Evil In Beowulf

Why does the poet of Beowulf choose to give human qualities and distinct territories to Beowulf’s monstrous rivals? In the epic, Grendel is a horrible, human-like monster and an outcast in the society. Grendel’s mother is another dangerous adversary of Beowulf because she feels the pain of her child’s death and desires to take revenge, which is similar to the way a human mother feels for her child. In addition to connecting the traits of the monsters to the humans, the poet also provides them a territory for their survival. In Beowulf, the poet’s purpose of bestowing human attributes and granting a residence to Beowulf’s opponents is to reflect that the in Anglo-Saxon society, everyone is respected, but the only elements that prevents one from

Iago is one of the most misunderstood villains in Shakespeare literature. We side with Othello from the start because his name is on the cover of our paperback, we read Othello when learning about heroes, so we expect Iago to be a villain, a ruthless manipulator. We don’t know why, he doesn’t state it plainly or in simple English, so we assume that he’s evil, that he’s just a disgruntled sociopath out to exact his exaggerated revenge on good and noble Othello. Iago’s misunderstood reputation is a result of not truly examining his character, and answering the “why” factor behind his actions. After all, everyone is innocent until proven guilty. His goal in the play was not just to destroy Othello for the fun of it. His objective,

Their friendship is a vehicle for Iago’s revenge. Iago is also very focused on himself. He is so wrapped up in himself and his anger that he does not care who he hurts. Most of the deaths in the play are collateral damage of Iago’s vengeance. Iago’s greatest characteristic is his outstanding knowledge of how people think and behave. This is his most useful skill. This ability is used throughout the events of the play to coerce the other characters into destroying each other. Iago does all of this without his fellows figuring out much about him or his motivation, though Iago himself does not seem to know his motivation.

In Othello, Iago is a villainous person who is filled with hatred, jealousy and an undeniable lust for power. He influences and manipulates everyone close to him for the sole purpose of destroying their lives.

Grendel, is thus seen as the descendant of an individual who epitomizes resentment and malice in Beowulf. The author states Grendel lives in exile and is seen as “mankind’s enemy”(Raffel, 22). Grendel is the representation of all that is evil and he is declared to be the “shepherd of evil and the “guardian of crime”(Raffel, 33) by the Danes in Beowulf. The author describes Grendel to be an evil, cruel, apathetic creature who’s pleasure lies in attacking and devouring Hrothgar’s men. The author describes Grendel’s malice by painting a gruesome picture of Grendel’s countless attacks on the mead hall in which he exhibits Grendel as a heartless, greedy, and violent being who mercilessly murders the men at the mead hall by tearing them apart, cutting their body into bits and drinking the blood from their veins. The author describes Grendel’s greed by stating Grendel’s thoughts were as “quick as his greed or his claws”(Raffel, 21). He describes Grendel’s as having eyes that “gleamed in the darkness and burned with a gruesome light”, swift hard claws and great sharp teeth which paints a picture of Grendel’s frightening appearance in the reader’s mind. In contrast to the traditional story of Beowulf, Grendel in John Gardner’s novel, Grendel is not depicted as a monster but as an intelligent creature capable of human thought, feelings and speech. John Gardner portrays Grendel as an outcast

Beowulf and Grendel depict the two ends of all that is good and all that is malicious. Beowulf being a warrior and part of the warrior culture, believes that what can be represented as good can be attributed to one’s individual reputation. Not only to Beowulf, but in the warrior lifestyle, it seems as that leaving a mark of bravery is an assurance to having a warrior’s memory live on even after they die. It is understandable especially with an occupation of being a warrior, Beowulf never knows when death is just around the corner. On the other end we have Grendel, the monstrous villain of this poem. While we portray Grendel as the villain and all that is evil in this poem, it can be said that Grendel was misunderstood. Grendel is an outcast,

Many stories have good vs evil themes, but Beowulf is the one that is most commonly known.

