Preview

The Theme Of Evil In Beowulf

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
334 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Theme Of Evil In Beowulf
Throughout the story Beowulf, a theme of good versus evil is shown throughout the whole poem. Beowulf leaves his homeland to help King Hrothgar fight against an evil force. Beowulf was definitely considered a good and courageous guy, but he fought against the evil forces of Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon. Although Beowulf is considered good and he protected everyone, he battled against the evil but his good always ended on top. Beowulf, the good, fights evil throughout the entire poem. Grendel, his first enemy, is established as being evil. Grendel is considered evil because he is a descendant of Cain who is known as the first murderer. Grendel attacks Heorot because of their good joy they display. He is also evil because he

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    He was loyal to the people he protected, not worrying about the cost of his own life. He was a prideful man, who faced good and evil situations to prove his strengths or praise. Three evil monsters, who sought vengeance upon one of mankind’s most powerful warrior. Beowulf was considered to be of God, whereas the monsters were of the devil. It’s like the old saying one bad apple spoils the bunch. Each monster had an evil agenda to kill, steal, or destroy. Beowulf possessed good qualities and the monsters, and creatures possessed evil, and as I stated in the beginning like oil and water it does not…

    • 2088 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Archetypes In Beowulf

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Page 2 of 2 ZOOM 1Grace HagamanMrs. OrfanedesEnglish IV Honors7 February 2018Modern Day Good and EvilBeowulf is an epic hero and warrior who bravely fights off evil monsters that terrorize the people around him. Grendel, Grendel’s mom, and the dragon are three of the main evil characters in the epic poem. Modern day good and evil are represented in different forms other than the two archetypes seen in this epic poem. Ordinary people have the power to be good, or to be evil.…

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the story of Beowulf, by Seamus Heaney, the first antagonist is a monster named Grendel, who is a symbol to represent the fear of nightmares. At first sight the narrator describes the monster, “Then a powerful Demon, a prowler through the dark…” (86). Grendel is seen as a demon of the night, as he lurks across Heorot claiming his victims. The power he holds only fits his symbolism as a nightmare, and how he is feared from others by just the sight of him. The narrator explains the fear this monster reaps, “All were endangered, young and old/were hunted down by that dark death-shadow…” (159-160). This creature is a fear, a nightmare, and a demon because of his creeping of sleep and silent attacking. Our worst fears are usually things that…

    • 170 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Good And Evil In Beowulf

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages

    We’ve grown quite a lot through time with technology, architecture, and even through our ideals. In the Beowulf the epic (Heaney 2000), we see right and wrong through the eyes of the past and it is strange to say the least. The author wrote this for their intended audience, meaning they were reflecting the cultural values of the ancient Anglo-Saxons. In the movie, Beowulf and Grendel (Gunnarsson 2005), we see changes from the original work that seems to match to modern ideas of right and wrong. Two characters, Hrothgar and Grendel, one who was a man of the light and kin of the dark respectively, were changed to match the ideals we hold today into completely different people that we had known them to be.…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The theme of Beowulf had the good vs.evil theme to the story when the monster is Grendel is the monster and his mother also a threat to herot and Beowulf is the hero to solve the problems of Grendel is making. Beowulf is the hero in the story and Grendel is the villain. Beowulf is the faced with many trials throughout the story with unferth and the Grendel.…

    • 502 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Revenge Theme In Beowulf

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages

    “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ (Matthew 5:38). As stated in the bible, revenge has been around for a long time, since the beginning of time. With this in mind, the epic poem, Beowulf, ties into the idea of revenge. Beowulf is an epic poem, originally written in Anglo-Saxon. Though the original author is unknown, it has been translated by Burton Raffel. The story follows an epic hero, Beowulf, who travels to modern day Denmark, to fight a monster named Grendel who is terrorizing the king, Hrothgar, and his people. Back to the main point, the main theme of Beowulf is revenge, for Grendel’s attack on Herot, Beowulf’s battle with Grendel, and Grendel’s mother’s attack.…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Did Beowulf have any motivation when he went on his journeys? Now they say the author is unknown but in the book it’s translated by Burton Rafeel. Now whoever made this story made it epic and shows a tale. Now this tale is not like regular tales because it has a hero in it and an epic journey with epic enemies but it’s also a sad ending for the hero. Now I like this story and in this story Beowulf had a motivation throw this entire story.…

