The Epic Of Beowulf And Grendel

Many of classic epic poems and novels have been transformed into movie films in the past decade; however, these films can easily start a devastating debate. The epic poem of Beowulf was written as an Anglo-Saxon tradition that displays loyalty, kinship, and heroism. Beowulf was a hero that murder monsters, while traveling to assist the King of Danes, Hrothgar, by destroying Grendel and his mother. In the original epic, Beowulf is described as a true hero to the kingdom of the Danes. The film displays Beowulf’s competence as a problem rather than a solution. Although both the epic poem and the movie adaption follows the same storylines, they contain similarities and differences based on the theme, courage, and different style of fighting.

deciphered. Beowulf being pure good, and Grendel being pure evil. One of the reasons of

Beowulf has delighted and intrigued a wide array of people for centuries. The timeless nature is visible in modern-day extensions of this epic, through heroics and battles of good versus malevolent forces. Beowulf continues to appeal to sophisticated audiences because it tells the story of a great hero prevailing over evil, a timeless theme valued by society and portrayed by his counterparts in modern media, although these new heroes display more complex qualities.

Whether you are arguing with your siblings, with a stranger at a baseball game, during a debate, with your parents or children, you are fighting for what you believe is right. You perceive yourself as the “victim” in the situation by trying to justify your reasoning behind the argument. Some people may perceive you as the good or as the evil because they believe that you have done nothing wrong, you were being perverse or fighting for the wrong reason. The epic poem Beowulf, is a super-eminent literary example that represents the good and evil in the characters and what they are fighting for. In this fictional poem, in which the author is unknown, the protagonist Beowulf encounters three major battles with a monster named Grendel, Grendel’s Mother, and a dragon. Each character is fighting for a certain reason and believe their reason is more dominant. The two audiences that view the characters as good or evil is the Danes and the narrator. Since the characters in the poem believe they're justified in their actions, they prove to not be all evil or all good. In fact, they should be judged based on the rationale behind their actions to fight.

Beowulf, a hero, which is a savior figure. He stands up for a cause and belief against great odds. When Beowulf was composed, England was changing from a pagan to a Christian culture. Beowulf reflects both pagan and Christian traditions. In this essay, I will compare the 2007 British American 3D motion film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Neil Gaines And Roger Avary, and also the book version mentioning the personality of Beowulf, Grendel, Grendel’s mom and the battle with the dragon. In the movie and poem Beowulf’s personality is shown differently and expressed in a different form. In the movie and poem Beowulf there was many differences and similarities that were noticeable such as the portrayal of Grendel’s mother, Grendel being the son of Hrothgar, and Beowulf’s battle with the dragon.

The story of Beowulf is a heroic epic, chronicling the distinguished deeds of the great Geatish warrior, Beowulf, who travels across the seas to rid the Danes of the evil monster Grendel, who has been inflicting destruction and terrorizing the kingdom. Beowulf is glorified for his heroic deeds of ridding the land fiendish monsters and stopping the scourge of evil, while the monster, Grendel, is portrayed as a repugnant creature who deserves death for its evil actions. However, many have disagreed with such a simplistic and biased representation of Grendel and his role in the epic poem. John Gardner in his book, Grendel, sets out to change the reader’s perception of Grendel and his role in Beowulf by narrating the story through Grendel’s point of view. John Gardner transforms Grendel, once perceived as an evil fiend in Beowulf, into a lonely but intelligent outcast who is actually quite similar to humans, due to his intelligence capacity for rational thought and his real, and at times irrational emotions. Gardner portrays Grendel as a hurt individual and as a victim of oppression, ostracized from civilization. Although the two works revolve around the same basic plot,, the themes and characters in Beowulf and Grendel are often different and sometimes contradictory.

The poem does not give this insight of what happens before, or from Grendel's point of view. Seeing this scene in the movie gives the audience a better understanding of why Grendel and also his mother attack the Danes. Later in the movie Beowulf says, "He's no more human than you and I", which is true. If the Danes didn’t kill Grendel's father, the outcome of the story could have possibly been changed because Grendel would have had a different life and not seek revenge on the Danes, specifically the one who Grendel had seen kill his father. In the poem Grendel fights Beowulf, rather than avoiding Beowulf most of the time in the movie. In the poem, Grendel is seen as an evil monster that kills and eats the Hrothgar warriors and cannot be penetrated by weapons, rather than just human, or troll, like the movie. When the battle with Grendel occurs in the poem, it is said that Beowulf had cut off his arm to defeat him. While in the movie, Grendel finds himself stuck hanging, and must cut off his own arm to escape from Beowulf and his men. Both the movie and poem result in the death of Grendel, eventually leading to the revenge of his mother.

