Category: Beowulf

Beowulf is an epic poem on good vs evil, and good will always eventually overcome evil. The poem Beowulf is told by the Anglo-Saxons on the grim tales of life ruled by fate. This poem tells tales in which the people struggled against monsters for their peace and place in the world. The story is…

Feasting in both epics of Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight are used as forms of celebration. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the feast is held in anticipation of the New Year and involves eating, dancing, gift exchange, games, and the shared excitement of the New Year. The descriptions of the…

Three elements that yield a heroic warrior include Bravery, Courage Confidence, and Honor. Beowulf shows his bravery in his battles with monsters much larger than himself. He fights without weapons and when he has aged shows his confidence in himself, and his courage to never back down. He is honored by the Geats and the…

Gender roles are based on what the social norms deem appropriate, which is based on the culture of each society. The gender roles of women in Beowulf and The Wife of Bath were very different because the culture in which these two poems were written valued different ideals. For the Anglo-Saxons, the gender role women…

Throughout all of the readings this semester, we’ve read about many heroes and knights. We learned what it means to be a hero and what attributes made them heroes. I will be discussing three different works and I’ll be discussing what it is that characterized these people as heroes/ knights. The first work I’ll be…

Heroes; we as a whole know them when we see them. The main question is, what makes somebody a hero? To be considered an epic hero, a person must possess most or all of the seven traits of an epic hero. The first trait of an epic hero is a noble birth. This means that…

Introduction to Igbo Culture and Western Influence The novel by Chinua Achebe called Things Fall Apart was first published in 1958. The story takes place in the 1890s and displays the conflict between the culture of the indigenous Igbo people and the white colonial government of Nigeria. The book tells the story of Okonkwo, the…

The epic poem Beowulf, written centuries ago by an unknown author, takes the reader back to a time of intense battles and raging monsters in the night. Many who have read this passage have taken note of the multiple references towards the Bible. This may imply that the author, who is unnamed, was a Christian…

The epic poem “Beowulf”, written during the 8th century when England was beginning to convert to Christianity. This poem includes references to the bible, as well as pagan traditions in order to ease pagans into the transition to Christianity. The poem is centered around the main hero, Beowulf who fights against the monsters that try…

Anglo-Saxon poetry is centered on the heroic and elegiac traditions. In fact, one of the commonalities between the Anglos, Saxons, and Jutes (besides a shared language) was the belief that a true hero would possess specific traits. The epic Beowulf is a poem about a Geatish hero that travels to the land of the Danes…