    • 687 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In both works, the authors of Beowulf and Tolkien also assigned their society’s negative traits to their stories’ villains. In Beowulf, Grendel was swamp-dwelling son of Cain, the exiled killer of Abel and father to all evil spirits (102 – 110). Grendel’s swampy home is easily accessible to the Anglo-Saxon audience as dark and dangerous. On top of this, Grendel’s home exists on the outside edges of King Heorot’s lands: not central but still inside (103). This location represents the marginalities of the Anglo-Saxon people who the majority of society sees as sinful or “demonic.” To the Anglo-Saxons, these outsiders would have been those who did not follow cultural norms, including those dictated by biblical law.…

    • 1201 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the poem, “Beowulf” the author presents good v. evil as the central them. With Beowulf as the protagonist and Grendel as the antagonist. However some may think differently about this ancient piece of literature. Some may look at this piece of literature like the best piece someone has ever wrote. A lot look at it with the protagonist and antagonist switched but just by reading the story, it’s very hard to make Grendel a good guy. I look at this oldest surviving piece of literature the same way the author looks at it. The author looks at it like good v. evil.…

    • 392 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Evil In Beowulf

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The hero Beowulf is a king and Danish warrior, also known as “The Geat” (Line 639),Prince of Goodness (676), Weather-Geat (697), The hero, and Kinsman. Hrothgar, King of Heorot have a variety of alternative in the work, as Lord of the Shielding (663), friend of the people (427-428), Helmet of Shielding (456), The King of Glory (665) and Divine Lord(685). The terrible monster Grendel an evil being known as the captain of evil (749), powerful demon (86), the shadow stalker, monster. Grendel’s Mother is an evil character who encourages the atrocities committed by his son Grendel and Wiglaf, Beowulf’s nephew known as man of worth, Shield warrior, Prince of the Scylfing, is finally the King…

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Beowulf - Good vs. Evil

    • 903 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Beowulf: Good versus Evil Beowulf is one of the oldest existing poems in the English Language. Beowulf is an Anglo-Saxon epic poem, which portrays a story of an epic hero destined to defeat a ferocious monster in order to save a kingdom from destruction and death. The major theme in this epic was the theme of good versus evil. The theme of good versus evil was portrayed through the people and things that represented good and…

    • 903 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the poem, there are three monsters. They each represent qualities that good humans should not have, while Beowulf can represent some of the qualities we should want. The first of the three monsters is Grendel. Grendel was an outcast in the Dane society. “He had dwelt for a time/ in misery among the banished.” (l. 104-105) He is a descendent of Cain, therefore expected to be evil. And when King Hrothgar…

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In times before printed books were common, stories and poems were passed from generation to generation by word of mouth. From such oral traditions come great epics such as England's heroic epic, Beowulf. In Beowulf, the monster Grendel serves as the evil character acting against the poem's hero, as shown by his unnatural strength, beast-like qualities, and alienation from society.…

    • 715 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Theme Of Evil In Beowulf

    • 931 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Evil has no definitive interpretation; it is a matter of morals and the mindset of the being. It depends on the person to define such an ambiguous idea, some have faith in God(s), others look to dictionary definitions. Though based on Grendel’s intelligence and his repeatedly disgusting acts, he is evil. He is an astute being that can comprehend what kind of pain he creates by his ways, and he has no remorse for anything. Grendel’s actions are revolting, from ruining Wealhtheow, to killing harmless beings, to many spouts of unprovoked violence.…

    • 931 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf depicts Grendel as a demon, a beast. The writer makes Grendel powerful, merciless, and a source of pure evil. The author shows this while describing Grendel and by making him commit heinous acts. The narrator takes away any sign of humanity in him. This makes the God-cursed brute one of the most evil villains in literature.…

    • 855 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays