Post by Sean on Feb 16, 2005 21:17:56 GMT -5
_ Beowulf presents both a window to the past and a mirror of the present. From the epic poem Beowulf we have a snapshot picture into the past. We realize there are many topics and themes that are core to their society that reflect our own society.
_ The epic of Beowulf is a particularly important piece of literature, as it not only allows us to take a look into one culture, but really two. We see the pagan culture of Scandinavia, as that is where the story takes place. We also see an incorporation of Anglo-Saxon culture as it is written in Old English. The presence of Christianity in Beowulf is an indication of Anglo-Saxon culture. The fact that Christianity is in the poem shows that the Anglo-Saxons doctored the story of Beowulf to better fit their society. The result of this editing of the poem allows us as historians to view two cultures.
_ Christianity is shown in the poem in numerous occasions. The first example of a Christian addition to the poem comes in the description of Herot: "Higher toward heaven than anything that had been known" (line 6-7). This was not an isolated example either, another example comes in the description of Hrothgar's throne in line 105-106 "Hrothgar's glorious throne, protected by God". These additions bear a resemblance to how modern day media interprets older stories, making them easier to relate to. Another reason these may have been added is that it’s believed that a Christian monk transcribed this version of the poem.
_ Another interesting type of Christian addition comes when there is merging of the pagan and Christian beliefs. The most obvious sign of this is the interpretation that fate, or wergild, is the same as god's will. An example of this mix of different beliefs comes in line 196-197: "God must decide who will be given to death's cold grip."
_ Outside of just looking at religious additions and integrations we can learn about social aspects to their culture within the text. For instance in line 8 when it says "and in that hall he'd divide the spoils" which explains that the Danish were a marauding people. It, however, goes on to explain that they still had a set of principles and rules to which they fought by: "but leaving the common pastures untouched and taking no lives" (line 11) which showed that they only went after the plunder rather than conquest. This conflicts with our general idea of the Scandinavians/Vikings being ruthless barbarians who slaughtered people with disregard for the sanctity of life. Because of the wealth of historical knowledge within the epic Beowulf, we continue to read it today. Students read it to learn about the society, and Anglo-Saxon poetry while historians read it for references to a culture all but forgotten.
_ From the epic of Beowulf we find that our ancient ancestors had stories that really were no different than our own. The epic of Beowulf is really not all too different than our modern day Blockbuster Hits. While the form of the media has changed, the general outline of the story has stayed the same. Like in many of the Western movies, Beowulf starts with a haven or glorious place (Herot) that is corrupted by an evil (Grendel). Then a Hero comes (Beowulf) and runs the evil out (Death of Grendel), but the evil fights back (Grendel's Mother). Like in the old Western movies the Hero in Beowulf makes a last stand in protecting what he believes is good and right (Beowulf’s fight with the dragon and death). While there are often many alterations to this set up, such as the hero doesn't die, or there is someone who switches sides, the general outline of Beowulf is no different than our modern Adventure stories.
_ It is because of this outline that Beowulf is still an important piece of literature today. We still love stories about heroes who rescue those in need, and as a result the story of Beowulf interests us and 'speaks' to us.
_ The story of Beowulf is most important to today's society because people in the story are merely reflections of humanity. The story of Beowulf shows almost every aspect to human nature, with the exclusion of intimate love. Whether it be the evil jealous rage embodied by Grendel, or the skeptic nature as embodied by Higlac the story of Beowulf never fails to show us humanity at its best, and at its worst.
_ The story is centered around what we, as humans want to be: courageous and strong. The character of Beowulf embodies this. He shows this throughout the story from the beginning when he fights Grendel in hand to hand combat (lines 398-475) to his final stand in protecting the Geats against the fire breathing dragon (lines 2538-2711).
_ The evil that Beowulf first fights is that of Grendel. Grendel is the essence of evil in the story. From Grendel is where the first piece of conflict comes. While it is argued that humanity is not ornately evil, it can also be argued that neither is Grendel. Instead it is shown that Grendel is merely an outcast of society, due to being a descendant of Cane as explained in lines 41-43: “He was spawned in that slime, conceived by a pair of those monsters born of Cain”. It has be shown by recent psychological case studies that those who are shunned by society may become violent and when viewed by an outsider, evil. Grendel is merely displaying this aspect of humanity: anger from being neglected from society.
_ One of the most interesting characters in the story is Unferth. By mere sound it is similar to that of “unfaithful.” This seems to be the very characteristic that Unferth shows. Unferth is introduced when Beowulf first arrives to the hall and is put on the spot when he unjustly denounces Beowulf as a braggart and nothing more. (220-248) To this, Beowulf explains how it is Unferth who is jealous of Beowulf and has been disloyal to his family. (301-326) What makes Unferth interesting, however, is that he is able to gain forgiveness and become the embodiment of humbleness when he gives Beowulf an ancient sword called Hrunting. (1455-1468)
_ There are numerous other examples of humanity as embodied by the different characters in the epic Beowulf. From the rage of the dragon to the loyalty shown by Wiglaf it becomes clear by the end of the story that the epic of Beowulf is more than a nice story of courage and the triumph of good over evil. It is the story of humanity at its best and of humanity at its worst. It is the story of human nature where each character in the story represents a different aspect to humanity. From this symbolism we are able to find a little bit more about ourselves as we can identify with not just one or two characters in the story but really all of them.
