The Influence Of Beowulf In Today's Society

Beowulf is the earliest surviving epic poem written in a modern European language. It was written in Old English sometime before the tenth century A.D. The poem describes the adventures of Beowulf, a Scandinavian warrior of the sixth century. Beowulf is described as a perfect hero who fights for his people and gets rid of

that will stick forever, loyalty, courage, and bravery. Now today, older traits are still being withheld but they are portrayed within diverse types of heroes. Loyalty, courage and bravery are with“Whether ancient or modern, the distinctive characteristic of the heroic figure… ‘Is willing to risk death.’” (acculturated.com) Heroes are willing to face the fear of constant violent death and embrace fate to have inner peace or exceptional value within themselves. The model hero in ancient times was the type to kill and conquer just to be remembered whereas today, things have shimmered down. Beowulf’s effectiveness as a modern-day hero has taught us something that will stick forever, loyalty, courage, and bravery.

After reading the epic poem Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel, one would see culture from the Anglo Saxon civilization. Taking a glance into the America’s pop culture you would see a parallel universe between the two. A parallel universe basically is a world much like another, with slight differences. When looking at American cultural values, one could find similarities and differences, while looking at the Anglo Saxon civilization.

The Importance of Beowulf in Modern America By Jennifer Carley Modern culture and literature include many stories of great heroes and fictional adventures. Many people grow up reading about these great adventures and looking up to the heroes of the stories. Heroes are great roll models because they are portrayed as courageous and trustworthy individuals, two very admirable qualities. Despite numerous cultural and technological advancements, life in modern America continues to bear resemblance to the Anglo-Saxon world of the hero Beowulf. The poem Beowulf, though written many centuries ago, still contains the same universal themes of any great action-adventure story in today's society. The poem is about a great hero who overcomes seemingly

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.

Most of us have heard of modern day heroes such as Spiderman, Superman, and the Hulk. Each is a hero to many children. Heroes are introduced to people early on in life usually as fictional characters, but as children grow older their perceptions of heroes alter. The characteristics of a hero are usually based around the ideas of a society or culture. In the epic Beowulf, the main character is thought of as a hero. Beowulf, a pagan warrior and the main character of the epic, shows certain characteristics such as bravery, loyalty, and generosity, which portray him as a hero. It is interesting how modern day heroes show the much of the same qualities as Beowulf.

Throughout humankind, many heroes have impacted world’s history. Some are true stories while some have become legends. These storied are retold over and over due to the hero, which shows a common

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

This essay is the comparison between Beowulf and the modern day hero. All soldiers that are fighting for my country certainly comes to mind first, when I think about a modern day hero. Both hero’s are fighting for a good cause, get rewarded for what they do, and get treated with much respect. Although a soldier might not withhold unworldly strength as one such as Beowulf, they both are putting their life at stake, which gives them both the title as being a hero.

Beowulf and Grendel are two different stories, and characters, who look at the same situation in polarized ways. Each character has their own story that is written from different time periods: the Anglo-Saxon time period and America in the 1970’s. Both of these time periods have different attributes that make them special; the Anglo-Saxon time period consists of the literary movement of the epic poem and America in the 1970’s consists of the literary movement known as postmodernism. Beowulf is shaped by the Anglo-Saxon time period through its use of the heroic code and religious influences and Grendel is shaped by the American 1970’s time period through its use of metafiction and an unreliable narrator.

"A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow men."

Beowulf: A New Telling is a book for people that need reassurance that light will overcome darkness and that we need to accept that we have some darkness inside of us, then our weaknesses can become our strengths. Beowulf has to face many faces of evil, including Grendel, the cruel slimy creature who murders Beowulf’s friends and She, the wife of Cain and malicious monster that lives at the bottom of a pool of blood. He becomes king of Geats and is famous all throughout the land.

What are the challenges of the Anglo-Saxon life, that Beowulf faces? The strongest competitors Beowulf faced were Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon.

“A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous

A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back