Unferth's Jealousy In Beowulf

Through the use of kennings, imagery and point of view, Raffel develops a boastful tone as Beowulf explains in his point of view, what happened between Breccia and himself during their competition. In the scene, Beowulf is confronted by another man named Unferth. Unferth accuses Beowulf of being a fool for risking his life in a challenge that he lost. The way Beowulf responds to Unferth’s jealousy contains literary devices that further develop the tone of the scene.
Unferth attempts to belittle Beowulf’s competition against Breca because he did not win when they participated in a race across the sea. Beowulf replies with a long explanation telling the great actions he took part of despite not winning. “That sea-road and feel no fear; nothing …show more content…
Then God’s bright beacon...” (301-312). Through the use of kennings Raffel compares the ocean to a sea road that sailors used to cross between the land. Before, the monsters blocked their path, blocking ships from trading or explorers from different lands however, Beowulf positively justifies his loss as an actual win because he cleared the sea road for ships. Next the kenning “God’s bright beacon” is used in place of the sun. This could be a representation of Beowulf clearing out the evil to make way for Christianity, comparing the nine monsters to evils. According to Oxford Dictionary, “beacon” is defined as a light serving as a signal, warning, or guide, especially at sea. God’s beacon being a signal to guide sailors on the sea. Once the monsters were cleared, sailors could once again be guided by