Unferth Analysis

Gardner emphasizes Unferth’s preference to end his life rather than fall short of his tribe’s heroic standards for him, to convey the inarguably harmful, and potentially fatal, effects of striving to exemplify society’s expectations. Gardner has Unferth immediately promote his epic persona, when meeting Grendel: “tell them in Hell that Unferth, son of Ecglaf sent you, known far and wide in these Scanian lands as a hero among the Scyldyings” (82). Unferth’s command to “tell them in Hell” reveals his primary motivation: to spread his heroism, both in the “Scanian lands” and the underworld. Gardner strategically places Unferth’s self-assured declaration at the beginning of his encounter with Grendel, to efficiently express his core rationale. Gardner contrasts the bravado of Unferth’s initial assertion with the cowardice of his subsequent appeal to be killed by Grendel: “‘I’ll kill myself,’ [Unferth] whispered. He shook violently now. ‘Up to you,’ [Grendel] answered reasonably, ‘but you’ll admit it may seem at least a trifle cowardly to some’” (90). Unferth’s threat evidences his inclination to commit suicide, in order to avoid returning to his tribe defeated. Additionally, it indicates that Unferth, the “hero among the Scyldyings,” cannot bear to be labeled a failure, as one loss might overwrite the legacy that he has constructed. In failing to battle Grendel, Unferth would fail to preserve his persona—he

Christopher Reeve once said “A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endures in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” In other words, a hero is a normal person who is able to be strong and persevere despite difficult obstacles preventing them. In the book, Beowulf, the the nephew of the king of the land of the geats, helps Hrothgar, another king, kill a series of monsters that threaten his kingdom. He helps Hrothgar kill Grendel, Grendel’s Mother, and The Firedrake. Beowulf is a hero because he is just an ordinary person who finds the strength to persevere and endure despite the overwhelming obstacles preventing him from doing so. Beowulf embodies Christopher Reeve’s definition of a hero because he defeated the flesh-eating Grendel, who could not be stopped even by groups of elite soldiers. Beowulf also killed Grendel’s mother, a much eviler being who lived in a cave in an endless pool of blood that led to hell. Finally, he defeated The Firedrake, who swelled up and breathed fire when angry.

Unferth is considered less of a man because he is more intelligent than masculine. He may be intelligent, but he is neither a strong warrior nor a brave one. Beowulf recalls that fact that Unferth has been a warrior for Hrothgar the entire time that Grendel has been attacking, and he has done nothing towards defeating the monster. Beowulf states, “Now I cannot recall / any fight you entered, Unferth, / that bears comparison. (lines 582-84) Unferth may have been an intelligent man, but his lack of a high degree of masculinity causes his worth to be lower than that of Beowulf or any other brave warrior. Unferth’s inability to kill Grendel causes Hrothgar and the other warriors

Beowulf has shown many characteristics of a hero. Where as Grendel has shown characteristics of being an outcast. The role of the hero in Beowulf was portrayed by Beowulf himself. Beowulf was the leader and took on three quests for the people. Most heros would need some form of preparation before they complete quests, but Beowulf on the other hand did not need any. Beowulf had a calling when he was leader. These callings were the three quests that Beowulf needed to complete for the greater good of Hrothgar’s people, defeating Grendel, defeating Grendel’s mother, and attempting to slay the dragon that had burned the houses and land of the Geats’.

Grendel initailly is frightened by him, discovering how the humans must feel in his own presence in the following passage: "My throat convulsed and I tried to get my breath to speak, but I couldn't ... 'Now you know how they feel when they see you'" (59) as their conversation continues they do not make much ground with each other, instead just adding fuel to the fire. Eventually they reach a breaking point in the conversation when Grendel asks, "Why is it fiddlesticks if I stop giving people heart attacks over nothing? ... You improve them, my boy! Can't you see that yourself? ... You are, so to speak, the brute existent by which they learn to define themselves. The exile, captivity, death they shrink from" (72) This sticks with Grendel throughout the rest of the novel.

In Grendel’s first encounter with Unferth, he finds out that Unferth can understand him leading to Grendel mocking Unferth in all chances he can get. This power of language lowers Unferth’s heroic quality and thoughts in a matter of a few lines and reactions. Unferth is further buried by Beowulf’s words in their little spat of insults. Unferth attempts to belittle Beowulf’s reputation through talk of how he lost a swimming match, to which Beowulf retorts with the sharp dagger of words that is the line, “... I don’t recall hearing any glorious deeds of yours, except that you murdered your brothers.” (Gardener 162). Finally, Beowulf’s words get to sting one last time in his fight with Grendel. Beowulf talks to Grendel as if he were nothing, creating thoughts in Grendel’s mind of loss and of an unwinnable battle. Beowulf’s words may have had a stronger effect on the fight than his strength did, for his words crippled his opponent making him weak and

Through his eyes are shown the futility of a romantic outlook and the destruction of a dream. "If the Shaper's vision of goodness and peace is a part of himself, not idle rhymes, then no one understands him at all," thinks Grendel, recognizing the divergence between reality and the heroic ideal. His defeat of Unferth marks the symbolic destruction of heroism, at least in his head; "So much for heroism," he concludes. Even Grendel's existence would seem to disprove the notions of the Shaper, who preaches the virtues of honor and courage. If the world is based on right and wrong, how can Grendel continue to survive? How can he kill senselessly every night, bring so much grief and torment to humans, and yet nothing come of it? "It's all the same in the end, matter or motion, simple or complex," whether he kills or not. In the beginning, Grendel decides that life must be devoid of meaning. Nihilism is, of curse, a rather depressing, if liberating, way to go through life, but such would seem to be the conclusion of the book.

