Beowulf Literary Analysis Essay

The revered poem of Beowulf is often considered an archetypal Anglo-Saxon literary work and a cornerstone of modern literature, it holds a canonical place English literature for its clever and cunning didactics in reference to the Christian and Heathen nomenclatures. However, my main focus will be on the Freudian slips and perversion of the texts through Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytical analysis of the Id, Ego and Superego. I feel this aspect of the poem is overlooked and not given its due diligence for its use of humorous sexual innuendos and phallic symbolism. Although this medieval Germanic epic originated around the time of 700 A.D., the modern translations by Seamus Heaney and Roy Liuzza have spiced up the interpretation of the wordplay,

Although each arguably represents a different unknown evil or bears certain religious significance, the reality is these antagonists originate from Beowulf’s psyche on account of his psychological distress with feeling the need to prove himself in everything that he does whether it be boasting, fighting or frolicking. In Freudian terms, the human psyche is divided into three parts in chronological order, the Id, Ego and Superego: The Id contains our primitive drives and operates largely according to the pleasure principle, whereby its two main goals are the seeking of pleasure and the avoidance of pain. It has no real perception of reality and seeks to satisfy its needs through what Freud called the primary processes that dominate the existence of infants, including hunger and self-protection. The energy for the Id's actions comes from the libido, which is the storehouse of sexual energy. The id has two major instincts: Eros: the life instinct that motivates people to focus on pleasure-seeking tendencies “sexual urges.” Thanatos: the death instinct that motivates people to use aggressive urges to destroy (Friedman). The warning signs are blatantly obvious, both Beowulf and Grendel seem to be overwhelmed by their own Id’s. Beowulf feels the need to fight an undefeatable foe nonetheless unarmed and manages to rip off

In both the Seamus Heaney and Roy Liuzza translations, the Old English word ‘selegyst’ affects the tone of the story. The diction of the word means “hall-guest” in the context on of fit xxii. This scene illustrates how Grendel’s mother “ofsaet” sat upon the hall-guest, who is Beowulf. In my opinion, this word choice puts Beowulf in a submissive role and traps him in an unfamiliar territory. During this battle, Grendel’s mother initially plays the role of the superior and makes Beowulf a subservient to her sea-witch wrath. She does this by imposing her own will, the threshold of her body, physically upon him. She exerts her dominance by pinning down Beowulf against his might with the weight of her bosom, literally forcing him against the grindstone. The rage of Grendel’s mother is spurred by her wretchedness for avenging the death of her son, so it appears she has the momentum and the upper hand with nothing to spare because her motherhood is meaningless at this point. Grendel’s mother’s urge to create havoc and violence is ruled by her maternalistic instincts to protect and nurture her offspring. However, she failed because Grendel is dead, therefore her life is meaningless now that she is son-less. In this skirmish, Beowulf finds a way to defend her wickedness by upholding the paternalistic code of honor. This clash separates the male and female spheres