Psychologically Complex Beowulf

Throughout the old English poem of Beowulf, Beowulf displayed numerous characteristics and traits that revealed if he was a static or dynamic character. His pride, greed, and courage were consistent throughout the entire story. Therefore, Beowulf manages to stay a static character throughout the heroic poem, that is, a character whose traits and characteristics remain the same throughout the entirety of a story.

The epic Beowulf tells the tale of a legendary archetypal hero named Beowulf who slays the evil monsters that terrorizes a foreign king’s kingdom as well as defeat a terrifying dragon that has plagued his homeland. By listening to the story of Beowulf, Anglo Saxons could learn about their ancient values of bravery, loyalty, and the heroism needed to defeat the evil monsters; these epic heroes were the self-portraits of their cultures. Beowulf is the manifestation of the Anglo Saxon values: bravery, physical strength, fame, loyalty as a follower, and generosity as a leader.

These first 300 lines of Beowulf do a decent job setting the stage for the entire epic. They present the readers with historical background, introduce the first main conflict, and set the general mood of the entire story. In other words, the readers are lead into a seemingly hopeless situation where all anyone really needs is a hero, and Beowulf is just the warrior for the job.

that will stick forever, loyalty, courage, and bravery. Now today, older traits are still being withheld but they are portrayed within diverse types of heroes. Loyalty, courage and bravery are with“Whether ancient or modern, the distinctive characteristic of the heroic figure… ‘Is willing to risk death.’” (acculturated.com) Heroes are willing to face the fear of constant violent death and embrace fate to have inner peace or exceptional value within themselves. The model hero in ancient times was the type to kill and conquer just to be remembered whereas today, things have shimmered down. Beowulf’s effectiveness as a modern-day hero has taught us something that will stick forever, loyalty, courage, and bravery.

Beowulf is an ancient English poem that tells the tale of a young, brave warrior and the victories he obtains throughout his lifetime, up until his death. He is widely regarded as a hero throughout the lands and honorably puts his life on the line multiple times. Throughout the poem, Beowulf’s reasoning for being a hero changes. He begins his journey wanting to be a protector of people, a savior of humankind, but as the poem progresses, there is a distinct change in motivation for Beowulf, becoming more about craving glory and victory over his opponent as opposed to out of pure kindness. Beowulf conveys through this change that while it is worthwhile risking his life and being a hero in order to save his people and carry out his family

Beowulf, originally a tale told only orally by poets, is one of the oldest and well known pieces of surviving English literature. An example of a great epic poem, the plot surrounds a courageous warrior king with super-human strength who defeats demonic monsters. Besides the allure of a hero who reflects the warrior ideals of Anglo-Saxon society, the imagery and poetic nature add to its appeal to people across time. Specifically, the symbolism of light and dark, kennings to describe the courage of heroes and the evil of monsters, and the descriptions of setting make the poem captivating.

Beowulf and Grendel are two different stories, and characters, who look at the same situation in polarized ways. Each character has their own story that is written from different time periods: the Anglo-Saxon time period and America in the 1970’s. Both of these time periods have different attributes that make them special; the Anglo-Saxon time period consists of the literary movement of the epic poem and America in the 1970’s consists of the literary movement known as postmodernism. Beowulf is shaped by the Anglo-Saxon time period through its use of the heroic code and religious influences and Grendel is shaped by the American 1970’s time period through its use of metafiction and an unreliable narrator.

Beowulf is an epic poem being cited as one of the most important works of Old English literature. Beowulf is an Old English epic poem. The poem is set in Scandinavia. Beowulf, a hero of Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead hall in Herot has been under attack by a monster named Grendel. After Beowulf slays him, Grendel's mother attacks the hall and is then also defeated. Victorious, Beowulf goes home to Geatland and later becomes king of the Geats. After a period of fifty years has passed, Beowulf defeats a dragon, but is mortally wounded in the battle. After his death, his attendants cremate his body and erect a tower on a headland in his memory. Beowulf is clearly a hero because of his brave deeds, he is a strong and responsible leader, and his courage. Beowulf is a hero because of his brave deeds. Throughout Beowulf, Beowulf does many deeds which are considered to be brave during the Anglo-Saxon period.“Grendel is no braver, no stronger/Than I am! I could kill him with my sword; I shall not,Easy as it would be. This fiend is a bold And famous fighter, but his claws and teeth.../ Beating at my sword blade, would be helpless. I will meet him With my hands empty-unless his heart /Fails him, seeing a soldier waiting /Weaponless, unafraid. Let God in His wisdom /Extend His hand where He wills, reward /Whom he chooses!”. In his first battle, Beowulf fights Grendel. He fights without any armor. Also, Beowulf kills Grendel’s mother. He then