Iago mentions the strength of others wills, and notes how it is simple to change a person with willpower alone. He is then implying that the people who he can trick are inferior to him. In this way Iago is overly proud of his abilities and loves to put himself above his superiors. He is superior to them only his ability to plot complex schemes. His plan to destroy Othello is full of grandeur and risks. Iago sets long series of specific events into motion relying on luck to carry through some of the parts. He is very roundabout on bringing his plan to fruition. Rather than lying to multiple characters and stealing handkerchiefs he could have, just as easily, told Roderigo to kill Othello. However, he seeks to have superiority over his commanders, so in a way, he is trying to prove he is better than they by creating such complex narratives. His actions in this regard are very similar to

Evil is very compelling in every individual's life today. We let the evil get the best of us and usually instead of the evil becoming dead we are the ones that are dead. Here, today there are several reasons that evil compels each individual, but the main one is because humans are so sinful. We live in a world where evil is so popular, which people don’t think about.the harm it will cause they just go overlook it and go on about their day. Today’s society also make things that are bad seem fun, cool, and several persuades them into becoming a rebel which makes them look unpleasant. Not to mention all the evil weak-minded people like beowulf mentioned “by his hell-forged hands misery leaps,” about the environment they

This next part of Iago’s character plays an equally important role in the play. An article says that a “... superb ability of Iago is that he has an acute eye for his victim's weaknesses and exploits them mercilessly.” (“Villainous Role of Iago in Othello”). Iago is able to use the characters weaknesses against them for his own selfish reasons. While the audience is aware of Iago’s plan, the other characters are oblivious to his evil

     Good and evil is one of the main conflicts in the poem Beowulf. How is Grendel affected by the concepts of good and evil? Grendel is an alienated individual who just wants to be a part of something. His desire to fit in causes him to do evil things. Grendel is fascinated by the Shaper’s poetry. He often

Iago is not the typical villain in any story or play. The role he plays is unique and complex, far from what one might expect from a villain. Iago is not only very smart, but he is also an expert judge character. This gives him a great advantage in the play. For example, he knows Roderigo is in love with Desdemona and figures that he would do anything to have her as his own.

In Beowulf, the conflict between good and evil is the story’s most universal theme. The storyteller is very clear who is good and who is evil, Beowulf represents the good and the ability to act selflessly when help is needed from others. Good is also shown throughout the epic as having the ability to abolish villainy. Evil is presented by Grendel, his mother, and a dragon, whose purpose in life is to make the lives of humanity a little more miserable.

Iago's manipulative nature has a profound effect on the decisions made by other characters in Shakespeare's ‘Othello’. Through his relations with those around him Shakespear characterizes him as a man full of malice, vengeance and dishonesty that is wholly inspired by jealousy. Furthermore it would appear that Iago has an exceptional ability to scheme, a talent which he uses to snake his way into the lives of others and exploit them through their weaknesses. Whether he does this for profit or for pleasure is a separate issue.

Iago is considered one of the most evil and memorable villains in literature. In the first scene of the play, Shakespeare started the play with Iago complaining to Roderigo how he didn’t get the lieutenancy. Iago thinks that cassio became Lieutenant because he thinks Othello favors him and he is disapproving about Cassio being Lieutenant because Cassio only knows strategies not to fight. Because of this Iago mocks Othello to Roderigo. Iago calls Othello things like “Thick Lips” which is a racist word towards Othello. First, Shakespeare shows the villainy of Iago when Iago talks to Roderigo that he is just acting like he likes and obeys Othello but in real he hates and hiding his real emotions towards Othello. Also, Iago talks about deceitful people who acts like they are loyal when they are not are better than people who are actually loyal and devoted because deceitful people will be rich and become a master of their own but loyal servants won’t. Second, Shakespeare showed Iago’s villainy in the first scene when Iago told Brabantio that Othello married to Desdemona. This was an evil act because Iago betrayed Othello and turned him in because of his hatred towards Othello for not making him Lieutenant. Third, through these acts we as readers can infer that Iago will do more evil things for his benefits and for his