Female Characters In Beowulf

Beowulf is an Old English poem written somewhere between the eighth century and the tenth century; the culture of Germanic times is depicted through varying concepts of masculinity that not only describes their capability as a warrior, but also their aptitude as a leader. Beowulf shows of a demon named Grendel attacking Heorot, and the king, Hrothgar, calls Beowulf, a warrior, for help with the slaying of Grendel. Characteristics and qualities of leadership are directly linked to the masculinity of the characters within Beowulf. The leaders in the prologue are demonstrated with the aspects of masculinity through their strength and brutality. In Beowulf, a man demonstrates his essential worth through evidence of masculinity as seen in Unferth’s cowardice, Beowulf’s heroism, and Wiglaf’s bravery.

Grendel’s mother is portrayed in a negative and objectified image. First, she has a sexual appeal. Grendel’s mom wears no clothes; her skin is gold, which covers her body. She is half woman and half monster. She has a promiscuous look that draws in attention from the opposite sex. In addition, she has a sexual attitude. Right when Beowulf enters the

The second female role in this text is the Lady of the manor, Sir Bertilak de Hautdesert's wife. The Lady first appears in this text in stanza 18: "She was the fairest of all

Beowulf is an epic tale written over twelve hundred years ago. In the poem, several different female characters are introduced, and each woman possesses detailed and unique characteristics. The women in Beowulf are portrayed as strong individuals, each of whom has a specific role within the poem. Some women are cast as the cup-bearers and gracious hostesses of the mead halls, such as Wealhtheow and Hygd, while others, Grendel's mother, fulfill the role of a monstrous uninvited guest. The woman's role of the time period, author's attitude, and societal expectations for women are evidenced throughout the poem.

In Beowulf, Wealhtheow and Hygd were both queens and hosted functions and events for the kings and the tribesman. Queen Wealhtheow, wife of Hrothgar, was well known as the mistress of Heorot Hall. Her main concern was that her son 's, Hrethric and Hrothmund, became the rightful heirs to the throne in the possibility of the king 's death. Wealhtheow was fearful that Beowulf would attain the throne for himself. Hygd, wife of Hygelac, was wise and intelligent in her role as queen, but was worried about the ability of her heir to rule the kingdom after her husband 's death. Queen Hygd offered Beowulf the crown, but he convinced her to award her son, Heardred, the honor of becoming King

Women have had many different roles in the history of European literature but have generally been restricted to the roles assigned to them in a largely patriarchal society. As a result of this society, these roles have often been powerless ones. This calls into question the constitution of a powerful woman in literature: in Beowulf, being a powerful woman means becoming the bond between families and alliances; in Lanval, power comes from assertion and control-- a powerful woman is a woman in charge. The primary difference between the representation of women in Beowulf and Lanval is that the latter transcends overarching patriarchal boundaries, and the former does not; the reason for their respective representations lies in the literary time periods in which the stories were written. From this, one can see that the introduction of romance as a central theme gave way to new representations and roles of women in predominantly heteropatriarchal English literature and gives new meaning to the analysis of stories like these.

Within the pages of the well-known epic poem are many extraordinary and warring narratives of the Middle Ages. Beowulf is important because it is one of the most ancient European epics written in the vernacular, or native tongue. The seemingly super natural heroes of this exciting and famous writing have a great impact on the typical roles of their women. As declared through out the many lines of the astonishing poem, the women have many purposes and serve a variety of roles. Wealhtheow, Hygd, Hildeburh, Freawaru, and Grendel’s Mother give examples of the historical roles that are expected of the women of this ancient time. The women in “Beowulf” have the significant roles of hostess, peaceweaver, and mother.

    Throughout the epic Beowulf, the importance of male heroism is far exceeding than that of the significance of women. The idea that women are obedient and docile is a likely thought in medieval Britain, although the women of Beowulf  are different, being known as noble, powerful, and assertive. Throughout the text there are major women that play integral roles in society: Grendel's Mother, and Hildeburh. “These women entertain, bring peace, and contradict societal expectations of the female gender, either directly or indirectly, … and illustrate the major roles for the women in the society: the Peace-weavers, and the Goaders ” (TheDomesticBeast). Although there is little mention of women throughout this epic, their fundamental roles within the society were clearly immense.

