The Hero of all Heroes Beowulf is a captivating story of an earthly human who has superior strength, and is extremely ethical. Beowulf sets out on a quest to defeat monsters that embody dark, destructive powers and forces of evil in the land of Denmark. In the epic poem an unknown author uses rhetorical devices such as tone, diction, imagery, and style to illustrate the mighty power that Beowulf had in him and how it reflected on the Anglo-Saxon way of life. The unknown author who wrote Beowulf, was a very scholarly writer. As seen throughout this poem the monosyllables and polysyllables are linked together by the use of alliteration, for example, in part one “Will, and again and again defeated” (29). At this particular part in the poem the tone is very horrific and immoral after mentioning the murderous story from the bible, Cain and Abel. Cain murdered his brother Abel which was an unforgivable crime to commit in Anglo-Saxon culture. The tone, also here is very dark and evil, caused by …show more content…
The knowledgeable author, wrote with many examples of alliteration. For example, “Was there a warrior worthier to rule over men.” (542). There are many examples these alliterations as they are scattered throughout the poem. Traditional poetry usually has some sort of rhythmic scheme while in Beowulf the lines are interconnected by the natural rhythmic pause, called caesura. Kennings, which are used often throughout Beowulf, are a metaphorical phrase to describe a person, place or thing. Beowulf, while telling of his and Brecca’s five day race, uses two examples of a kenning in the passage, boastfully saying “sailors could cross That sea-road and feel no fear; nothing Would stop their passing. Then God’s bright beacon Appeared in the east” (300-303). The author here refers to the ocean as “that sea-road” and the sun as “God's bright