ipl-logo

How Did Beowulf Change Anglo Saxon Life

675 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Human qualities of beowulf

Since the beginning of time, heroes in society have constantly changed. As society changed their perception of people, modern-day heroes such as Superman and Batman differ much from the heroes of Anglo-Saxon times like Beowulf. Characteristics of monsters within this time interval has also changed with society’s views. The element of fear affects our perception in distinguishing a hero from a monster. In the time of the Anglo-Saxons, they supposed that the more boastful the person was, the more successful and courageous hero he or she was. The quality of humility balanced out how courageous and cocky they were. An example of a hero possessing the trait of humility would be when Beowulf turned down the thrown after defeating Grendel and his mother. The heroes of this time were believed to have supernatural abilities such as unimaginable strength. An example of this would be when Beowulf went into battle with the dragon and his sword, Nagling, crumbled in his hand. Even though he was old, his strength was still extraordinary. He was known to overpower his swords, which became useless to him. The bravery instilled in their personality overall outweighed how people belt about how much they boasted. In today’s society, modern-day heroes exhibit most of the same qualities as the …show more content…

It is a common theory and reaction that when a person is scared, one may turn to dislike whatever scared them at that particular moment. This almost always makes that person deem the scary thing as a monster which transfers onto other’s perceptions. Heroes must have some element of fear because if they don’t they may get too used to being in control of everything around them. Friedrich Nietzsche gave the perfect quote in stating, “Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into

Show More
Related
599 Words | 3 Pages

Gilgamesh and Beowulf are both heroes from an Epic. An epic is a story about a hero’s adventures and the obstacles that they have to overcome. Both characters have differences, but they also have strong similarities. One major similarity that both characters possess is that they are very prideful. This characteristic is common in many heroes, but it often leads to their downfall.

Read More
189 Words | 1 Pages

The Anglo - Saxon Culture valued war, loyalty, honor, and riches. The American values are not the same as the Anglo - Saxon values. The Modern day values focus more on religion and equality. Shild was an abandoned child, who valued honor and riches to become a King.

Read More
501 Words | 3 Pages

Monsters? Would you be able to live in a time where your life was always in danger? Fear and danger were a constant feeling in Rod Serling’s video and teleplay “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street” which was made in 1960 and “The Monsters on Maple Street” that was made in 2003. The 1960 version people were so easy to accuse others when fear and danger presented itself. In the 2003 version terrorism was on everyone’s mind

Read More
493 Words | 2 Pages

The Power of Fear Fear is a power harnessed by evil to gain an advantage over good. Some forms of evil, such as the monsters in Beowulf, use this intense power to such an extent that they embody individual human fears to completely control and annihilate their enemies. Of the three monsters Beowulf faces in his life, the fatal foe, the unstoppable dragon most effectively embodies fear.

Read More
1017 Words | 5 Pages

Rhetorical Analysis of “Monsters and the Moral Imagination” Many people believe monsters are imaginary creatures that are seen in movies or even for others, it could be a serial killer that was heard about on the news. Stephen T. Asma wrote “Monsters and the Moral Imagination” which “first appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education in October 2009” (Hoffman 61). Asma, who is a professor of philosophy, examines how different individual’s perceptions of a monster can be different depending on the era or even events happening around them. In “Monsters and the Moral Imagination,” Stephen T. Asma wrote a nonfiction, persuasive article for an educated and possibly specialized audience to examine how the idea of monsters have changed over time, what could be the motivation to create them, or even how life experiences could change an individual’s perceptions.

Read More
959 Words | 4 Pages

He made the decision to fight the dragon, even though he was very old and knew he had little chance of winning. He frees his people and is able to return the treasure to the kingdom. The warrior mindset he has makes him brave, and reliable for his people. He is able to keep them from danger, and to protect them. Having a warrior mindset affected the way he ruled, but for the better, he never second guessed going into battle to save his people, and he died a

Read More
1370 Words | 6 Pages

In Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s Monster Culture (Seven Thesis), Cohen analyzes the psychology behind monsters and how, rather than being a monstrous beast for the protagonist of the story to play against, “the monster signifies something other than itself”. Cohen makes the claim that by analyzing monsters in mythology and stories, you can learn much about the culture that gave rise to them. In Thesis 1 of Monster Culture, Cohen proposes that “the monster’s body literally incorporates fear, desire, anxiety, and fantasy”, specifically the fear, desire and anxiety of the cultures that gave rise to it; for example, vampires, undead, represent a fear of death. Monsters are born of an intense fear, desire, or internal conflict, “at this metaphorical