Beowulf and “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” are both narratives in which gender acts as an important theme within their individual communities; yet they use different tools to define the roles of men and women within a good community. Or, in other words, both stories paint a vivid picture of the role of women, by suggesting that one gender had more power over the other. However, these two narratives vary in their expression of such views; Beowulf conveys its message through what is missing, while “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” incorporates satire and uses explicit narrative when relaying the experience of a woman that is highly different from that of other women of her time. Furthermore, another difference that is apparent to the reader is that men become the heroes in Beowulf, while “the wife” becomes

The poet’s conclusion of Wealhtheow’s speech further encourages the idea that she holds no real command to begin with, and even the words that are supposed to be hers in the poem, have derived from the poet’s skill at writing, and not her ability to address the company. In contrast to Wealhtheow’s speech, the passage of the Lady’s speech in SGGK starts with the Lady talking, and ends correspondingly. This shows an apparent shift in the five centuries separating the two poems. Though the poet introduces the Lady “ ‘I should like by your leave’ said the lovely lady” (SGGK l 1508), this is mainly to verify that the speaker is the Lady and not Gawain, and draws no power or attention from the Lady, because the lines come after the Lady has spoken. Here the Lady’s power has become more assertive, and does not require the crutches of an introduction and conclusion to her speech, and her influence can be felt through her words alone, without an outside influence to reinforce her authority. This influence can be seen in how she uses her words as a weapon to manipulate Gawain and eventually convince him to accept the Green Sash and break his loyalty to the host.

In her foundational study “Language, Sign and Gender in Beowulf,” Gillian Overing focuses on female signification into Anglo-Saxon culture. She states that since Anglo-Saxon culture is war and death-oriented, women are not a natural fixture of the heroic system—thus, none of the peace-weavers in Beowulf are successful at the task. She asserts that the women who function as peace-weavers are either silent, are not given acknowledgement for their work, or disappear

Beowulf is known for displaying the importance of male heroism via Beowulf, but what about the significance of the women in the poem? The significance of women in Beowulf is overshadowed by the great heroism of the character Beowulf, but the women each have a reason for participating in the epic. The ideal woman was someone who was a noble, a mistress and loyal. An ideal woman is described in Maxim I: “at mead drinking she must at all times and places approach the protector of princes first, in front of the companions, quickly pass the first cup to her lord’s hand”. The significance of women in Beuwolf is a minor detail in the epic, but proves to be vital to Beuwolf. The epic of "Beowulf" illustrates three major roles for the women in the society: the hostess, the peacemaker, and the monster. Five women in Beowulf play the major roles throughout the epic: Wealhtheow, Freawaru, Thyrth, Grendel's Mother, and Hildeburh. These women entertain, bring peace, and contradict societal expectations of the female gender, either directly or indirectly.

As an epic tale of heroes and monsters, Beowulf gives its readers much excitement and adventure, but Beowulf's importance is more than just literary. It offers many insights into the beliefs and customs of seventh-century Anglo-Saxon culture. Among these insights is the Anglo-Saxon view of women and their role in society. Good Anglo-Saxon women are peaceful and unassertive, greeting guests and serving drinks to the warriors and other men in the meadhall. Wealhtheow, the queen of the Danes, represents a typical subservient Anglo-Saxon woman. As a foil to Wealhtheow, Grendel's mother is a strong and combative monster whom Beowulf must kill. By analyzing these two characters in Beowulf, we can understand the

The Anglo-Saxon wife was in charge of the store-rooms of the house; offering the cup may have symbolized the generosity of the royal couple (Page 72). Wealhtheow and Hrothgar's daughter, Freawaru, also shares in the cup-bearing, perhaps as a sign that she is of age to take on the duties of managing the household (she is already engaged to be married to the king of the Heathobards). While presenting Beowulf with the gifts, Wealhtheow takes the opportunity to ask Beowulf to be a "kind counselor" and "kind friend" to her sons. She also speaks to Hrothgar, telling him that she had heard that he was considering "having this hero [Beowulf] as a son" and to "make use of generous rewards... but leave the people and the kingdom to your kinfolk" (Hieatt 47). In other words, she asks him not to take gratitude too far and name Beowulf heir over their own sons. That she is bold enough to make both requests without hesitation or question shows that she was accustomed to authority and had some power of her own. Another indication of the power wielded by queens is the respect accorded to Hygd. She is beautiful, wise and young. Beowulf gives her the necklace that Wealhtheow had given him as well as three horses. That may have been a gesture meant to win her support within the court.

Another female character in the poem is Wealhtheow, and without a doubt we notice that she is a female who is respected and admired, being the wife of King Hrothgar, Queen of the Danes: “Applause filled the hall./Then Wealhtheow pronounce in the presence of the company” (1214-1215). There is a great contrast between Grendel’s mother and Wealhtheow.