Modern Day Themes In Beowulf

Many students and teachers believe that Beowulf contains themes that are relevant to modern day. Do you? A lot of the themes can be observed in the “Beowulf poets” Beowulf. Beowulf is centered around three battles, the main character Beowulf a warrior from Geats comes to the rescue of Hrothgar to help fight off the antagonist Grendel. The story then escalates to Beowulf fighting off Grendel’s mother and a dragon. The poem does however connect with modern day themes such as loyalty, greed, and honor and promise. Since Beowulf contains themes of both past and present that readers can connect with, Beowulf is truly an epic poem that connects themes to modern day. First Beowulf shows loyalty to his men and people along the journey. Beowulf displays his loyalty by going to Hrothgar and promising to defeat the monster Grendel. Beowulf states to king Hrothgar about the loyalty to his people “my people have said that my duty was to go to the Danes Great King” (Beowulf 149). Beowulf shows his loyalty to Hrothgar. Beowulf tells Hrothgar that his people told him that his duty was to go to the Great King of the Danes. This quote reinforces the thesis because Beowulf is showing his loyalty to Hrothgar and his people. This paragraph intertwines the paragraph to the thesis by showing Beowulf’s loyalty which is a theme in past and present. …show more content…
Beowulf is a proud man and wants glory which could be a form of greed. Grendel is seen eating 30 men “He slipped through the door and there in the silence, snatched up thirty men, smashed them unknowing in their beds and ran out with their bodies” (Beowulf 36). Grendel is greedy. This quote means that Grendel is greedy and ate 30 men instead of just a few. Throughout the poem greed is a main theme displayed by Grendel, Beowulf, and the dragon. This paragraph goes hand in hand with the thesis by presenting the theme of greed conveyed in