Beowulf Literary Elements

“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.

1. Find an example of a literary device and write the example. Be sure to label what device it is and explain how your example fits the description.

The poem Beowulf presents the transformation of Beowulf from a brave warrior to an honorable King. The evolution of Beowulf shows how he fulfills his obligations to the warrior’s heroic code and then transcends into a King who loyally protects his Kingdom. Beowulf’s transformation is shown through a progression of three increasingly more difficult conflicts he must overcome- first with Grendel, then Grendel’s mother and finally against the mighty dragon. These three events are seen "as the three agons in the hero 's life"(Chickering 64). Through these adverse events Beowulf will change from brave young warrior to noble King. This paper will examine the manifestation of heroism in the poem

John Leyerle, Jane Chance, and J.R.R. Tolkien all offer different and valuable insight to their respective depictions of Beowulf’s structure. While Chance and Tolkien are accurate in terms of the representation of the monsters and historical references in Beowulf, Leyerle’s argument offers a more inclusive and whole depiction of Beowulf’s structure. Leyerle describes the structure of Beowulf as interlacing. Leyerle’s essay is more cogent than Chance’s and Tolkien’s through the definition of interlace, the significance of digressions, and historical allusions presented in the poem.

Beowulf is a classic tale about a Hero from Geatland who goes on a quest to conquer a powerful demon who is terrorizing a neighboring kingdom. He overcomes many trials along his way and discovers new monsters as the story progresses. Although it may not seem like it, but Beowulf isn't just an epic poem written centuries ago that has no connection with life today. Beowulf is a tale that can be taken and applied to any event in life and learn from it. Somethings in life are categorized in red while we live in a black in white world, and it's easy to take those red things and relate them to Beowulf and his story.

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.

Beowulf remains one of the most important works of English literature though it was written centuries ago. One reason for this fact is that many of the themes that it touches on are still pertinent in today's extremely different society. One of the most prevalent themes found in Beowulf is the importance of the heroic code. Much of this epic poem is dedicated to conveying and exemplifying the heroic code which values such attributes as strength, courage and honor. Conflicting with this ideology are other factors such as Christianity, and these tensions affect the lives and decisions of the narrative's characters.

Beowulf is a classic story whose author is still unknown to this day. This epic poem was written as early as the 8th century. It displays the age-old concept of “good vs. evil” through the use of two characters battling one another throughout the entire story. Beowulf’s protagonistic qualities are displayed through various ways to show just how “good” he actually is.

Even though we do not know the author of Beowulf, and even doubt that there was only one author, it remains an important piece to the puzzle of the past. As a linguistic piece the novel shines light on the revelations and controversies of the olde English language. It also gives insight into olde english social life and politics. The dialogue shows us important verbal cues of the time period and how the language relates to the interpersonal relation of the social strata of the era. There is also a non-fictional component to Beowulf in the fact that many of the characters in the book had real historical counterparts.

Novelist and scholar J.R.R. Tolkien’s disputed against Friedrich Klaeber’s allegations that “Beowulf lack’s steady advance” by declaring that “the poem was not meant to advance, steadily or unsteadily. It is essentially a balance, and opposition of ends and beginnings.” Based on both of their opinions, it seems that they disagree on the poem Beowulf. Although they both have opposing opinions it seems that they analyzed it differently. Klaeber’s thought it was lacking the potential it could’ve had if it had all the components of what a great poem should be. Tolkien disagrees that it might not have all the things it must have, but it has everything it needs to be a great story.

The heroic epics of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight represent warrior and knightly ideal hero of bygone times; Sir Gawain displays chivalric and knightly values, while Beowulf displays a warrior hero’s values. Beowulf tells about Beowulf’s fantastical killing of the monster Grendel and Grendel’s mother. Tales of heroes are usually fantastical rather than realistic, but in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Sir Gawain’s brave quest and morally exhausting trails are more realistic. The physical context and cultural ideals of Beowulf, the warrior hero, are primitive and fantastical; while the physical context and ideals of Gawain, the chivalric hero, are sophisticated and relatively realistic.

An explosive battle cry fills the great Hrothgar’s mead hall, instructing the Anglo-Saxon warriors crowding it to erupt in laughter and joy. The jubilant feast, however, quickly turns deadly when the ghastly Grendel sweeps in and tosses the warriors about as if they were simple trinkets. It is then that the English language’s oldest archetypal hero, Beowulf, rushes in. The epic poem that emblazons his deeds, Beowulf (author unknown), exhibits that he has the quintessential traits of every literary hero: intrepidness, fortitude, loyalty, etc. Yet even in his journey through life, his personality fails to burgeon beyond his box of heroic adjectives. In the epic poem that bears his name, Beowulf can be classified as a static character, for he

    There is considerable debate as to whether the poem Beowulf is an epic narrative poem or an heroic elegy. Which is it. This essay intends to present both sides of the story.

The epic tale of Beowulf was written sometime after his death. In other words, a long time ago during the Anglo-Saxon period. Today, directors in Hollywood did not keep from creating their own rendition of this epic poem As a result, plenty of modern interpretations of Beowulf, such as Sturla Gunnarsson’s Beowulf and Grendel, have been released. Naturally, the cultural values that might be reflected in modern Beowulf renditions will demonstrate a clash with those of the original fifth century Beowulf literature. One reason for this is that in the modern age we value characters with profound characteristics, characters that change due to the challenges they experience; characters that we as the audience can attach to. Flat characters like those of the original Beowulf text are difficult to empathize with since they are not realistic enough for our standards. Due to these differences in culture and values, the Beowulf and Grendel from the original Beowulf text possess definite contrasts when compared with their Beowulf and Grendel counterparts.

The poem of Beowulf is one of the earliest recorded pieces of literature in history, written at an estimated time of around 1000 A.D. and set in the pagan world of sixth-century Scandinavia. Disregarding the poem’s age, the writing uses many of the same literary devices people use modern day-- such as kennings, alliteration, and caesura. Kennings are compound expressions used in Anglo-Saxon writings that have a metaphorical meaning. For example, the word sea-traveler could be used to describe a boat. Alliteration is when there is a repetition of words that start with the same letter. Caesura is a type of verse unique to Anglo-Saxon, Greek, and Latin literature that breaks the text into two with each side sharing a similar number of syllables to create an intense, ominous tone of rhythmic sound. With the use of these three devices, pictures are painted in the minds of readers, and characters are both directly and indirectly developed to enhance the story. Often in this epic poem, courage is expanded upon and interpreted in different ways with the use of these tactics.