Beowulf Function Essay

Have you ever wanted to kill your brother due to jealousy? Or kill people just for pleasure? Cain and Grendel have . Cain is the son of Adam and Eve. He is known for killing his brother Abel. He originated from the Bible from the book of Genesis. Grendel is a bloodthirsty monster who eats humans just for pleasure. He is also a descendent of Cain. He originated from the story of Beowulf, a Pagan Anglo-Saxons tale that was later re-written by Christian monks.

slime,” which is a allusion to the story of Cain and Abel. Henceforth Grendel was born into evil. Grendel was born as a monster into exile, his life was cursed because he was a offspring of Cain. According to the Bible, all of Cain’s decedents were punished by God because of him killing his brother. He was jealous of his brother because God accepted Abel's offering and not his. Therefore, Cain was thrown out of his family's land, and was an outcast. This is symbolic because Grendel is jealous of the joy of Hrothgar's people. This causes him to do evil or wrong by killing the people.. Thus Grendel symbolizes a lonely, jealous outcast like Cain. Not only is he evil in the inside but his eyes reflect his evil nature. "Grendel's eyes burn with a gruesome light". This shows that Grendel not only sees evil, but he yearns for it.

A lot of people have a routine. A pattern of events that makes their daily lives run with ease. People also have a keen eye for finding routines in the world around us. There are patterns in everything. In music, musicians tend to use the same couple of cords throughout their songs. In movies the hero usually ends up winning. This was a pattern noticed and outlined by Joseph Campbell in his book The hero with a thousand faces. The story will start with an ordinary world in which our hero’s parents are odd in some way. There is a call to adventure which is often initially refused. Then our hero meets a mentor who teaches him about his power. There are some trials and tribulations until the hero overcomes a supreme ordeal. Finally the hero returns

“There are two sides to every issue: one side is right and the other is wrong, but the middle is always evil.” – Ayn Rand. To fully understand the complex world and culture of the Anglo-Saxons, one must examine the only form of historical evidence available – texts. One particular great work from this time period is often underrated and overshadowed in modern society by many other ancient works such as Iliad or Oedipus Rex. The epic poem, Beowulf, was sung by multiple unknown Anglo-Saxon poets four centuries before the Norman Conquest. The theme of good versus evil was constantly reappearing throughout the storyline, the portrayal of evil and its downfall initially shaped the poem’s plot, and illustrates an alien presence; something that

When Beowulf and Grendel finally fight in Herot, the battle is similar to that of Jesus and Satan’s exchange of words in the garden of Gethsemane. Satan has tempted many men, but has never come across one so stubborn in his beliefs. Satan is unable to move Jesus and this shows Jesus’ triumph over the ultimate evil. Grendel, when he comes to Herot that fateful night is expecting an easy meal, but instead is thrown in face to face with a man of incredible strength and fighting skill. “That shepherd of evil, guardian of crime, knew at once that nowhere on earth had he met a man whose hands were harder…this was a different Herot than the hall he had emptied.”(433-439).

4. Write a short paragraph about something from the class reading that reflects Anglo Saxon culture and/or belief

1) Describe how we find King Hrothgar and his response to learning that Beowulf has come to his kingdom.

“No better king had ever lived, no prince so mild, no man so open to his people, so deserving of praise.” This is an ultimate description of the heroic events of Beowulf, an old Anglo-Saxon poem about a warrior who battles and destroys three horrifying monsters. Although written long ago, the emotions expressed within this work, emotions of bravery, valor, and ethics still speak to us centuries later. The anonymous author of the poem convinces us through the masterful use of various literary elements that emphasize its meaning and message. Conflict, imagery and setting are three literary elements that contribute to the effectiveness of the poem.

In the classic story of Cain and Abel, Cain killed his brother Abel through fluctuating emotions of envy and anger. In consequence of killing his brother, he was banished from mankind for eternity and left to live life away from everyone else surrounded by darkness and sin. As a result of him being the first in his family to kill, he was exiled for the sins he committed and given the mark of "Cain". His punishment regarding the mark of “Cain” is, it will also appear on his future bloodline and his descendants. Just like Cain, his descendants will be "shut away from men: they split into a thousand forms of evil--spirits and fiends, goblins, monsters, giants, a brood forever opposing the Lord's will and again and again defeated." (Beowulf Line 25). Therefore Grendel was created. As a result of Grendel being “Conceived by a pair of those monsters born of Cain”, (Beowulf Line 20) Grendel acts out in a very jealous, monstrous, crimeful way just as Cain did.

There are many metaphors for Beowulf’s sword, weapon, his hilt battle flame, the edge, his rare treasure, spiral patterned, precious in it class, shift and skel-edged all are references to his sword.

Grendel is described as having descended from Cain, a person in the bible who commits the first murder in the world. Grendel’s family are “murderous creatures banished / by god” which, in other words, means

In the epic poem Grendel, was a fiery and evil soul, he was said to be a direct descendant of Cain, Cain was responsible for the first murder in biblical times. Grendel was a ravaging beast. Who had a lust for blood and murder, As it was stated in the poem Grendel was a, “powerful monster, living down in the darkness, growled in pain, impatient.” (pg.39, ln.5). “He was spawned

After a long journey, you find yourself in uncharted territory. As you scout the area, you notice a small village off in the distance. Upon approaching this settlement, you are greeted by some armed townsfolk. They attack you without warning, and take you to a large hall in the center of town. There, you see many men parading around in an intoxicated stupor, showing off their trophies and talking of their success in past battles and wars. They eat with bare hands, ripping at the food and drinking until they can no longer handle themselves, finding a home on the open floor. The hall is dressed with weapons of war, from shields to swords and everything in between. The women are wrapped in chains, fulfilling their only purpose of serving the

Beowulf was an epic written more than twelve hundred years ago. Women characters are presented, and every woman has one-of-a-kind attributes. The women in Beowulf are depicted as hard working people, each of whom has a role within the poem. Throughout the epic, distinctive women do things such as serve mead, give speeches, and take care of the mead-hall. This shows how important women were to this culture.

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.