The Value Of Vengeance In Beowulf

Another part of the text which is evidence to Grendel not being the monster he is made out to be, is the relationship dynamic between Grendel and his mother, and also his mother’s actions after his death. The actions of Grendel’s mother are not those of a monster, but those of any normal woman who has children. After her son was killed (murdered and then part of his body was taken as a trophy), she just wanted to seek revenge. “But now his mother/ had sailed forth on a savage journey,/grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge.” (1276-1278). Grendel’s mother displayed the emotions of complete sadness and despair over her son; it seems more of a human response rather than that belonging to a monster. Considering that the bond of a mother and son is supposed to be the strongest bond of all, her actions after his death are in a way justified. It is easy to see that the character of Grendel is much more than just a monster through his mother’s subsequent actions of taking down Grendel’s arm from hanging in Heorot, and feuding (in her own way she was trying to feud, to obey the code as it was in this time. When she went to Heorot to seek her revenge, she did not

revenge.The characters in the book, they all have their own survival skills also have their own revenge plan .Beowulf fight for his people in the country;Grendel’s mother revenge for her son; Wiglaf fight for his King and loyalty; They all did really good revenge for their own people, for their family and for their loyalty.In the epic poem Beowulf, the idea of vengeance is exemplified through the actions of Beowulf, Grendel’s mother and Wiglaf.

Beowulf proclaims “In the blackness of night, hunting monsters out of the ocean, and killing them one by one; death was my errand and the fate they had earned. Now Grendel and I are called together” (liens 156-160). Beowulf claims that he must go to defeat Grendel, as it was his errand, or his duty, and his fate. This speech he makes to King Hrothgar reinforces his true reason to come to the King, not for any pride. Another vow Beowulf makes is when he says “That this is one favor you should not refuse me—That I, alone and with the help of my men, many purge all evil form this hall” (lines 163-166). In this line, Beowulf is pleading for the King to do one thing, which is to give him the permission for him and his men to go and fight Grendel, what Beowulf had arrived for. The fact that Beowulf asks the king for only one thing, which is to fight Grendel, shows Beowulf’s selflessness and concern for the safety of others. At no part does he ask for a reward, but even says that if fate is in favor of Grendel to give his armor back to his family. These words help paint the image of Beowulf being concerned for others, not for his

It was a lot of hate and revenge going on between the characters in Beowulf. The poet of the epic poem Beowulf used revenge to drive to the poet. To illustrate the plot of Beowulf the author added many cases of vengeance starting with Beowulf vs. Grendel.

Beowulf, the defender of Hrothgar and Heorot, exhibits far more complicated (and less sincere) shades of revenge than the Grendel’s mother. At the end of the day, Beowulf’s goal is to become the preeminent warrior in all the land. In his society, the only way to gain such widespread celebrity is through courageous and self-endangering acts. Beowulf masks these deeds with a façade of seeking revenge; he supposedly comes to Heorot to save the Danes from Grendel’s terror, but his true motives lie in becoming a hero. His reward is not the pride of doing a good deed; Beowulf is rewarded with lavish and expensive gifts.

Beowulf is humbled after fighting Grendel. Before fighting Grendel Beowulf was over confident and cocky. He believed that he was the greatest and did not realize the extent of the challenge of fighting Grendel. Although Beowulf won the battle he did not kill him in the mead hall as he had intended. Before Beowulf fought Grendel he thought that he could “alone… purge all evil from [the] hall… /[and is so great that he needed] no weapons and [feared] none.” (431-434). During the fight no matter how “hard… [Beowulf] held him he still pulled free” (928). “Grendel escaped,/ But wounded as he was he could flee to his den” (819-820). Beowulf did not have the skill set to kill Grendel as he first predicted, he seriously injured him but did not kill him in the mead hall. Beowulf learned that not everything is as easy as it may seem. The result of the fight humbled Beowulf. Fighting Grendel gave Beowulf perspective and taught him not to act egotistical, and to never underestimate your opponent. The lesson Beowulf learns is reflected in his actions throughout the rest of the story. When praised for his accomplishments, Beowulf did not boast or act superior, he accepted his loses and celebrated his wins among the rest of the Danes.

Throughout the book Beowulf by Seamus Heaney there were many instances of revenge demonstrated by different characters. An example of when a character tries to get revenge is when Grendel’s mother comes to fight Beowulf. Grendel’s mother shows up to fight Beowulf since Beowulf had previously killer her son in battle. Another example of when a character exacts revenge is when Grendel comes to fight Hero and his people. Grendel wants revenge because he strongly dislikes Heorot and the cultural practices of the Danes. Next, at the end of the book the dragon attacks due to an accidental theft of a treasure that was the dragon’s. In the poem Beowulf, which was written, by Seamus Heaney, it is human nature to demonstrate the concept of revenge which was shown by Grendel, Grendel’s mother, the dragon, and Beowulf.

