“That doom abided, but in time it would come: the killer instinct unleashed among in-laws, the blood-lust rampant” (83-85). The foreshadowing in this line indicated the coming of a ferocious and malicious evil by the name of Grendel headed for Heorot. In the story of Beowulf, many evils made themselves present throughout the events that occurred. Behind all of that fighting is some interesting information about the fighting upon closer inspection. The theme of Beowulf is that good and evil are not always equally weighed out, as is evident by; the fighting itself, the description of the tribes and monsters, and the overall conflict of the poem. First of all, Beowulf is seen fighting two monsters and a dragon, not a tribe or mere mortal men.
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None of them are described to be good, nor evil. The favor in this case is towards mortal men and against a greater evil. In Beowulf 's flashback of his youth, he described the war between the Swedes and the Geats as a “hostility” (2474). In the culture and time period of Beowulf, fighting and war was all that they knew. They fought for honor and land, but they also commended each other for a fight well-won. Beowulf did not speak lowly of Dayraven the Frank when he killed him. Instead, he spoke of Dayraven as “highborn and brave” (2505). The tribes either won in battle and boasted, or they lost and died with honor. Regardless, there was honor and respect on both sides. In the fights with the monsters, it was the opposite. After Grendel 's death, Beowulf described how he had initially planned to torture him, “panting for life, powerless and clasped in [his] bare hands, [Grendel’s] body in thrall” (964-965). He still speaks of the demon foes as monsters even after they are dead, even expressing the ways he wished he would have killed …show more content…
Throughout the story, the villains change and another takes their place. From Grendel and his mother to the dragon, there is not truly one common enemy in the poem. I believe that the author intended that because of the nature of the world around him when the story was written. An epic poem is usually brought out in times of national struggle, and the story will always be relevant in some ways. I believe that it was intended to be a story of hope for the people of that time, and from then on. If Beowulf could fight demons from hell and win, then the people who heard the story could be empowered to fight whatever evils were coming their way. The conflict is between all evil in general and not just one evil.
To conclude, the epic poem Beowulf proved to be a wonderful example of how the good and evil were unequally weighed out because of; the fighting, the descriptions of the foes, and the conflict throughout the story. From the fighting of Grendel to the slaying of the dragon, Beowulf’s harrowing journey proved to the people of the early centuries that nothing was impossible. It was an inspiration for the tribes to fight on no matter what lie
None of them are described to be good, nor evil. The favor in this case is towards mortal men and against a greater evil. In Beowulf 's flashback of his youth, he described the war between the Swedes and the Geats as a “hostility” (2474). In the culture and time period of Beowulf, fighting and war was all that they knew. They fought for honor and land, but they also commended each other for a fight well-won. Beowulf did not speak lowly of Dayraven the Frank when he killed him. Instead, he spoke of Dayraven as “highborn and brave” (2505). The tribes either won in battle and boasted, or they lost and died with honor. Regardless, there was honor and respect on both sides. In the fights with the monsters, it was the opposite. After Grendel 's death, Beowulf described how he had initially planned to torture him, “panting for life, powerless and clasped in [his] bare hands, [Grendel’s] body in thrall” (964-965). He still speaks of the demon foes as monsters even after they are dead, even expressing the ways he wished he would have killed …show more content…
Throughout the story, the villains change and another takes their place. From Grendel and his mother to the dragon, there is not truly one common enemy in the poem. I believe that the author intended that because of the nature of the world around him when the story was written. An epic poem is usually brought out in times of national struggle, and the story will always be relevant in some ways. I believe that it was intended to be a story of hope for the people of that time, and from then on. If Beowulf could fight demons from hell and win, then the people who heard the story could be empowered to fight whatever evils were coming their way. The conflict is between all evil in general and not just one evil.
To conclude, the epic poem Beowulf proved to be a wonderful example of how the good and evil were unequally weighed out because of; the fighting, the descriptions of the foes, and the conflict throughout the story. From the fighting of Grendel to the slaying of the dragon, Beowulf’s harrowing journey proved to the people of the early centuries that nothing was impossible. It was an inspiration for the tribes to fight on no matter what lie