Beowulf LRJ #2

In story of Beowulf there are many values of the Anglo-Saxon people. A strong value is the honor in a warriors life. When Beowulf defeats Grendal, the author says "...his courage was proven, his glory was secure" (Haney 1646). Beowulf's glory and courage is shown through the death of his enemy. In this story many Christian values come through. The author refers to God many times, for example Hrothgar is said to be "...the king in his wisdom waited, still wondering whether the Almighty God would ever turn the tide of his misfortunes" (Haney 1313-1315). The referral to the Christian god shows that the author was probably Christian. The society that Beowulf in was very male oriented. The author describes Grendal's mother's strength as "less only by as much as an amazon warrior's strength is less than an armed man's..." (Haney 1281-1283). Even though Amazons were considered strong, they were still less than a man's.



The story of Beowulf's adventures have many unrealistic parts to them. For example Beowulf's swim to the bottom of the lake is said to take the better part of the day "it was the best part of a day before he could see the solid bottom" (Haney 1495-1496). This would be impossible for any man to accomplish. It is another example of Beowulf's superiority to other men. Another unrealistic description is that Beowulf's sword could not cut through Grendal's mother's flesh, "...the shining blade refused to bite" (Haney 1523-1524). It would be impossible for a sword to no be able to cut through anything's flesh. This adds to the image of Grendal's mother as being nearly invincible.



There are several quotes that are special to read. One of these is when Beowulf's sword gets in his foe's blood, "the sword began to wilt into gory icicles, to slather and thaw" (Haney 1606-1608). The image of a metal melting gives the reader a feeling of boiling blood, which is disgusting. It adds to the depth of Beowulf's enemy's evilness. Another wonderful image is also of Beowulf's sword. "Then he saw a blade...a sword in her armoury, an ancient heirloom from the days of the giants, an ideal weapon..." (Haney 1557-1560). The fact that Beowulf's sword is so incredible makes Beowulf seem even tougher. The weapon makes the man. The moment that Beowulf kills Grendal's mother also gives strong quotes. "A resolute blow that bit deep into her neck-bone and severed it entirely. toppling the doomed house of her flesh; she fell to the floor" (Haney 1565-1568). The image of Beowulf slicing off Grendal's mother's head and then her body tumbling to the floor is powerful and adds to the sense of awe at defeating such a mighty opponent.