Comparing Beowulf And The Grettis Saga Of Iceland

Throughout literature there are pages and pages of beautifully articulated poems, carefully mastered stories, and deep philosophical tales that stretch every measure of imagination. In the collection of great novels and epics, Beowulf seems quite out of place. Its story is marvelous, with a brilliant hero that slays villains and returns peace to the citizens of the land. Nonetheless, compared to the layered masterpieces of Shakespeare, Beowulf is a relatively straightforward transcription of the oral stories told at the time. The importance of the epic lies not in what the story tells, but in the history and context. There are no other manuscripts that seem to encapsulate old Anglo-Saxon pagan background with new and rising Christian influence in language this ancient. By following the story through its historical timeline, we can learn about the listeners and story-tellers from the beginning of its creation, through every unique translation, to the final modern day story we see today. Before we decide the dating of the original manuscript in our possession, we have to realize that most scholars agree that this piece of writing is most likely the transcription of a copy many levels after the very first story was written or spoken. By dating the manuscript, we must assume that the actual story of Beowulf dates many years prior, and it could
Both the main character of the Saga - Grettir - and Beowulf kill monsters in about the same way, and they even use a sword with a strikingly similar name. The trials of Grettir, including a fight with Glamr, a troll woman, and a monster “below the waterfall” are all the Icelandic versions of the struggles in Beowulf. Vigfusson concludes that the old Scandinavian legend must have branched in two ways: as an epic in England, and as a domestic tale and saga in Iceland