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Beowulf Rhetorical Analysis

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Beowulf Rhetoric Essay Beowulf, an Old English epic poem made in the eighteenth century, is about a hero who defeats the monster Grendel and his mother, then becomes the king of the Geats, and lastly dies trying to kill a dragon. Beowulf translated by Seamus Heaney is the Old English translation attempting not to lose the original meaning while keeping the rhythm and poetic element at the same time. He tried to keep the original meaning of this epic poem written by catholic priests, in fear of losing their traditions, to fit their religious beliefs. Beowulf was written to keep oral traditions, depict honor and bravery, and teach catholic morals, which proves to be effective. The epic poem Beowulf was written to keep oral traditions. Through this story, history is passed on …show more content…

During the eighteenth century when Beowulf was written, only priests and high religious leaders were literate. Considering this as a main factor, Beowulf was written specifically for people of the Catholic religion. This proves to be effective because when reading Beowulf, the connection between the poem and religion was made. For example, in the beginning of Beowulf, many people fled from the land they were living, in fear of “Grendel.” “Grendel” represents the sin and evil throughout world. Then “Beowulf” arrives and kills “Grendel.” “Beowulf” represents the honorable and brave within the world. This is similar to Catholicism in terms of “Grendel” being Satan and Beowulf being Jesus who protects and dies for the people's sins. This is an effective way of keeping oral traditions because most people were not literate and needed a visual aid to understand traditions. As well as traditions, Beowulf was also written to depict honor and bravery. “Beowulf” the main character portrays an immense amount of honor and courage, making a personal connection with the reader. During the time this was written, this

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Passed down through various societies for multiple generations, the poem Beowulf is a true literary masterpiece. While first spread by word of mouth, the work was later transcribed, translated, and transformed into numerous forms of literature and media. Due to this, we know that their is not one true Beowulf. As Professor Martin Foys once said, “each generation gets the version of Beowulf it deserves”. These various adaptations led to differing tales of the conquests of Beowulf, as is the case with the first of the three agons, Beowulf’s clash with Grendel.

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