Essay on Beowulf

In the epic Beowulf courage is an on going theme that is shown throughout the entire story. By definition courage is the state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger, fear, or vicissitudes on ones own will and determination. There are many things form the epic that could be used to prove this statement, but I chose to use the section entitled "The Final Battle." In this section there are two great speeches given by both Beowulf and Wiglaf. I believe that in both of these monologues courage is portrayed by the two warriors, and it is easy to see why.

Our beloved Beowulf passed away on the 19th day of October on the 789th year. At the young age of 79 he passed in his lovely castle just outside of Scandinavia. His death was the product of a fatal neck wound given to him by the malevolent dragon that terrorized our town. Luckily before his death he and his cousin Wiglaf brought the dragon to its own death saving our town once again. This was one of many and sadly his last great achievement. Throughout Beowulf’s life he achieved a multitude of glorious things. Whenever he was just a youngling barely out of his teens he joined the tribe of Geats and quickly rose through the ranks as one of the strongest. Around his twenties Beowulf was called on by the the king of the Danes, Sir. Hrothgar of

Beowulf faces the internal conflicts, self concern and betrayal, when he is much older and king. Even though he was much older he decided to battle a fire dragon because he was his people’s hero. Though Beowulf had helped so many people when he was young and strong, none of his comrades came to help him. Instead, they ran for their lives. “And only one of them remained, stood there, miserable, remembering as a good man must, what kinship should mean.” (Beowulf 43) Beowulf and his one comrade, Wiglaf, kill the dragon, but Beowulf is injured and soon dies. The last internal conflict Beowulf has before he dies is the betrayal of his people.

Joseph Campbell’s term monomyth can be described as a hero’s journey. Many heroic characters follow the monomyth, no matter the time period or culture the literature was created in. The poem Beowulf is known to follow the adventure of the hero described in Campbell’s monomyth . The hero’s journey consists of three rites of passages: separation, initiation, and return. Beowulf endures each of these stages throughout the epic poem, so his journey does follow Campbell’s monomyth.

Being a hero can be defined many different ways. Several qualities like courage, respect, and strength can define heroism. A hero is noted for his or her actions for being brave, powerful, and acting with honor. In the epic poem, Beowulf, the main character Beowulf shows all of these characteristics by defending the Danish king, Hrothgar, and his people. He is a true hero by honoring his country and exerting his power and strength to protect others. Beowulf embodies the qualities of bravery, being powerful, and demonstrating his honor; therefore, he can be considered a true hero.

Beowulf is an epic poem that, above all, gives the reader an idea of a time long past; a time when the most important values were courage and integrity. The only factors that could bestow shower fame upon a person were heroic deeds and family lineage. Beowulf, as the paradigm of pagan heroes, exhibited his desire to amass fame and fortune; the only way to do so was to avenge the death of others. This theme of retribution that is ever present throughout the poem seems to color the identities of its characters.

“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

Beowulf sacrifices his life numerous times, unafraid and prepared. In the beginning, our warrior faces a beast named Grendel, who inhabited a neighboring kingdom. During his face-off with the monster, Beowulf makes the decision to fight without weapons. Although this decision seems ignorant, the hero found it honorable, due to the fact that Grendel didn’t wield any weapons. Beowulf ended up taking the beast's arm and making him flee as he bled out to his inevitable death. Sometime later, the kingdom’s king, Hygelac, died. Beowulf, the nephew of Hygelac, took the throne. A true sacrifice as he gave up his normal life and took on an entire kingdom into his hands. The people welcomed him and he ruled well for 50 years. Nearing the end of those years, someone agitates a dragon, causing massive chaos. Beowulf decides to investigate, bringing men with him.

