Mock-heroic

inevitable death, he meets Beowulf. Instead of killing the beast, Beowulf decides to mock Grendel. He does this by making him beg for his life and sing before killing him. This is evident in the book when after smashing Grendel's head into a wall, Beowulf orders Grendel to sing, saying, “Observe the hardness, write it down in careful runes. Now sing of the walls!” (171). Instead of killing Grendel in an honorable way, Beowulf mocks, as well as embarrasses him until he is finally dead. In the novel, honor seems

During this passage, the speaker of the poem encourages others to act in a libertine manner through his combatted word choice, detailed imagery, and heroic stanza pattern. Using a heroic stanza throughout the poem humors the speaker, a retired “brave admiral,” who is comparing sexual acts to warfare. After sharing examples of sexual acts experienced, he proclaims “with tales like these I will such heat inspire,” (41) emboldening others to act with the same “heat.” The speaker suggests that he will

that seemed to upend the progress Western civilization had made. It left many modernist poets disillusioned about previous notions of the glory of war. One of these poets was E. E. Cummings. In his poem “ ‘next to of course god america i,” Cummings mocks America’s idealized version of patriotism by using alliteration and a sonnet structure that leaves the last line in its own stanza. The poem is able to show how irrational blind patriotism is because of its use of various literary elements. The use

Cocteau conveys how a legend’s adaptability is present thousands of years later and he questions the illusory heroic qualities of Oedipus in Sophocles’ original play. Whereas both authors argue that Oedipus was blinded by his own arrogance, in the original Oedipus Rex, Sophocles depicts Oedipus as a noble tragic hero who owns up to his sins while in The Infernal Machine, Cocteau mocks the concept of the tragic hero, depicting Oedipus as ignoble with a helpless demise. Though both texts follow

Whether you believe the myths or not, Greek myths have always had an important purpose. These are the most important three purposes of Greek myths. Some Greek myths explain to us about things in nature, teach a moral or a lesson, and to tell about the heroic qualities of gods, goddesses, and mortals. Greek myths teach us all valuable lessons or subjects we first did not know. Some Greek myths explain to us about how things in nature started out or how they work. Greek myths explain things nature so we

affects physical features and infrequent, though insignificant still, actions. Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock charts that influence in society and, with verse dripping with wit, questions what we hold dear. The Rape of the Lock is written as a heroic Romantic poem, dealing in turns with romance and violence. Canto Three is perhaps Pope’s best encapsulation of Romantic passion in the poem. The card game is told a conflict between semi-personified cards and their players, Belinda and the Baron.

usage coupled with the upper classes absurdity his could not be truer. Pope also highlights the lack of seriousness with in the upper class through his mock epic structuring allowing him to satirize how “Slight is the subject” (canto 1 line 5). The critic Alex Jones who believes that Pope “puts a minor incident into perspective… and chose a mock-heroic form to emphasise” the exaggeration of a small event to that of epic proportions, signifying a lack of

walks into his life. “Edward Scissorhands” tells the story of a young man who has scissors for hands, who is brought into a community for the first time after living in isolation. Outsiders with heroic qualities are characters who are made appear different. They are often marginalised, yet display heroic qualities such as courage and sacrifice. It is evident that both directors of the films have portrayed the main characters as such, to position the audience to see the main theme of how people can

woe Oh, if, I say, you look upon this verse When I perhaps compounded am with clay Do not so much as my poor name rehearse But let your love even with my life decay; Lest the wise world should look into your moan And mock you with me after I’m gone. William Shakespeare In the Sonnet 71, the speaker has a main purport of convincing his

Heroism is dead. Many people in the world are still heroic, but society’s definition of what a hero should be has almost become twisted beyond repair. If heroism is going to be an admirable trait in the future, then people must change the way they perceive its definition. Rather than living an average life and accomplishing one great feat, heroism is instead taking every opportunity to positively impact people and the infinitely improvable world in which they live. Society continuously defines heroism