The next major battle will occur with Grendel’s mother, who wants to get revenge for her son. She shows this in a number of ways, such as murdering

Grendel of course only knew revenge for what God did to him so it’s ironic and coincidental that his mother seeked revenge for him also. Whether she won or not she stood up and battled like any mother would do. She didn't care how popular Beowulf was she did what it it took to feel some sense of happiness for her son.

In this quote, Beowulf believes that it would be cowardly to fight Grendel with a sword and that facing him with only his hands is the only way to do it right. The word “struggle” really shows how an Anglo-Saxon life must be lived. In Anglo-Saxon culture, you had to show signs of struggle for everything you owned or else it would seem as though it were “illegitimate” and others would look down upon you if items or positions were just given to you. Those who take vengeance with courage are thought deserving of the wealth they get from those of high social status according to Anglo-Saxon culture. A courageous warrior can earn quite a lot and you can see this after the defeat of Grendel and Hrothgar states “ And take, in return, whatever you may want from whatever I own. Warriors deserving far less have been granted as much, given gifts and honored, though they fought no enemy like yours. Glory is now yours forever and ever; your courage has earned it, and your strength” ( Beowulf pg,43]. Hrothgar is telling Beowulf that anything he has is his. Beowulf showed great strength and courage when fighting Grendel and because of that, Hrothgar believes that the glory Beowulf has earned is now unassailable. Hrothgar uses words like “courage” and “strength” to show real admiration for Beowulf. He knows that these are the words that warriors like to hear and what the Anglo-Saxons revere

The first major battle that Beowulf fights in is against Grendel. Beowulf’s motive for this particular fight is to get revenge for what Grendel did to the Danes. Grendel raided the Danes for a total of twelve years. As we learned throughout the book Beowulf was very selfless and was always willing to help out other people. When Grendel comes to Heorot, he devours and kills a Geatish warrior all while Beowulf watches very closely. After this, Grendel tries to reach out and get Beowulf, but is surprised to find his arm gripped with the great strength of Beowulf. Grendel tries to run back to his home in the swamplands because he knows that he will not be able to compete with the mighty Beowulf. At the end of the battle Beowulf summons great strength and rips Grendel’s arm off his body. Grendel, now fatally wounded, goes back to his home and eventually dies. Beowulf holds up the bloody arm of Grendel like a trophy and hangs it on the wall in Heorot as proof that he defeated Grendel. Around the

First, Beowulf shows his loyalty to human kind when he defeats Grendel, a monster who terrorizes King Hrothgar's men. Beowulf formulated an intricate plan to defeat the monster who continuously attacks Hrothgar's men, while they were sleeping at the mead-hall. When Beowulf encounters Grendel, when he attacks the mead hall, he is described as,“flooded with fear-but nothing could take his talons and himself from that tight hard grip”(Beowulf,435) This shows the negative emotions and pains that Grendel experiences as he confronts Beowulf, his most powerful adversary. The strong grip that Beowulf squeezes Grendel by can be interpreted as Beowulf’s loyalty to the people who have been constantly terrorized by Grendel, and also the amount of anger

While Beowulf has not defeated Grendel yet, Hrothgar warmly welcomes Beowulf and makes him as comfortable as possible to prepare his fight with Grendel, because Hrothgar understands clearly that without Beowulf’s help, he cannot protect his people.

The character Beowulf embodied the Pagan heroic code (comitatus), but he also exhibited Christian values. Overall, he was a warrior and a hero who sought fame and reputation. Most of his actions were motivated by his desire to be remembered after his death as a courageous and loyal warrior. When Beowulf hears about Hrothgar’s trouble he goes to help him. He wants to help him for a few reasons, all of which relate to the comitatus. He wants to acquire fame and he wants lifelong honor. By beating Grendel he would receive honor and his reputation would be enhanced. Also, Beowulf wants to repay Hrothgar for settling a feud for his father years before. Beowulf is willing to do battle for the old king even though it means that he could die.

After defeating Grendel Beowulf enjoys the celebration and rewards that Hrothgar has treated him to. Beowulf earns the respect of the whole kingdom of Heorot. A few nights later Grendel’s mother learns that her son was killed by a human. She comes angrily back to the mead hall where she will take vengeance for her son. “But now his mother had sallied forth on a savage journey, grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge” (pg. 89). Grendel’s mother is another stage in Beowulf’s step toward an older warrior. Before the great battle with Grendel’s mother, Beowulf was a little bit more mature and was not as confident. “Beowulf got ready, donned his war-gear, indifferent to death; his mighty, hand-forged, fine-webbed mail would soon meet with the menace underwater.” (pg. 101) He needed armor because he feels that it wasn’t the kind of battle he would face without his necessity to survive. After a long fight Beowulf finds the strength in him to grab the weapon that would kill Grendel’s mother. Once again good has defeated evil. Beowulf comes through as a hero one more time before his departure from Heorot.