In what other book is the monster, the character with more nobility? Both monsters, Grendel and Beowulf, are brave in what they do but being brave is not all it takes to be noble. Grendel is more noble than Beowulf because of the truth he portrays through what he believes in, the perseverance he has when put into a dangerous situation or position, and the fidelity he shows toward his mother.

The particular scene I wish to cover would have to be the fight between Grendel and Beowulf, the defeat of Grendel. In Beowulf, during the Fight with Grendel, Grendel is coming once more to feast upon the men of the grounds of Hrothar. Though unbeknownst to him, it is a trap, and Beowulf is lying in wait to defeat the beast. The fight is well detailed, and Beowulf wins and takes Grendel’s arm as a trophy, having got it by ripping it off with his bare hands. As it is stated here, “Yet he bought his freedom At a high price, for he left his hand and arm and shoulder to show he had been here” (Heaney, line 969, 971). The fight is fairly the same, the screeching and yelling, and Beowulf’s impossible human strength. He’s a

Unlike in Beowulf, Grendel is not a simple-minded creature who wrecks innocent lives just for the sake of doing so. There is this inner struggle within him; Grendel is a misfit and battles with his own identity and where he fits in the world. He refuses to see his own value and instead wonders what life would be like if his role in the world were different. After a discussion with someone of his kind, the dragon, Grendel realizes he cannot change who he is, so he must embrace it instead. The difference between the novels is not Grendel’s actions, but instead the omission of inner conflicts leading up to those actions. The other main scene that brought out the changing description of Grendel was the time of Grendel’s death. In Beowulf, the event was more focused on the victory for Beowulf instead of the death of Grendel. “Beowulf was granted the glory of winning; Grendel was driven under the fen-banks, fatally hurt, to his desolate lair. His days were numbered, the end of his life was coming over him, he knew it for certain; and one bloody clash had fulfilled the dearest wishes of the Danes”(Heaney 55). The death of this monster was seen as a huge relief and victory for the Danes and started a long period of celebration and praise for Beowulf. This achievement created a reputation that would stay with Beowulf for the rest of his life. The entire war proved to the people how strong Beowulf was and left Grendel to be remembered as a barbaric monster who in the end

The story of Beowulf portrays Grendel as this ignorant, bloodthirsty killing machine. "Grendel 's hatred began, /...the monster relished his savage war/ On the Danes, keeping the bloody feud/ Alive, seeking no peace, offering/ No truce, accepting no settlement, no price/ In gold or land, and paying the living/ For one crime only with another. No one/ Waited for

9. BEOWULF is set in a male-dominated world full of violence and danger. What role does

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.

If one read closely, one can discover the influence Anglo-Saxon and Medieval literature had on J. R. R. Tolkien when he wrote his first notable novel, The Hobbit. Tolkien had always enjoyed reading, and teaching literature from past decades, especially the Anglo-Saxon “Beowulf” and the Medieval “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.” To introduce the plots of these tales, Beowulf is a Geat warrior who set out with his men on a boat to the Danish land to save civilians from monsters. After arriving to his destination, Beowulf boasted about his achievements, and promised the people of the land he can rid the area of evil. Beowulf successfully defeated two monsters and became king of the Geat’s. Toward the end of his reign, the aged Beowulf faced his final battle which determines the fate of Beowulf’s life. Furthermore, Sir Gawain is a knight of a king named Arthur. During a dinner in the Arthur’s castle one night, a mysterious green knight visited the castle and challenged a game upon the people of the castle. Out of all king Arthur’s knights, a very brave Sir Gawain stood up to play the deadly game, (which would stretch for a year and a day), so no one else would have to risk their life. While Gawain’s deadline approaches, he begins his journey to find the Green knight, and finish the game as promised. On his expedition, he must avoid temptation and stay true to his beliefs in order to make it out of the game alive. Finally, in The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins is an ordinary hobbit

In this poem, heroic actions occurred with lies and betrayal. Beowulf, the leader of the Geats, was a unique hero who sailed over the sea to the Danes. He was very strong and brave that he accepted every challenge that was requested. Nobody was self- confident and full of himself like Beowulf. He had 3 fights including Grendel, Grendel’s mother and the dragon. Beowulf faced many challenges and obstacles; however, the textbook and movie had its differences.