Beowulf Thematic Analysis

Beowulf Thematic Analysis The Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, is about a warrior named Beowulf who battles two monsters, a mother and her son. Throughout the epic, Beowulf repeatedly exemplifies the characteristics of the ideal Anglo-Saxon warrior. In the assigned excerpts, it is made clear that Beowulf’s heroics, the way in which he commands the respect of others, and his relationships with those around him combine to personify an ideal central to Anglo-Saxon culture, reputation. In order to gain respect from his peers, and others, Beowulf had to prove his cunning in battle. In the ninth section, Beowulf is being patronized by Unferth, in order to stop this, Beowulf says, “For I say in sooth, thou son of Ecglaf, Never had Grendel these grim deeds wrought Monster dire, on the master dear, In Heorot such havoc, if heart of thine Were as battle-bold as thy boast is loud.”
Beowulf calls Unferth out in this way, because in his society, the deeds Unferth is patronizing Beowulf about should command respect and he is not getting it. This only furthers others’ ideas that Beowulf is truly a respectable warrior. In section thirteen, it is apparent that Beowulf has won the respect of all the people in Hrogarth’s kingdom; they believed that “there was no other in Earth’s domain, […] more worthy to rule”. They were still faithful to their king, Hrogarth, because he did nothing to lose their respect, however Beowulf’s act of bravery and shrewdness allowed for his reputation to skyrocket and command the respect of all in Hrogarth’s court. This theme is universal because reputations become present as soon as you can make actions on your own. This could happen as early as elementary school, regardless they are present in a person’s life as soon as they become independent thinkers. However, reputations are not so easily gained in today’s society as it was in the time of Beowulf. There are many more factors that go into a reputation now than in the past. In today’s