Role of Women in the Epic of Beowulf and Anglo-Saxon Society

A further example of Wealctheow being treated as a sexual object is right before Beowulf fights Grendel. If Beowulf kills Grendel, then Hrothgar will reward him with prizes. Hrothgar says to Beowulf, “If you destroy my Grendel for me, she’ll be yours forever and ever and ever.” The king is going to reward the hero with his precious horn and his precious queen. Wealctheow is clearly treated as an item in this situation. Later when Hrothgar commits suicide, the queen is passed on to Beowulf. She goes from king to king like an object. Wealctheow would be nothing without a king. As she gets passed along, the queen becomes a pawn and becomes more and more detached. Her resistance dies down as she is passed from king to king. When Beowulf is king, she acts very gloomy the younger woman tells Weachtheow, “What happened to us? Too many secrets.” Also, Weachtheor’s expression and tone of voice is very disconnected. Her resistance to Hrothgar ends up being useless because she still doesn’t gain equality at the end of the movie. The queen looses power because she isolates herself from the king and society.

Wealhtheow exists as the main female protagonist in the poem. She does not enter as a character until she is needed to fulfill her role as the cup-bearer for the first feast at Heorot. She is well-respected within the mead hall and in return respects the men of the hall "adorned in her gold, she graciously saluted / the men in the hall, then handed the cup / first to Hrothgar, their homeland's guardian" (ll. 614-616). However, as Wealhtheow continues her rounds of serving, it becomes apparent that Wealhtheow has more power than that of a common cup-bearer. This is evidenced when she is able to speak to the guests of the mead hall, and receives a respectful response from the guest of honor, Beowulf. In addition to the respect that she is given, it becomes apparent that Wealhtheow is well spoken and perhaps well educated: "With measured words she welcomed the Geat / and thanked God for granting her wish that a deliverer she could believe in would arrive / to ease their afflictions" (ll. 625-628). These descriptions of Wealhtheow's presence within the mead-hall show her obedience to her lord, Hrothgar, as well as the respect she has earned from the people fulfilling her role as gracious

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.

Men dominated the Anglo Saxon society and the people loved a great hero like that of Beowulf. They believed a hero should be a keeper of his promises, be boastful and produce

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.

In Beowulf, varying treatment among each gender is common. Therefore, mistresses are not allowed to perform actions that men were permitted and are required to enact based on society’s standards. Females are not retained from doing heroic deeds because of the structure of their body or the estimated weightlifting qualifications. However, the weakest of males are expected to excel through rigorous parts in their life to represent heroic traits they possess within unearthly powers as men of the Gods. Savage animals were not figurative in the passage, but were viewed just as real as a man’s sword. Without these monsters, the men could not have slain enough to be seen as inhumanly or superior compared to the average man. Males were constantly competing against each other in order to have a place among the Gods.

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

As the poems of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight show, women have always had power, yet not as overt a power as wielded by their masculine counterparts. The only dynamic of women’s power that has changed in the later centuries is that the confines and conditions in which women have wielded their power has become more lax, thus yielding to women more freedom in the expression of their power. The structure, imagery, and theme in the excerpts from Beowulf (lines 744-71) and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (lines 2309-30) support the concept of more power in the later centuries, by contrasting the restriction of Wealhtheow and the power she practices in Beowulf with the Lady’s more direct assertion of power in Sir Gawain

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.

However, as queen, Wealhtheow shows her intelligence and ability to control men, to some degree, despite her limited powers; accordingly, the author expands her role from that of a traditional Anglo-Saxon woman to include gift-giver and guardian of the throne. Following Beowulf's fearless victory over Grendel, Wealhtheow offers a toast to the Geats and gives Beowulf rewards for his heroism. She tells Beowulf, "Have luck with this neck-ring beloved Beowulf / accept these gifts gold-gleaming treasures / and use them well&emdash;may you win always / make known your strength and save for these boys / wise counsel-words&emdash;I'll reward you for that" (ll.1216-20). Wealhtheow cleverly uses this opportunity to safeguard her two children from Hrothulf, their mischievous older cousin. Should the king meet an untimely death, Wealhtheow needs to guarantee that Hrothulf

The most prominent role of women throughout the poem is devoted wives and queens, which is reflected in the portrayal of Queen Wealtheow. When she is first introduced, Wealtheow “went on her rounds, queenly and dignified, decked out in rings, offering the goblet to all ranks, treating the household and the assembled troop” and then “with measured words she welcomed the Geat and thanked God for granting her wish that a deliverer she could believe in would arrive to ease their afflictions” (lines 620–28). The anonymous poet paints a picture of Wealtheow as gracious, regal, and put together, everything that an ideal queen should be. Not only is she physically perfect, but she is also an ideal hostess – one who tends to everyone, welcomes guests warmly, and ensures that everything is running smoothly for her husband. Later in the poem, Wealtheow gives a toast, “enjoy this drink, my most generous lord; raise up your goblet, entertain the Geats duly and gently, discourse with them, be open-handed, happy and fond” (lines 1168–71). Similar to this one, Wealtheow often gives speeches or toasts throughout the poem, something that, though not entirely masculine, is usually reserved for kings to give to his

Throughout the poem, Beowulf, is characterized by his acts of heroism in the Anglo-Saxon society. He not only possesses the values of strength and bravery, but as well exhibits the theme of the “Germanic-Code” which include loyalty, chivalry, and self-respect. But it seems that his values of heroism leans

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.