Beowulf is a character that exudes the qualities of an epic hero. Throughout this epic, Beowulf is seen as a hero to many and a major threat to the evils he encounters. The values of the Anglo-Saxons, who would have read and admired this poem, included loyalty, bravery, and honor. Beowulf’s character exemplifies all of these qualities to the highest degree. The values and traditions of the original composers of this story cause Beowulf’s character to be the perfect example of an Anglo-Saxon epic hero.

The epic poem Beowulf was written in Old English by in unknown author in England during the eighth or ninth century. This poem takes place in Scandinavia during the beginning of the sixth century and illustrates the idea of a traditional Anglo-Saxton hero. Beowulf is a god like hero who courageously sets out to defeat the monster Grendel as a way to repay his father’s debt. He also increases his heroic status by defeating Grendel’s mother and the dragon. Reputation and a person lineage is a theme used throughout the poem to describe kings, thanes, and monsters, and is the only thing Beowulf values the most. Because his father had already tainted the family name, and with the loss of the swimming match against Breca, Beowulf feels the need to push the limits of a hero in the fights against Grendel and Grendel’s mother to ensure that his reputation lives on.

Beowulf is a story of a fearless hero named Beowulf who has many different traits, some good while some bad. His courage and pride make up his good traits, while his greedy strive for glory and being extremely cocky make up his bad. In my opinion, Beowulf manages to stay a static character throughout the epic poem, his character doesn't change even when he is a very old man. In the battle of Grendel, we see a very confident and prideful Beowulf, who brags about his power and might before the battle. Though he did not get the chance to take Grendel on one on one due to the monster's ambush, Beowulf still managed to kill Grendel, showing his immense courage and fearlessness. We see this from Beowulf throughout the entire story and with many events.

Beowulf is an interesting, old English epic poem. Often referred to as one the most important works of Old English Literature. The author of the poem is unknown, but the date the poem was made into a manuscript is c. 975 – 1010 CE. Although, the manuscript was damaged from a fire in 1731. The poem of Beowulf is set in Scandinavia c. 700 – 1000 CE. It starts with Hrothgar, king of Danes building a mead hall for his loyal followers. Then Grendel, the monster hears everyone’s joyfulness and is over come with jealousy. The over jealous Grendel decides to attack the men in their sleep. No one is brave nor strong enough to stand up to Grendel either. This goes on for 12 years until a young warrior by the name of Beowulf over hears of Hrothgar’s troubles.

The epic Beowulf has many parallels to fairy tales. Examples of this include the promotion good deeds, Beowulf being an archetype for a hero and the contrast of Grendel being an archetype of a villain.Even in the vary beginning of the story Beowulf is described as “the strongest of men” and as a “warrior”, both are ways the Anglo-Saxons would describe heroes in their time. Beowulf has all the likeable and charming qualities of a hero, in the epic everyone he meets finds him courageous and likeable. Just as heroes in fairy tales represent what a society holds high, Beowulf represents the quality’s that the Anglo-Saxons held high; such as strength and courage. In contrast to Beowulf being a great hero, Grendel is described as a terrible villain.

Beowulf is a poem that tells the story of a hero’s victories and defeat, first killing a demon and his mother and after being defeated by a dragon. This poem shows how spectacular epics were at this time and as the Anglo-Saxon literature took a long a long time ago. Furthermore it shows how important and recognized the heroic deeds were, so much to the point to write about the hero with qualities and characteristics that were a little overdone such as the strength of Beowulf that with one fist he tore Grendel's arm off. In the epic, the reader can witness that willpower and loyalty are more important than physical strength in battle as these allow him to be willing to face a very strong and terrifying enemies and defend his principles and friends.

In the epic poem, Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney, it is said, "Behavior that's admired is the path to power among people" (Beowulf 5). That being stated, it is very apparent throughout the entirety of the story. The main character, Beowulf, quickly comes to a position of power once defeating multiple atrocities and executing numerous heroic deeds. The people in the city admire Beowulf and abide to his ways; but once offered kingship, he declines. Throughout the epic poem, it is obvious that Beowulf would rather be a hero than a king because of the individual representation that comes with it, the rewards, and the self-reliant aspect.