Read More
1380 Words | 6 Pages

A writer named Nikita Gill once said “When you see a monster next, always remember this. Do not fear the thing before you. Fear the thing that created it instead.” This quote can be related to the novel Frankenstein where instead of the actual creature being perceived as the monster, the person who created it deserves to be called one. Using the archetypal lens, Victor can be seen as the real monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein from his cruel characteristics, continuous patterns of monstrosity, as well as symbols and themes involving nature.

Read More
1088 Words | 5 Pages

In Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s Monster Culture (Seven Thesis), Cohen analyzes the psychology behind monsters and how, rather than being a monstrous beast for the protagonist of the story to play against, “the monster signifies something other than itself”. Cohen makes the claim that by analyzing monsters in mythology and stories, you can learn much about the culture that gave rise to them. In Thesis 1 of Monster Culture, Cohen proposes that “the monster’s body literally incorporates fear, desire, anxiety, and fantasy”, specifically the fear, desire and anxiety of the cultures that gave rise to it;; fFor example, vVampires, undead, represent a fear of death. Monsters are born of an intense fear, desire, or internal conflict, “at this metaphorical

Read More
737 Words | 3 Pages

The fear felt for monsters and ultimately connected to desire. Jeffery Cohen has a clear opinion of this. “We distrust and loathe the monster at the same time we envy its freedom, and perhaps its sublime despair.” They are both terrifying and the heart of fantasies. This accounts for the monster’s popularity.

Read More
526 Words | 3 Pages

UThe Anglo-Saxons were a tribe of people who lived in Great Britain during the 5th century. They were warriors who had traveled all the way from northern Germany and southern Scandinavia. The Anglo-Saxon people are very well known today despite not having been around for the several, several centuries. Their people led to the spread of Christianity through eastern Europe and the establishment of seven major kingdoms. They are also well known for the code of Honor, as the Anglo-Saxons had many values that their soldiers must live by.

Read More
427 Words | 2 Pages

Beowulf reveals an act of arrogance throughout the epic poem Beowulf; therefore, it makes him an irrelevant hero. Beowulf claimed “that he needs no weapons and fears none” when fighting the monster. Stating that he can defeat a monster with his bare hands makes Beowulf very boastful. This quality of boastfulness expresses Beowulf’s thoughts on heroism. He only did heroic deeds for his desire.

Read More
194 Words | 1 Pages

For centuries stories have been told about monsters. Stories that include monsters themselves as the main character, and stories that include a battle between a heroic figure and the monster to represent good vs. evil. The root word for “monster” is “monstrum”, which means that which reveals or warns. A monster is the product or symbol of a culture from which the monster comes from. They are more than their physical body and entertainment value that plays into these stories of the monstrous figure we read about or watch in movies or television.

Read More
821 Words | 4 Pages

Boasting and self-possession were another common custom of the Anglo-Saxons. (“Anglo-Saxon Warfare Group”). Beowulf represents a quintessential Anglo-Saxon hero through his confident poise, his willingness for self-sacrifice, and his tenacity through near-impossible odds. Beowulf possessed the trait of self-assurance, almost to the point of hubris. Beowulf quickly rose through the ranks and was entrusted by King Hrothgar simply by asserting himself as the leader and savior of the Danes.

Read More
845 Words | 4 Pages

The Anglo-Saxons were a complicated people with an even more complicated society but they are nonetheless a very interesting people’s. Beowulf swiftly implied since the beginning that “courage” is the ultimate form of “greatness”(“shmoop”). Bravery and heroism comes first in the Anglo-Saxon culture because they used it to prove how worthy they were of power and if they didn’t show it they feared that they would be punished or shunned this can be shown when I Beowulf it is stated that “ Often, for undaunted courage, fate spares the man it has not already marked.” Beowulf shows courage and bravery when he fights Grendel by ripping Grendel

Read More

More about How Did Beowulf Change Anglo Saxon Life

Related Topics

Open Document