"Beowulf"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that "Beowulf", composed circa 800A.D. and written circa 1000 A.D., is a classic epic depicting kings, queens, knights, blood feuds, monsters and dragons. The author points out that, because Beowulf, the main character, has brain and brawn, which are highlighted throughout the tale, and is dignified, brave, wise and a superior warrior; only a commendable challenger is capable of defeating him. The paper relates that there are many monstrous beasts that Beowulf encounters and defeats; however, the dragon is not a monster but rather the most worthy adversary of any beast Beowulf encounters, whose death glorifies both the dragon himself and Beowulf. The paper includes several quotations as examples.

From the Paper:

"Although the dragon was not trying to get his treasure back in a civilized manor, he can't be asked to; he is in-fact an animal. It is hard to imagine now, but in the time the poem was composed, a dragon was considered to be an animal. Similar to how people may view Lochness or Bigfoot today, an animal that may or may not exist. It is important to understand that people of the time thought of a dragon as an animal because by accepting he is one, in-turn accepts that he does not have a conscience of right and wrong. Animals may have emotions, such as happiness, fear, or rage, but they do not have a concept of good or evil."

Sample of Sources Used:

• "Beowulf" The Norton Anthology: English Writers Eighth edition Pages 26-97 Copyright 2006; W. W. Norton & Company, Inc
• Parks, Ward, Prey Tell: How Heroes Perceive Monsters in Beowulf, in Journal of English and Germanic Philology, Vol. 92, No. 1, January, 1993, pp. 1-16. Reproduced in Literature Resource Center.
• Nitzsche, Jane C., The Structural Unity of Beowulf: The Problem of Grendel's Mother, in Texas Studies in Literature and Language, Vol. 22, No. 3, Fall, 1980, pp. 287-303. Reproduced in Literature Resource Center.
• Blomfield, Joan, The Style and Structure of 'Beowulf', in Review of English Studies, Vol. XIV, No. 56, October, pp. 396-403. Reprinted in World Literature Criticism Supplement, Vol. 1. Reproduced in Literature Resource Center.
• DuBois, Arthur E. "The Dragon in Beowulf." PMLA: Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, 72:5 (1957 Dec), pp. 819-22

More papers on "Beowulf":

• Analytical Essay # 134779 : "Loyalty in "Beowulf"
• Poem Review # 116965 : "The Monsters of "Beowulf "
• Comparison Essay # 32818 : "Restoration Vs. Translation of "Beowulf"
• Book Review # 69025 : "Heroic and Elegiac Elements in "Beowulf"

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