Is every single piece of writing completely original? Do authors take even the smallest of ideas from older stories and apply them to their own? Thomas C. Foster claimed in his book How to Read Literature like a Professor, “…there’s no such thing as a wholly original work of literature” (Foster Online). It is quite believable that all authors borrow ideas from other pieces of writing to develop their own unique stories. The primary text that the following archetypal connections expressed through this essay are related to is Beowulf. Beowulf is an Old English epic poem with an unknown author written around the time of 750 A.D. The author was clearly a Christian because of the biblical allusions throughout the poem. This poem was chanted orally
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A hero usually travels through many trials and battles, whether psychological or physical, to save someone, or something. In the epic poem Beowulf, Beowulf is the hero. Beowulf is called upon to save the Danes from Grendel and the Geats from the Fire Breathing Dragon. He risks getting wounded or even faces death while fighting Grendel and Grendel’s Mama. He is a very self-sacrificing character. Relating to Beowulf’s archetypal character as a hero best was Jean Valjean in the story Les Miserables. Jean Valjean saves a young girl from living in misery after he promised her mother that he would take care of her after her mother’s passing. While she was a child, she was made into a servant girl for her ‘guardians’ at the time where she was much mistreated. Valjean has to bargain to steal her away to keep Cosette safe. All through her life she is hidden to be protected while many ‘villains’ are after her and Jean Valjean. His bravery is what instantly relates to Beowulf. The author, Victor Hugo, of Les Miserables saw the courage, persistency, and confidence Beowulf had in his own story and used those aspects when creating the character of Jean …show more content…
This loss of life is usually after a battle where in return someone, or a large group of people gain something from the loss. In Beowulf, Beowulf the hero, dies after a bite to the neck during his fight against the fire-breathing dragon. He risked his life to save the lives of the innocent Geats. Beowulf died to protect and the Geats in return got safety and freedom from monsters. There is a similar self-sacrifice in the Bible; Jesus laid down his life on the cross for the sins of the people of the world. He did this so that the lasting humans can have a chance at an eternity of love and worship in Heaven with God. This self-sacrifice ended in pain for Jesus and also Beowulf, but it was a sacrifice for the good of others. Both of their deeds were finished as they said in their final moments. Because the Bible was written by many authors before Beowulf, the Christian author has taken the beautiful sacrifice Jesus Christ made and saw Beowulf as a similar figure therefore making his self-sacrifice out of bravery for the
A hero usually travels through many trials and battles, whether psychological or physical, to save someone, or something. In the epic poem Beowulf, Beowulf is the hero. Beowulf is called upon to save the Danes from Grendel and the Geats from the Fire Breathing Dragon. He risks getting wounded or even faces death while fighting Grendel and Grendel’s Mama. He is a very self-sacrificing character. Relating to Beowulf’s archetypal character as a hero best was Jean Valjean in the story Les Miserables. Jean Valjean saves a young girl from living in misery after he promised her mother that he would take care of her after her mother’s passing. While she was a child, she was made into a servant girl for her ‘guardians’ at the time where she was much mistreated. Valjean has to bargain to steal her away to keep Cosette safe. All through her life she is hidden to be protected while many ‘villains’ are after her and Jean Valjean. His bravery is what instantly relates to Beowulf. The author, Victor Hugo, of Les Miserables saw the courage, persistency, and confidence Beowulf had in his own story and used those aspects when creating the character of Jean …show more content…
This loss of life is usually after a battle where in return someone, or a large group of people gain something from the loss. In Beowulf, Beowulf the hero, dies after a bite to the neck during his fight against the fire-breathing dragon. He risked his life to save the lives of the innocent Geats. Beowulf died to protect and the Geats in return got safety and freedom from monsters. There is a similar self-sacrifice in the Bible; Jesus laid down his life on the cross for the sins of the people of the world. He did this so that the lasting humans can have a chance at an eternity of love and worship in Heaven with God. This self-sacrifice ended in pain for Jesus and also Beowulf, but it was a sacrifice for the good of others. Both of their deeds were finished as they said in their final moments. Because the Bible was written by many authors before Beowulf, the Christian author has taken the beautiful sacrifice Jesus Christ made and saw Beowulf as a similar figure therefore making his self-sacrifice out of bravery for the