Beowulf Good And Evil
Elise McMillin
Mrs. Paulsen
Pre-AP English II-7
October 7, 2016
Good and Evil
To be considered a hero you have to demonstrate certain qualities that show your bravery towards a group of people. Sometimes a hero acts courageous out of attention and other times a hero truly wants to fight for his people. On the other hand, to be considered a villain you deny all good and go against heroic actions. In Beowulf, Grendel, Grendel’s mom, and the dragon all challenge Beowulf, the hero, in different ways revealing his traits as a warrior.
At such a young age Beowulf is given the title of a warrior. Early on Beowulf faces his first obstacle, the fight against Grendel. Grendel is known as the primary villain of the Danes. He is the one that everyone wants to defeat to win the title of a hero. Prior to the first battle, Beowulf constantly boasts about himself to show his people how confident he is as a warrior. This does not necessarily show how a hero should act but it is understandable because he is a young …show more content…
warrior and usually young warriors are very immature. Just like how a young toddler has to learn how to walk this young warrior has to learn how to be a leader. Speaking to Hrothgar, Beowulf says, “ I had great Triumphs”(409). Since he is young he feels the need to brag about himself in order for people to recognize his name. He speaks highly of his heroic expeditions even though he hasn’t proved himself yet. After the defeat of Grendel people saw the “warriors steadfastness and his word”(610) are true to his actions. Because Beowulf has defeated
Grendel, his “doings were praised over and over again”(856). Just as Beowulf wanted, he has made a name for himself.
As the story continues Beowulf encounters a second duel with another villain, Grendel’s mother. In this part of the story you start to recognize how much Beowulf has grown up out of his young years and matured as a leader. On their journey to find Grendel’s mother Beowulf “went in front with a few men”(1412). Just like a brave leader should he took the lead and was fearless in fighting. Since Beowulf had already received the acceptance of his people he was now fighting for them. It was not too long after that when people started recognizing his loyal characteristics in becoming a strong leader.
His generosity was revealed when he gave the guards who were guarding his ships some of his rewards. “The guard who had watched the boat was given a sword with gold…” (1900-1901). Now that Beowulf has matured into a young adult he has overcome his pride. Just when it seems he has conquered all the villains he faces one more challenge.
He comes across a dragon that is the opposite of a generous king, hoarding treasure instead of rewarding it to others who have earned it.
In continuation of his leadership Beowulf now takes on the role of being a kindhearted king towards his people. Rather than sending his warriors out to fight the dragon Beowulf sacrificed himself. Beowulf “worked for the people, but as well as that he behaved like a hero” (3005-3006). One quality of a king that makes them a great king is the fact that they never take full credit for the many battles one. In this case Beowulf always made sure to give the “everlasting Lord of All…thanks…”’(2795-2796) for all the winnings he earned. Even his people “extolled his heroic nature and exploits and gave thanks for his greatness; which was the proper thing”(3174-3176) to do. Unfortunately it is a sad thing that Beowulf died after battle but at least he reached his goal of making a name for himself and by becoming a courageous
king. A hero is known as the light in the darkness. Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon all represent darkness because they are the villains. However Beowulf represents the light because he defeats the undefeated. If Beowulf had never experienced the battles the way that he did then his outcome would not have been as successful. In each one of these battles Beowulf is challenged with different laborious tasks that show how much he has matured as not only a person but as a king. At first Beowulf is fighting to make a name for himself in order to gain respect from his fellow warriors. Then once he has gained his warriors trust he fights for them. During the time after Grendel’s mother’s death and before the battle of the Dragon, Beowulf demonstrates many generous acts toward his people that show good qualities of a king. Finally in the last battle Beowulf fights as a strong king and not like a prideful warrior. All of these encounters with the villains have proven to show that Beowulf has matured as a king.
Mrs. Paulsen
Pre-AP English II-7
October 7, 2016
Good and Evil
To be considered a hero you have to demonstrate certain qualities that show your bravery towards a group of people. Sometimes a hero acts courageous out of attention and other times a hero truly wants to fight for his people. On the other hand, to be considered a villain you deny all good and go against heroic actions. In Beowulf, Grendel, Grendel’s mom, and the dragon all challenge Beowulf, the hero, in different ways revealing his traits as a warrior.
At such a young age Beowulf is given the title of a warrior. Early on Beowulf faces his first obstacle, the fight against Grendel. Grendel is known as the primary villain of the Danes. He is the one that everyone wants to defeat to win the title of a hero. Prior to the first battle, Beowulf constantly boasts about himself to show his people how confident he is as a warrior. This does not necessarily show how a hero should act but it is understandable because he is a young …show more content…
warrior and usually young warriors are very immature. Just like how a young toddler has to learn how to walk this young warrior has to learn how to be a leader. Speaking to Hrothgar, Beowulf says, “ I had great Triumphs”(409). Since he is young he feels the need to brag about himself in order for people to recognize his name. He speaks highly of his heroic expeditions even though he hasn’t proved himself yet. After the defeat of Grendel people saw the “warriors steadfastness and his word”(610) are true to his actions. Because Beowulf has defeated
Grendel, his “doings were praised over and over again”(856). Just as Beowulf wanted, he has made a name for himself.
As the story continues Beowulf encounters a second duel with another villain, Grendel’s mother. In this part of the story you start to recognize how much Beowulf has grown up out of his young years and matured as a leader. On their journey to find Grendel’s mother Beowulf “went in front with a few men”(1412). Just like a brave leader should he took the lead and was fearless in fighting. Since Beowulf had already received the acceptance of his people he was now fighting for them. It was not too long after that when people started recognizing his loyal characteristics in becoming a strong leader.
His generosity was revealed when he gave the guards who were guarding his ships some of his rewards. “The guard who had watched the boat was given a sword with gold…” (1900-1901). Now that Beowulf has matured into a young adult he has overcome his pride. Just when it seems he has conquered all the villains he faces one more challenge.
He comes across a dragon that is the opposite of a generous king, hoarding treasure instead of rewarding it to others who have earned it.
In continuation of his leadership Beowulf now takes on the role of being a kindhearted king towards his people. Rather than sending his warriors out to fight the dragon Beowulf sacrificed himself. Beowulf “worked for the people, but as well as that he behaved like a hero” (3005-3006). One quality of a king that makes them a great king is the fact that they never take full credit for the many battles one. In this case Beowulf always made sure to give the “everlasting Lord of All…thanks…”’(2795-2796) for all the winnings he earned. Even his people “extolled his heroic nature and exploits and gave thanks for his greatness; which was the proper thing”(3174-3176) to do. Unfortunately it is a sad thing that Beowulf died after battle but at least he reached his goal of making a name for himself and by becoming a courageous
king. A hero is known as the light in the darkness. Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon all represent darkness because they are the villains. However Beowulf represents the light because he defeats the undefeated. If Beowulf had never experienced the battles the way that he did then his outcome would not have been as successful. In each one of these battles Beowulf is challenged with different laborious tasks that show how much he has matured as not only a person but as a king. At first Beowulf is fighting to make a name for himself in order to gain respect from his fellow warriors. Then once he has gained his warriors trust he fights for them. During the time after Grendel’s mother’s death and before the battle of the Dragon, Beowulf demonstrates many generous acts toward his people that show good qualities of a king. Finally in the last battle Beowulf fights as a strong king and not like a prideful warrior. All of these encounters with the villains have proven to show that Beowulf has matured as a king.