_ While Beowulf may be an ancient text, the epic story still teaches us of a society that we originate from, that still thrills us in its exciting events, and still moves us as we see ourselves represented by the characters we love and hate.
_ The epic of Beowulf is a particularly important piece of literature, as it not only allows us to take a look into one culture, but really two. We see the pagan culture of Scandinavia, as that is where the story takes place. We also see an incorporation of Anglo-Saxon culture as it is written in Old English. The presence of Christianity in Beowulf is an indication of Anglo-Saxon culture. The fact that Christianity is in the poem shows that the Anglo-Saxons doctored the story of Beowulf to better fit their society. The result of this editing of the poem allows us as historians to view two cultures.
_ Christianity is shown in the poem in numerous occasions. The first example of a Christian addition to the poem comes in the description of Herot: "Higher toward heaven than anything that had been known" (line 6-7). This was not an isolated example either, another example comes in the description of Hrothgar's throne in line 105-106 "Hrothgar's glorious throne, protected by God". These additions bear a resemblance to how modern day media interprets older stories, making them easier to relate to. Another reason these may have been added is that it’s believed that a Christian monk transcribed this version of the poem.
_ Another interesting type of Christian addition comes when there is merging of the pagan and Christian beliefs. The most obvious sign of this is the interpretation that fate, or wergild, is the same as god's will. An example of this mix of different beliefs comes in line 196-197: "God must decide who will be given to death's cold grip."
_ Outside of just looking at religious additions and integrations we can learn about social aspects to their culture within the text. For instance in line 8 when it says "and in that hall he'd divide the spoils" which explains that the Danish were a marauding people. It, however, goes on to explain that they still had a set of principles and rules to which they fought by: "but leaving the common pastures untouched and taking no lives" (line 11) which showed that they only went after the plunder rather than conquest. This conflicts with our general idea of the Scandinavians/Vikings being ruthless barbarians who slaughtered people with disregard for the sanctity of life. Because of the wealth of historical knowledge within the epic Beowulf, we continue to read it today. Students read it to learn about the society, and Anglo-Saxon poetry while historians read it for references to a culture all but forgotten.
_ From the epic of Beowulf we find that our ancient ancestors had stories that really were no different than our own. The epic of Beowulf is really not all too different than our modern day Blockbuster Hits. While the form of the media has changed, the general outline of the story has stayed the same. Like in many of the Western movies, Beowulf starts with a haven or glorious place (Herot) that is corrupted by an evil (Grendel). Then a Hero comes (Beowulf) and runs the evil out (Death of Grendel), but the evil fights back (Grendel's Mother). Like in the old Western movies the Hero in Beowulf makes a last stand in protecting what he believes is good and right (Beowulf’s fight with the dragon and death). While there are often many alterations to this set up, such as the hero doesn't die, or there is someone who switches sides, the general outline of Beowulf is no different than our modern Adventure stories.
_ It is because of this outline that Beowulf is still an important piece of literature today. We still love stories about heroes who rescue those in need, and as a result the story of Beowulf interests us and 'speaks' to us.
_ The story of Beowulf is most important to today's society because people in the story are merely reflections of humanity. The story of Beowulf shows almost every aspect to human nature, with the exclusion of intimate love. Whether it be the evil jealous rage embodied by Grendel, or the skeptic nature as embodied by Higlac the story of Beowulf never fails to show us humanity at its best, and at its worst.
_ The story is centered around what we, as humans want to be: courageous and strong. The character of Beowulf embodies this. He shows this throughout the story from the beginning when he fights Grendel in hand to hand combat (lines 398-475) to his final stand in protecting the Geats against the fire breathing dragon (lines 2538-2711).
_ The evil that Beowulf first fights is that of Grendel. Grendel is the essence of evil in the story. From Grendel is where the first piece of conflict comes. While it is argued that humanity is not ornately evil, it can also be argued that neither is Grendel. Instead it is shown that Grendel is merely an outcast of society, due to being a descendant of Cane as explained in lines 41-43: “He was spawned in that slime, conceived by a pair of those monsters born of Cain”. It has be shown by recent psychological case studies that those who are shunned by society may become violent and when viewed by an outsider, evil. Grendel is merely displaying this aspect of humanity: anger from being neglected from society.
_ One of the most interesting characters in the story is Unferth. By mere sound it is similar to that of “unfaithful.” This seems to be the very characteristic that Unferth shows. Unferth is introduced when Beowulf first arrives to the hall and is put on the spot when he unjustly denounces Beowulf as a braggart and nothing more. (220-248) To this, Beowulf explains how it is Unferth who is jealous of Beowulf and has been disloyal to his family. (301-326) What makes Unferth interesting, however, is that he is able to gain forgiveness and become the embodiment of humbleness when he gives Beowulf an ancient sword called Hrunting. (1455-1468)
_ There are numerous other examples of humanity as embodied by the different characters in the epic Beowulf. From the rage of the dragon to the loyalty shown by Wiglaf it becomes clear by the end of the story that the epic of Beowulf is more than a nice story of courage and the triumph of good over evil. It is the story of humanity at its best and of humanity at its worst. It is the story of human nature where each character in the story represents a different aspect to humanity. From this symbolism we are able to find a little bit more about ourselves as we can identify with not just one or two characters in the story but really all of them.
_ While Beowulf may be an ancient text, the epic story still teaches us of a society that we originate from, that still thrills us in its exciting events, and still moves us as we see ourselves represented by the characters we love and hate.