealhtheow, Hildeburh, Freawaru, Thyrth and Grendel’s mother. Wealhtheow and Hygd are the only two female characters whom are royalty. Wealtheow and Hygd are seen as hostesses; rather she is the instrument that reaffirms social customs and publicly establishes the status of the men who are in the presence of the king

As an epic tale of heroes and monsters, Beowulf gives its readers much excitement and adventure, but Beowulf's importance is more than just literary. It offers many insights into the beliefs and customs of seventh-century Anglo-Saxon culture. Among these insights is the Anglo-Saxon view of women and their role in society. Good Anglo-Saxon women are peaceful and unassertive, greeting guests and serving drinks to the warriors and other men in the meadhall. Wealhtheow, the queen of the Danes, represents a typical subservient Anglo-Saxon woman. As a foil to Wealhtheow, Grendel's mother is a strong and combative monster whom Beowulf must kill. By analyzing these two characters in Beowulf, we can understand the

The most prominent role of women throughout the poem is devoted wives and queens, which is reflected in the portrayal of Queen Wealtheow. When she is first introduced, Wealtheow “went on her rounds, queenly and dignified, decked out in rings, offering the goblet to all ranks, treating the household and the assembled troop” and then “with measured words she welcomed the Geat and thanked God for granting her wish that a deliverer she could believe in would arrive to ease their afflictions” (lines 620–28). The anonymous poet paints a picture of Wealtheow as gracious, regal, and put together, everything that an ideal queen should be. Not only is she physically perfect, but she is also an ideal hostess – one who tends to everyone, welcomes guests warmly, and ensures that everything is running smoothly for her husband. Later in the poem, Wealtheow gives a toast, “enjoy this drink, my most generous lord; raise up your goblet, entertain the Geats duly and gently, discourse with them, be open-handed, happy and fond” (lines 1168–71). Similar to this one, Wealtheow often gives speeches or toasts throughout the poem, something that, though not entirely masculine, is usually reserved for kings to give to his

Another female character in the poem is Wealhtheow, and without a doubt we notice that she is a female who is respected and admired, being the wife of King Hrothgar, Queen of the Danes: “Applause filled the hall./Then Wealhtheow pronounce in the presence of the company” (1214-1215). There is a great contrast between Grendel’s mother and Wealhtheow.