Germanic paganism

The Epic of Beowulf stresses a society in which the inhabitants of the story are under great scrutiny due to the fact that the tribes push the idea that force is the only way to resolve any issues. This ideal reflects throughout the tale how the society protects the people based on how a warrior goes about his actions; however it dictates decisions made that have negative outcomes because of the influence of this society that exists in the tribes. This society is referred to as a “warrior…

The Worth of Religion: Beowulf the Epic vs. Beowulf and Grendel “They swim only out of fear.” “But still, they swim.” Beowulf (Heaney. 2000) is a classic epic where the protagonist Beowulf, a great warrior, embarks on heroic adventures and kings reward him plentifully with gold and praise. However, in the recent Canadian movie adaptation -Beowulf and Grendel (Gunnarsson. 2005)- the director alters the epic, in particular Beowulf’s views concerning religion and fate. This movie takes the classic…

Heros of Their Time The idea of heroic action and an epic hero have been evolving for many years. Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight both have different, but also similar ideas of what it takes to be a hero. The heroic traits they share are loyalty to their lords, and they also are both knights. They more or less follow a certain code of honor that they must upheld.The difference of the time period and religion influence has very much so do with it with how they are portrayed as heroes…

Beowulf as an epic hero In the Anglo-Saxon era certain traits were important in to be hero in this era. The epic Beowulf translated by Burton Raffel shows how the character Beowulf demonstrates the characteristics that were valuable during his time. Beowulf demonstrates the ideals of an epic hero in the eyes of the Geats and Danes because shows the trait of generosity, he portrays bravery, and demonstrates loyalty. Beowulf displays generosity throughout the poem. Beowulf generously agrees to…

It is obvious that there is a great deal of difference between being international and being cosmopolitan. All good men are international. Nearly all bad men are cosmopolitan. If we are to be international we must be national. And it is largely because those who call themselves the friends of peace have not dwelt sufficiently on this distinction that they do not impress the bulk of any of the nations to which they belong. International peace means a peace between nations, not a peace after the…

Thanks to the ingenious use of the longbow in the Battle of Crecy, the English king, Edward III, and his army were able to win the battle with under 100 casualties while the French having over 10,000(Kops). Because of the outcome of the war, the longbow earned the name “The Medieval Machine Gun” (Kagay). Many of the tactics used during the Battle of Crecy by the English army were considered to be great breakthroughs in warfare and were the basis of some of the tactics used in modern warfare.…

Heroes and monsters help to shape the identity of modern culture as well as cultures shown in ancient literature. In the ancient Anglo-Saxon folklore Beowulf, monsters and heroes were created to contradict one another and contrast the desirable and undesirable traits in a culture. A hero portrays all valuable and honored traits in a society, while monsters help to reveal the undesirable traits as well as push the hero to his boundaries. In the Anglo-Saxon culture a hero was to be a strong,…

One of my favorite words is “shalom.” Shalom is a Hebrew word that has multiple meanings. It is commonly used as a greeting in Jewish culture, utilized similarly to the English “hello.” It literally translates as “well-being be upon you” or “may you be well.” Jesus even appropriated a similar phrase in John 20:2, “shalom Aleichem,” which in English is literally translated as “Peace be unto you.” It can also be used to refer to peace between entities or individuals. Jewish people may call for…

Beowulf may be the best example of an Anglo-Saxon hero. This hero is supposed to be portrayed as an intelligent, strong, and courageous warrior. This warrior, in order to be considered a hero, must be willing to face all obstacles that he comes across and even fight to the death if need be. In this essay I will talk about how Beowulf proves to be the best example of an Anglo-Saxon hero. Throughout Beowulf, the hero is faced with many obstacles such as sea monsters, to fighting Grendel’s mother…

The Germanic heroic code is based upon four fundamental values: valor, worthiness, vengeance, and honor. While there are many elements to the heroic code, these four concepts are are the most frequently used overall. In Beowulf, Seamus Heaney, the translator, uses the Germanic heroic code as the foundation for the protagonist, Beowulf. The heroic code is one of the most prevalent themes throughout the entire epic. Beowulf is the story of a hero whose name is the title of the poem. In his world,…