Revenge In Beowulf

Revenge, the common instinctual sense of self-justice exists in us all. Its manifestations may be observed through primitive, physical violence, skulking, character-assassination, or perhaps by simply taking it to authorities for them to dish out cold justice. Our need for vengeance unites us, while our actions with it divide us. The unknown author of Beowulf, however, was able to add more uses to revenge. The author drove the plot through cause and effect, showed how alike characters are through their actions, yet distant through their motivations, and even showed the toll of revenge. Beowulf consists of three main story arcs, the first arc begins with Grendel, the cursed descendant of Cain--enemy of man, who closely follows in the
footsteps of his ancestor. Grendel is cursed from the time of Cain and as such, his murder of mankind is a form of revenge for the curse placed on his descendant. The murders however, ultimately bring Beowulf into the cycle of revenge when he mortally injures Grendel via disarmament to avenge those murdered. The second arc is with Grendel’s mother, who avenges her the death of her son through violence--which again brings Beowulf to repay death with death. The third arc, however does not take place for a great amount of time, and very little is written for such a large part of Beowulf’s life. Fifty years pass between the second and third arcs, fifty years until a pitiful slave unleashes the wrath of a dragon over the loss of a golden drinking mug. Due to the overwhelming amount of plot held up during the three vengeful acts and little for the fifty years, revenge is the only major factor in forcing plot along. Beowulf is a bloody story with a lethal, vengeful cycle.
All major characters have had some offense done to them and they kill in retaliation, the same action repeats four times, with four different motivations guiding them. The very plot of Beowulf draws these characters together so that details separate them. Grendel kills because his instincts tell him to with only emotions he cannot understand guiding him. His mother, however, is only shown to have killed in the pursuit to avenge her fallen son. Though she is cursed, she exhibits far more control and does not seem as if she would kill for the sake of killing, only for specific events. “Still, his mother, gloomy and greedy, intended to go on a sorry journey to avenge her son’s death” (35). This quote reinforces her reason: to repay the murder of her son, nothing more. The dragon is the only character to kill for anything less than the life of another’s. For wealth. Wealth it did not accumulate itself, didn’t earn nor conquer, the dragon flamed all nearby villages due to a pitiful slave stealing a golden drinking mug. Finally, Beowulf has always slain the enemies of man, however, after he decapitated Grendel’s mother, “-angry and determined-that blade was not useless to the warrior, for he wished to repay Grendel at once” (42). Beowulf then decapitated a clearly dead Grendel with rage and the determination to act upon
it. Beowulf is a story which lasts over 50 years. Such a lengthy time in literature isn’t easy to balance plot wise; as such, there must be a reason for it. Beowulf is first introduced as a man in his own league. Handsome without equal, strength beyond dreams, and an indomitable spirit. However, 50 years of ruling wore at his soul. The deceptive, back-and-forth game of thrones dulled the spirit of the once iron-willed Beowulf. By the time the dragon finally becomes part of the story, Beowulf is described as “His spirit was sad, restless and ready to depart” (63). Another, more ideal, and often overlooked example of how the longing for revenge dwells on the spirit is Grendel. Due to the curse placed upon Cain, a hatred of mankind has been brewing for generations. The lack of an intelligent mind only adds to what revenge truly is: a want to hurt those who have hurt you. Revenge in his case does not require a specific target, specific time nor even the knowledge of why. Grendel cannot understand why his blood boils at the sight of man, only that it is his purpose. We are left with the purpose, what is revenge? It is a driving force, something which we will all endure and something which will define us; it is even a burden that scars our souls. While powerful emotions will always be a great motivator, it is how we act in those times which will define us and never the circumstance itself. It was a very clever man who said “Even the right choices made for the wrong reasons are still wrong choices.” Let the cryptic warning serve its purpose by making you think, “Is it worth it?” or “Do I have any idea of the repercussions?” Take to heart the knowledge that revenge was able to deteriorate Beowulf; for all you know, it’s already happening to you.