In Grendel’s cave, Unferth stumbles in wishing he “had a chance. That [He] knew [He] had no more than that. It’s all a hero asks for,” (Gardner 89). Unferth believes that it does not matter if he lives or dies, or whatever the outcome would be, he just wants a chance to be a hero. He then speaks of what a true hero is; “The hero sees values beyond what’s possible. That’s the nature of a hero. It kills him, of course, ultimately, but it makes the whole struggle of humanity worthwhile,” (Gardner 89). In Anglo-Saxon times, it was normal for that to be the one goal of people’s lives. Unferth tells Grendel that he knows he is a hero, not by his successes or failures, but his dedication to the heroic craft . Unferth is very comfortable with his suicide for he knows he is a hero before the rewards and glory that come along. Unferth’s intentions are pure, but his actions are not. There is a clear hypocrisy between these characters where Beowulf acts like he wants to help, but has negative intentions. Unferth has the right intentions, but his actions are

Beowulf then responds by saying that both he and Breca were neck in neck during the entirety of the contest but during the final stretch to the coast of Finland Beowulf was pulled into the water by a sea monster. In the book, it is said that he then killed that monster and nine other monsters but by the time he finished dealing with them Breca had already won. Whilst in the movie after Beowulf deals with the first few monsters he is confronted by a mermaid but then it turns out to be Grendel’s mother. Finishing off his story by rebuking Unferth saying that if he was as good a warrior as he says, Grendel wouldn’t still be alive creating chaos in Heorot of which Unferth had no answer. Beowulf’s pride really revealed itself when he defended his feats against Unferth’s claims, that even though he didn’t win the swimming match against Breca he defeated the monsters of the deep, how even though he didn’t win the match he had won in some other sense. His final insult to Unferth shows a taunting tone which heavily contrasts how Beowulf addresses Unferth with respect after defeating Grendel’s mother thanking Unferth’s ancient sword Hrunting when in reality the sword was completely useless in the

A hero is one who is not only strong, but one who uses his strength to uphold others. A hero is humble, philanthropic, magnanimous and selfless, a humanitarian at best. In the unprecedented epic Beowulf, the tale’s namesake exemplifies every characteristic befitting an Anglo-Saxon hero. He is honest, loyal, and courageous. He portrays these characteristics in the battle against Grendel, the affray with Grendel’s mother, and the fight against the dragon that inevitably ended his life.

Beowulf is a man who desires to help the kingdoms around him with monsters they face. He has fought with sea monsters, ending their reign in the seas with ease, and he has taken on the task of ending Grendel’s rule over Herot, the mead-hall that belongs to an ally kingdom. He has taken on these challenges for the sake of helping the kingdom, however, at the end of chapter twenty-one it is said that, “Only Beowulf would risk his life in that lake; Unferth was afraid, gave up that chance to work wonders and win glory and a hero’s fame,” (Burton 64), hinting that he has also done it for the glory and treasure he will get in payment for his deeds. In chapter

Beowulf shows both wit and patience in his swift retort after Unferth challenges his skill. Later, after proving himself by dismembering Grendel, he accepts Unferth’s sword to face Grendel’s mother. This offering can be seen as an act of

The book is filled with comical scenes and images, beginning with the amusing portrayal of the idiotic old ram; "His hindparts shiver with the usual joyful, mindless ache to mount whatever happens near"4; and continue through his ironic observations - when one can almost see Grendel rolling his eyes skyward in amused condescension - of the replacement of the shattered meadhall door, "for (it must be) the fiftieth or sixtieth time"5; to his hilarious taunting of the would-be hero, Unferth, whose righteous, poetic declarations are despatched by the most undignified means; "I was raining apples at him and laughing myself weak ... burying him in apples as red and innocent as smiles."6 These instances are so human and endearing, that the intermingled graphic descriptions of Grendel's consumption of human flesh seem to be distinctly out of place. One finds oneself making concessions for Grendel, and not placing too much weight on these monstrous episodes when judging his character. Similarly, for some, his occasional use of modern obscenities assists in breaking down the stigma of Grendel's monstrosity, and emphasises his human qualities.

Unferth’s shows much more courage than the other two characters. He keeps fighting Grendel despite being defeated every time. Grendel sees this as pathetic shown when he says “He lives on, bitter, feebly challenging my midnight raids”(Gardener 90). To keep trying even after facing defeated multiple times

Grendel terrorizes the humans until he is slain by someone who is equal in strength and superior in tactics, Beowulf. Beowulf is brute and his defeat of Grendel and Grendel’s mother validates his reputation for bravery and establishes him fully as a hero. Beowulf states his claim to fame very clearly as his persona is evident in the following: