Beowulf
Created | Updated Mar 20, 2003
Beowulf
Alliances between great kings and daring knights. Hideous creatures who swallow men whole, or drag them to their gruesome lair, drolling in demonic delight at the thought of how they will tear their tender victim limb from limb and devour them. Fantastic mead halls terrorized by such demons of the night. One man of dering-do who seeks to slay the man-hungry beast.
All of which brings us to Beowulf, the hero of our Medieval story. The tale itself exists in one manuscript only(and it may not be the original, and is certainly not the most complete copy of Beowulf). Suffering from fire and perhaps careless cataloging, Beowulf survives as a miracle of at least one person's need to pen his story.
The author of Beowulf is unknown, but speculated to be a historian and/or a member of the Catholic church, since at the time of its writing, few people save those trained in religion were capable of compotent literacy.
Clash of Beliefs
"Beowulf" is the earliest complete English work. It is written about Germanic people, who tended to foster Paganistic beliefs.
This story is one well-known for a few hundred years, but not recorded until some time between 800-1000 BC by a Christian who puts his personal dogmatic angle on it. Originally an Anglo-Saxon saga, it keeps its Paganistic values-- tradition and reputation are well-examined, and important for all characters. The influence of Pagan afterlife is clear-- it exists in the re-telling of tales about memorable heros-- one is immortal when remembered by others.
Our mystery Christian author felt the need to Christianize the tale in order to find an audience for "Beowulf".
A System of Favors
Social mobility within Beowulf's time(500-600 BC) was achieved by Feudalism(a term referring to Faith or Promise). One pays his debts to those above him by performing favors, and he is then rewarded. One could also marry into a higher rank.Grendel
Our mystery author provides little description of the great villain in this saga. The vague inability to provide a sound description of Grendel, as well as his mother adds mystery and a sense that Grendel is so utterly abhorable that words fail to describe him.This creature, nontheless, is quite real to inhabitants of Heorot, a fort built by(LOCATION) King Hrothgar(WHOS NAME MEANS---------) to house his companions and warriors.(DESCRIPTION OF HEOROT: USE QUOTE)
(YOU'RE NOT DONE WITH GRENDEL, BABE!!!)
Feudal Fellowship
Feudal relationships are the force that drive these battles of good and evil, perhaps more than a need to defend the weak and pursue good. A pursuit of fame and recognition holds its greatest influence over knights of Beowulf's time.Alliances are made between fame-hungry men and kings who earn a synonymous title of "ring-giver". "Beowulf" notes more than once, that X king was a generous ring-giver, and therefore, he was a great king. Poor ring-givers were given less admiration.
A knight will honor the generosity of his good king by performing favors for him, fighting in battles, slaying dragons, bringing home amor, weaponry, and chunk-change from his encounters with enemies. Deeds done by the knight were for the benefit of his ring-giver's treasury(in the hopes that some of his earnings would be returned to him), and were expected to earn kind favor with the king.
One character who straight-out protests his concern over faith to the ring-giver is Wiglaf, who helps Beowulf defeat a treasure-guarding dragon in his final battle. Wiglaf is the only one among Beowulf's men who comes to his aid, while professing to his peers that they must all come to the aid of their king.
Wiglaf and Beowulf are the only characters who face the evil dragon-- a mission once for the creature's treasure(and a means of killing him, preventing him from doing harm to others), now a fight for Beowulf's life.
Heroicism or Egotism?
Surely, our dear Beowulf wished to gain more fame when he approached Hrothgar and proposed to rid Heorot of Grendel. Beowulf is considered heroic for this display of self-sacrifice and he is praised for it, but the astute reader will not overlook Beowulf's true motivation-- recognition. He wants his name to be well-known.
Beowulf has always been quick to take a dare with this motivation in mind. Unferth, a jealous Heorot resident who knew Beowulf from earlier days, is quick to recall Beowulf's foolhardy, fame-hungry behavior. Unferth recalls a perilous swimming match Beowulf entered into with Breca...
The True Grendel
An account of "Beowulf" penned by John Gardner in the sixties prtests that perhaps the xenophobia of a "civilized" society is what creates Grendel's frightfulness. "If it's different, assume that it kills" is a harsh creed quite possibly practiced by the men of this era. "Grendel" is told in the voice of the beast himself.In the eye's of his mother, Grendel must indeed be quite lovable. She avenges her son's death by visiting Heorot and quietly snatching one of the king's men. The head of Esher, Hrothgar's dear friend, is later discovered on display at the entrance to her own domain. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth"... a clawed arm for a head.
If she is brim with such evil(QUOTE), how can Grendel's mother feel the desire to avenger her son's life? The Geats themselves exhibited the same passionate inclination when they took the first strike and supported Beowulf killing Grendel.
Bibliography
Norton Anthology of English Literature"Beowulf", Translated by Burton Raffel
