Beowulf
The Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf is the most important work of Old
English literature, and is well deserved of the distinction.
The epic tells the
story of a hero, a Scandinavian prince named Beowulf, who rids the Danes
of the monster Grendel, a descendent of Cain, and of his exploits fighting
Grendel's mother and a Dragon. Throughout the epic, the Anglo-Saxon
story teller uses many elements to build a certain depth to the characters.
Just a few of the important character elements in Beowulf are Wealth ;
Honor, Biblical ; Paganistic, and Man vs. Wild themes.
Many of the characters in Beowulf are, like in most epics, defined by
their status. But, in addition to status, the Anglo-Saxon culture also adds an
element of honor.
To the Anglo-Saxons, a character's importance, as well as
their wealth and status, where measured not only in monetary terms, but it
was also measured in terms of honor, fame, and accomplishments.
Hrothgar, king of the Danes, is one example of the Anglo-Saxon
measurement of importance in Beowulf. In Canto 1 the story teller describes
his wealth and importance, not as mounds of gold or jewels, but instead as
his ability to "lead the Danes to such glory." and as his tendency to "In
battle, leave the common pasture untouched, and taking no lives."
Through this display of compassion for the commoner who doesn't fight in
battles, Hrothgar proves the full extent of his honor and therefore the extent
of his wealth and status. Beowulf, the hero-prince, also proves his true
wealth and status through his deeds as defender of the Danes.
. As he fights
and defeats Grendel, Beowulf Earns Fame and wealth from his companions,
and from the Danes, but more importantly, he earns honor raising him to the
level of an archetypal hero. Grendel, on the other hand, is the total opposite
of Beowulf. He has no wealth, no honor, and he in infamous as an evil
killer.
This lack of wealth and honor defines Grendel as a symbol of evil and
corruption. In addition to using Honor and wealth to define a character's
character, the story-teller(s) have incorporated alternating Biblical and
Paganistic motifs in the epic-poem.
The original Epic was obviously Paganistic due to the time period of
it's creation. But, as time wore on, the rewriting and touching up of the
manuscripts by various sources including religious monks, caused the
characters to have slight Christian characteristics.
These Christian themes
have become very important to the epic to add am element of depth that
wouldn't be possible in modern times due to the lost of the Anglo-Saxon
culture and beliefs. An example of the Biblical motif in Beowulf is Grendel.
Grendel it biblically described as evil in this excerpt:
Grendel was spawned in that slime,
Conceived by a pair of those monsters born
Of Cain, murderous creatures banished
By God, punished forever for the crime
Of Abel's death. The Almighty drove
Those demons out, and their exile was bitter,
Shut away from men; they split
Into a thousand forms of evil--spirits And feinds, goblins, monsters, giants,
A brood forever opposing the Lord's
Will, and again and again defeated.
The Biblical reference in the epic has become a modern day archetypal
motif, and serves to give the listener an idea of the extent of Grendel's pure
evil and gives a logical explanation for Grendel's murderous behavior. This
example, not only shows the evil in Grendel's nature, but also the torture in
his heart caused by his Banishment from God.
It serves to give the reader an
idea of why Grendel would kill the Danes for no reason other than their
happiness. Beowulf also has a religious motif to his character. One ex
ample of this is in Canto 6 line 381 in which Hrothgar states, "Our Holy
Father had sent Beowulf as a sign of His grace, a mark of His favor, to
help us defeat Grendel and end that terror." This religious description
shows Beowulf as a sort of messiah sent by god to save man from evil. But,
more than that, since Beowulf is in fact not a messiah, this description
shows the good in Beowulf's heart and the purpose of his mission. Another
Biblical reference in Beowulf is shown in the tower of Herot which is very
similar to the tower of Babel in the fact that it's built as a sign of superiority
and accomplishment.
Like Babel, though, Herot only serves as a symbol of
downfall more than one of glory because it causes many deaths and the
coming of Grendel.
Apart from Wealth, Honor, and Paganistic vs. Biblical themes and
motifs, character is also shown through a certain Man vs. Wild motif.
This
motif shows the difference between mankind's ways (good), and evil's wild
nature (evil). Grendel for one, is totally wild and is therefore shown as evil.
His wild home, "Grendel, who haunted the moors, the wild marshes, and
made his home in a hell not hell but earth." shows his wild, untamed, and
therefor evil nature.
Grendel's wilderness is countered in mankind's ways,
especially Beowulf's. Beowulf is tame and civilized, the epitomy of
goodness and purity. Beowulf doesn't fight evil in a wild manner, rather, as
shown in his first battle with Grendel. First off, Beowulf is pure and shows
this before his battle when he removes his armor and vows not to use a
weapon to defeat Grendel.
Defeating Grendel, he shows that man, without
armor and weapons, can defeat evil in any form including that of his foe
Grendel. This deed serves throughout the epic serves as a symbol of
Beowulf's Goodness.
Beowulf has many other such archetypal, symbolic themes and
motifs, but the most important themes that serve to add depth to the
characters are the wealth, honor, religious, man, and wildness themes.
These themes don't only serve to define a character, but they also factor in
as a motive for their actions.
