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Beowulf Final Paper

Uploaded: 5 years ago
Contributor: xcarlychandlerx
Category: English Writing
Type: Report
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Filename:   Beowulf Final Paper.docx (23.35 kB)
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Description
An insight on the motivations of Beowulf.
Transcript
Carly Chandler Instructor Guerin English 102-93 24 April 2018 Interaction in the Themes of Beowulf Conflict drives the plot of Beowulf and is evident throughout three of the most prominent themes. Reputation, Christianity, and the Honor Code both fuel and directly oppose one another. For example, reputation is what drives the warrior code and puts it into place by establishing a form of honor, while reputation directly conflicts with Christian ideals because they are meant to serve God and not themselves or in the name of the people around them. The importance of reputation in Beowulf is prominent because of the continued use of introductions and the reprimanding caused after Beowulf’s men betray him at the end of the poem. The Christian ideals during Beowulf are predominant, especially with the introduction of Grendel and his mother being the direct descendants of Cain, the murderous son of Adam. The Beowulf heroic Code is predominant and ties into both Christian ideals and reputation, as loyalty, courage, and honesty are the main aspects. The conflict and collusion between reputation, Christian ideals, and the warrior code in Beowulf is prominent throughout the poem. Reputation drives everything in Beowulf. The reputation of family and the reputation of warriors are practically one and the same and show how important and respected a person is. Beowulf himself is described as having a “reputation as a great and noble fighter—he is remembered as the very model of a warrior king.” (Bollt, Robert, and Bollt). Beowulf is known by the travelers by his reputation, and continuously does everything he can to maintain his reputation. Hrothgar himself calls upon Beowulf because he knows of his sterling reputation. Beowulf is later forced to defend his own reputation when Unferth challenges him, and claims, “my sword had killed / Nine sea monsters. Such night-dangers / And hard ordeals I have never heard of.” (Heaney, 574-576). Beowulf uses his reputation to his advantage to gain the confidence of Hrothgar and the rest of the Danes. Reputation conflicts with Christianity because it can turn into vanity. If a man continues to worry solely about how people think about him, his God will no longer be his prominent motivator. Reputation aligns with Christianity because of the manner of religion that was introduced in the poem. The religion was still new when it was applied to Beowulf, and consistently stresses a philosophy of justice resembling the Old Testament idea of ‘an eye for an eye’ rather than the modern ‘love thy neighbor’. The elements of Christianity are described as entering “the poem and into the society, but these aspects of the poem bear more resemblance to the philosophical systems of the Old Testament, stressing justice rather than love…Frequently the poem seems a reflection on the traditional pagan value system from the moral point of view of the new, incompletely assimilated Christianity.” (Foster). Reputation consistently helps form and applies to the heroic code because without reputation, the heroic code would have no merit. The kings in Beowulf – Hrothgar at the beginning, and later Beowulf himself – are only as reputable as their warriors are, and rely on the relationships forged with them. Hrothgar was particularly close to Beowulf, and Beowulf relies on Wiglaf to the very end. Old Testament Christian ideals take a prominent role throughout the translations of Beowulf. Critics argue about the originality of these Christian themes, but are interwoven nonetheless. “Christian elements have been woven skillfully into the text; they claim that the poem in its present form celebrates Christian virtues as they were understood by a medieval audience.” (Mazzeno). To celebrate these Christian virtues, a person has to give themselves up for God, and do all things in his name, without false intention. The most prominent Christian theme is Grendel and his mother being the descendants of Cain, “Grendel was the name of this grim demon / Haunting the marches, marauding round the heath / And the desolate fens; he had dwelt for a time / In misery among the banished monsters, / Cain’s clan, whom the creator had outlawed / And condemned as outcasts. For the killing of Abel / The Eternal Lord had exacted a price: / Cain got no good from committing that murder / Because the Almighty made him anathema / And out of the curse of his exile there sprang / Ogres and elves and evil phantoms / And the giants too who strove with God / Time and again until He gave them their final reward” (Beowulf, 102-114). Christian elements are also found in each of Beowulf’s fights. In Beowulf’s fight with Grendel, he fights him with no armor and no weapon, intending to show that he is protected by his God. Later, as he fights Grendel’s mother, he wears his armor and wields his weapon, using a divine sword he finds in her lair, managed to slay the grieving mother. He wore his armor and brought a weapon to represent that God was not protecting him through this fight, though we later see that the only reason he defeated the vengeful mother was because of the sword’s divine intervention. Old Testament Judeo-Christianism is more applicable to the idea of a good reputation, as opposed to modern Christianity, as it reads, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, Loving favour rather than silver and gold." (Proverbs 22:1). Christianity in itself is meant to revolve around good things in the name of God, while it is more likely that a man will fall to the temptation of silver and gold and earthly reputation rather than remaining faithful to their god, “but blessed is he / Who after death can approach the Lord / And find friendship in the Father’s embrace.” (186-188) The story is told to be a “deep, brooding, richly ornamented narrative of heroic action in the storied Germanic past.” (Niles). The heroic code is all about honor, courage, and loyalty, and following the rules of the time period. Wealhthow is an example of a character who strictly adheres to the heroic code. Though she is not one of the major characters, women during the time period were still treated as a husband’s property. Hrothgar’s queen, Wealhthow, is shown to be the perfect host, a kind diplomat, and fills her position well, as she is introduced, “Wealhtheow came in, / Hrothgar’s queen, observing the courtesies. / Adorned in her gold, she graciously saluted.” (612-614). Despite the drunken misconduct, she still manages to put on a lovely, gracious air. Later, she asks Beowulf to counsel her sons, and is always the epitome of grace amidst distasteful incidents. The code ties into reputation, because both are driven by loyalty and bravery, and the code is formed predominantly by the reputation of kings and the warriors around them. The code applies to Christianity because both have themes of honor and remaining loyal. The code directly opposes Christianity because someone can be driven solely by bringing up their own honor or serving false entities, rather than doing it in the name of God. The conflict and collusions between reputation, Christianity, and the heroic code drive the plot of Beowulf. In order to have a plot, the author must have internal conflicts between society and the hero following these codes. Beowulf himself was intended to be the prime example of all three of these things, as he continues to fight for God, for honor, and with his reputation always in mind, but even he fell victim to opposing them multiple times. The poem ends with, “They said that of all the kings upon the earth / He [Beowulf] was the man most gracious and fair-minded, / Kindest to his people and keenest to win fame.” (3180-3182). Beowulf is consistently remembered as a good, kind king and warrior, who tried to adhere to the codes he devoted himself to in life. Works Cited Bollt, Robert, and Bollt. "Beowulf." Encyclopedia of Time: Science, Philosophy, Theology, & Culture, edited by H. James Birx, Sage Publications, 1st edition, 2009. Credo Reference, http://www.bpcc.edu:2048/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.credoreference.com%2Fcontent%2Ftopic%2Fbeowulf%3FinstitutionId%3D4893. Accessed 16 Apr. 2018. “Beowulf.” The Norton Anthology: English Literature. Trans. Seamus Heaney. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. 8th ed. New York: W. W, Norton, 2006. 26-97. Print. Foster, Edward E. "Beowulf." Masterplots, Fourth Edition, November 2010, pp. 1-3. EBSCOhost. Web. 9 April 2018. bpcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=103331MP411839560000066&site=lrc-live. Mazzeno, Laurence W. "Beowulf." Masterplots II: Christian Literature, September 2007, pp. 1-3. EBSCOhost. Web. 9 April 2018. bpcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=103331CHR10339830001856&site=lrc-live. Niles, John D. Beowulf: The Poem and its Tradition. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1983. Web. 9 April 2018. http://marul.ffst.hr/~bwillems/fymob/understanding.pdf

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