Many readers of the poem Beowulf may find it difficult to distinguish the 'good' kings from the rest – indeed, almost every man who holds a throne in the epic is named at one point or another to be 'good'. By examining the ideals of the time period as identified by the 'heroic code', it becomes clearer that a truly 'good' king is one who generously distributes treasure and weaponry to deserving retainers to honour courage and strength displayed in battle and to encourage the defense of the kingdom (Intro). When Beowulf ascends the throne of the Geats, the heroic traits of courage and strength for which he was so highly praised as a warrior do not serve well in making him a good king. Indeed, by exhibiting the traits of a thane, that is, by

Beowulf’s life has come to an end when he fights the dragon because he is fated to die in this battle. When fighting the dragon, Beowulf is losing he is old and weak and this dragon, when he breathed flames which were hot enough to burn his shield, and Beowulf had no comrades to help him because they all ran, and no weapon because it broke. . Beowulf fighting the dragon, was very wounded by this dragon his “mouth was silent, spoke no more, he said as much as it could; he would sleep in the fire, soon. His soul left his flesh, flew to glory” (825-825). The fate of Beowulf was now pretty apparent to him even though he tried to fight it there was no way of winning against that beast. That would be Beowulf’s last battle, he was now dead and according to Anglo-Saxon beliefs he was always fated to this way of death was because it was inevitable.

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

Throughout the entirety of Beowulf, Beowulf goes from being a young, nimble warrior to being a hardened and respected King of his own kingdom. When Beowulf was younger in the first part of Beowulf he was sort of cocky in a way. He knew that he would always defeat whatever he was to be up against without any hesitation. He knew this because he would pray to God for guidance before every fight. At this point in Beowulf’s life, he was not noble in the sense of character. It was not until Beowulf grew older until he realized the hardships of living during the Anglo-Saxon era. Beowulf recognizes these hardships in the wake of the time jump of fifty years: “A lot was to happen in later days in the fury of battle. Hygelac fell and the shelter of Heardred’s shield proved useless against the fierce aggression of the Shylfings: ruthless swordsmen, seasoned campaigners, they came against him and his conquering nation, and with cruel force cut him down so that afterwards the wide kingdom reverted to Beowulf. He ruled it well for fifty winters, grew old and wise as warden of the land--,” (Beowulf, 77). During these fifty winters Beowulf sees the fall of a kingdom, and he rises in order to become the king of the very same kingdom that fell. Even now, Beowulf must defeat a dragon that has awoken near his kingdom. Going into the battle, Beowulf knows that he will not come out alive. Beowulf sacrifices himself in order to

Every epic hero possesses certain heroic characteristics. Beowulf, like other epic heroes, possesses the following heroic qualities: epic heroes are superhuman types of beings. They have a noble birth and show great bravery. They display great intelligence and resourcefulness. They have a reverence for G-d and for the values of their society. They are dominant male figures and suffer severe pain, but in the end, they conquer evil (Vivone 9/27/99). In addition to Beowulf’s heroic qualities, he is very strong. Beowulf was said to have “the strength of thirty [men] in his mighty handgrip” (Bloom 11). Early proof of Beowulf’s extraordinary strength is evidenced by his dismemberment of Grendel’s limb, the fight in the cave under water, and the

Beowulf is an incredible, and at times unbelievable, hero who can and will attempt to defeat anyone to keep others safe. This will eventually lead to his death as he successfully defeats the Dragon. But as ruling king at the time his subsequent death leaves his people in a worse predicament than before. Now, without a just ruler, the kingdom will possibly undergo uncertainty and chaos as no heir to the throne is

Beowulf was a good person he decided not to fight with a weapon because it would bring the hero inside of him for fighting with his bare hands. Beowulf fought grendel to help the people and that brought the goodness inside of him. He also had to fight off Grendel's mother to protect himself, he wasn’t responsible for it she came after him. Beowulf ended up fighting the dragon to protect the people and ended up sacrificing his life by biting the dragon, trying to kill him. Another good person was wiglaf and he decided to help out beowulf fight the dragon and killed him. Got wiglaf left as a king and in charge of everything beowulf ever