Beowulf Harpism Analysis

According to J.C. Copper, the harp “shares the symbolism of the ladder as leading to the next world. The harpist is death.” In Beowulf, the playing of the harp is used after Beowulf defeats and kills Grendel. They play “harp tunes” (Beowulf 1064) to “please the hero” (Beowulf 1062). Grendel has not only moved onto the next world, but Hrothgar’s kingdom has as well. They will no longer have to live in fear, and they will no longer be crippled by the hate of another. Their lives are forever changed and they are at peace. The harpist’s work and singing symbolizes the death of Grendel, but also the death of the Geats’ fear. In Sir Orfeo, he exits his kingdom when he loses his wife, and he took “with him nothing but his harp” (Loomis 317). With his harp, he exits the inside world of his court and enters the outside world of the forest. With the harp on his back, he transitions from one world to the next. His harp is what eventually aids him in getting his wife back. When he enters the world of the dead, he must play his harp in order to retrieve his wife and return to the world of the living. He “played such blissful notes as brought everyone in the palace to hear him and to lie down at his feet” (Loomis 320). In Beowulf, the harpist’s playing signifies the transition from the two

Both men take a turn in playing the harp, and it is done informally and for entertainment: “And so saying, he reached the harp, and entertained his guest…” (Scott 150). However, it is done in the comfort of the natural, outside world. In the inside world, there is corruption and manipulation with Prince John and his band of knights. In the outside world, surrounded by nature, they are away from the negativity that plagues their society. They are celebrating their existence in another world, where they can simply entertain each other with the playing of the