Beowulf the superhero : Study guide and analysis

He is stronger than any other mortal, an impressive sight even to strangers, feared by enemies, has moral character, and can kill unbeatable monsters with his bare hands. He is a leader among his peers unrivaled, although showing respect for those who hold authority above him. By today’s standards Beowulf could be classified among the Superheroes so popular in cinema. All he is missing is a cape and the ability to fly, but he doesn’t really need those qualities as many super-human's in comics and the big screen are without that themselves. There is no reason for him not to fit in to the sizable cast of heroic characters currently famous among children and adults.

Super humans have been around since the dawn of literature, starting with the Epic of Gilgamesh. He too was a person of immense strength who fought monsters thrown at him by the gods to battle. There was even a sidekick Enkidu, a wild man from the forest. At first the two were enemies, but because neither of them could beat the other in a fight they gained respect and friendship. They then both went on a quest as heroes. Where experimental mishaps or inventive pseudo-scientific explanations create the mythic superheroes today, anciently they were often half-gods. Gilgamesh was at least a third god, while the Greek heroes Hercules and his half brother Perseus were both the offspring of the god Zeus and a mortal woman. Of course, Hercules was known for his great strength above any mortal (and also his anger problems) while Perseus was helped by the gods and wielded magical items. At least one Greek myth, the Amazons, has Wonder Woman to carry on their story to the modern era. She stands along side Superman and Batman, two of the most recognized superhero characters in the world. Beowulf even has a distant relative Thor, a god of the Norse from Scandinavia, that has reached modern comic book hero status.

Of the modern superhero legends that exist today, Beowulf is most like Superman and Batman. He has extraordinary strength beyond any other mortal on Earth, taking on monsters without the use of weapons. He tells stories, attested to by others, of how he went in alone to a dangerous situation and his his hands killed monsters of the deep waters. He swims better, fights better, and can even protect a kingdom better than any other. His strength and personality is without rival. Yet, like Batman he is mortal and uses human technology when necessary. Although often discarding them in the poem, Beowulf wears body armor, wields a sword and shield, and puts a boar head helmet on his head for protection. His costume, then, is a typical “dark age” warrior outfit. Because of his rank and the respect given him by kings, what he has is better than normal and sometimes has almost magical qualities. They serve him well in his fights with monsters and evil men, until he is much older. A dragon appears that is many times more powerful than him or his otherwise useful war technology. His super strength and impressive abilities give way to the still mortal weaknesses against a more powerful foe. There is a “Death of Superman” feeling to his final moments.

Beowulf's origin story is told, but it remains covered in mysterious blanks. The reader has to pay attention when the little we do know of his past is mentioned. A Danish king unrelated to Beowulf is introduced at the start of the story, followed by the attacks of Grendel. The hero is introduced a short time later. All that we know about him is revealed near the end of the story after fighting the dragon. His backstory seems to be that his father Ecgtheow married the daughter of the great king Hrethel who is the father of Hygeleic that Beowulf serves as thane. Ecgtheow must have come from another land because Beowulf is mentioned as one of the two who are last of their tribe Waegmunding. Somehow, most likely through war and defeat, those among that tribe have been wiped to near extinction. Whatever land the people came from, Beowulf, like Bruce Wayne, was born into high society and took advantage of that to improve himself. The questions that remain are who is this tribe, how did they end up mixing in with the Geats, and where did Beowulf get all his powers? Was he born with super human strength? Did he train harder than any others to become what he is as a warrior? There is a lot that a reader must take for granted, but like any good story the answers don’t matter. In fact they enhance the awe for a character that cannot fully be understood.

The Danes have their own heroes, such as the king mentioned when the story begins. He is Scyld Scefing, the founder of the Scefing ruling house. The designation “He was a good king” comes from his recognized for the time fighting abilities and generosity to those who are loyal. Through war with his enemies he subdues them and forces them to give tributes. He then takes the great wealth of this booty and hands it out to those loyal to the kingdom. By today’s standards such a ruler would be considered a terrible dictator and not good. But, the time of Beowulf was harsh and all leaders were seeking advantage over the group living next to them. One of the positive character traits of Beowulf, at least of the story, was he didn’t attack unprovoked and would not murder relatives or friends for quick promotion or kingdom possession. Protecting your people and not treating them badly was the highest honor.

That seeking of honor, by way of adventure, is what helps Beowulf become the hero he was known for and continues to be remembered. It wasn’t always that way. He did have something to prove. At an early age he was considered a weakling who wouldn’t amount to much. That is another part of the backstory not fully explained. Like any superhero, his powers and abilities were not at first recognized. It might be to hide a true identity or not knowing themselves until a great challenge reveals the truth. In Beowulf’s case it can be speculated he started in the background as an observer.  Perhaps the fact he wasn’t quick to start fights, didn’t seek advantage over others, or cared much for family or court intrigue made him out to be in the eyes of others a weak person. He might have even been looked down upon at first as an outsider, even if his father married the king’s daughter. Nothing could be more classic superhero than the status of an outsider needing to prove himself. By the time we meet Beowulf and follow his adventure, he had already gained a mighty reputation. How he got that reputation as the strongest and most respected warrior in the world is not explained. That story is passed in silence. Only once was his greatness at this point challenged when a thane of the Danish court questions his winning a swimming contest. That criticism is quickly dismissed by Beowulf who explains he had to contend with sea-monsters and therefore took more time. He also states Bracca who he raced was a friend and it was a youthful indiscretion to even try the feats.

Older generations looked upon him as a great man, and not just the younger or newer generation. He was a born leader who easily gathered the best warriors around him. When he went off to defeat Grendel in the land of the Danes across the sea, the elders wished that he wouldn’t leave, but they understood why he wanted to leave and even cheered him on with good wishes. They knew it was his mission in life to defeat evil wherever it lived. His strength and courage was not a mere show to impress others or scare his enemies. The Danish lookout when first noticing the band of Geats arriving was upset by the stealthy manner of their landing. However, he was quickly won over by Beowulf who showed no signs of false appearance. This was a recognizable powerful and intelligent man of nobility. He was naturally, like any superhero when arriving on scene, demanding of respect and standing out from others.

The monsters he must fight are worthy opponents to a man of his greatness and super human abilities. Grendel is a monster of the night. He was born of murder as the son of Cain. He is described as stealthy and swift, his eyes burning with violent rage. This is more than a monster of brute force, although that certainly exists. It is an intelligent monster that knows what it is doing when tearing apart the mead-hall door and killing all inside. Behind that mind and strength is also sharp teeth and deadly claws. He could be described as the perfect killer. And his mother is no less than him in fierceness and terror, although perhaps slightly harder to defeat. Where Beowulf was able to graple Grendel naked until an arm was torn off of the beast, the mother wasn’t so easy to dispatch. She came very close to taking Beowulf out in her lair beneath the cursed lake. It was only by the grace of God, a sword seemingly left over from the time of the great flood, that he won the battle. Like the Alien movies, her blood was corrosive and melted the blade while dealing the final blow.

Sea-monsters are perhaps the most perplexing evil forces he must face. Beowulf is, after all, only human with all his greatness. He doesn’t even have the ancient luxury of having half-god ancestry. Yet, in all his water encounters it is almost like he, like Aquaman, can breath underwater. The final conflict with Grendel’s mother takes place exclusively in a water filled world of death and decay. His Danish friends worry that he will be killed by her and not drowned. But this suspension of disbelief should not be taken too literally as one of his superhero powers. The waters filled with monsters are not representative of actual lakes and seas that can drown a person who breaths air. He is diving into the deep abyss of the Biblical leviathan; the place of the damned and unquenchable sin. The creatures are found in the depths of Hell where his soul is more in danger than his body. Losing to them would bring eternal torment for both himself and those remaining behind.

The final battle with the dragon introduces a sidekick that for years had been the staple of comic book superheroes. The most famous is Robin who is a young man taken in by and accompanies the adventures of Batman, sometimes saving him if not saved by the caped crusader. In the case of Beowulf, the greatest of his young warriors are challenged by a great fire-breathing dragon wanting revenge for a stolen goblet. The not so charitable Beowulf forces the person who stole it to show him where the dragon lives. Once arriving at the treasure filled caved, all of the warriors become frightened and run into the forest. That is, all of them except one young man named Wiglaf who fights besides him in the epic battle. He probably stays behind both because this is the noble king he serves and he is related to Beowulf as the last remaining of a tribal line. Together they defeat the dragon where before it was a hopeless cause. The fire-breath had already scorched Beowulf and destroyed his weapons, specially made shield, and armor. With resolve and foolhardy courage, Wiglaf stabs the dragon in the chest to weaken it and Beowulf with a knife stabs it in the head, finishing the dragon.

As a King-warrior, Beowulf had protected his people by keeping enemies from attacking. They feared him for his great skills and strength. He would fight without a weapon, killing with his hands and ripping out their hearts. Through this fierceness and loyalty from his people, Beowulf as king of the Geats kept the peace for all of his ruling years. With Beowulf’s death and the cowardice shown his warriors, other than the young Wiglaf who had never seen battle until the dragon, the Geat’s enemies from all around would attack and destroy them. They did not honor the old and respected super human warrior, and so God would probably not protect them.

The question of Beowulf as Superhero is a mixed bag of contradictions. He is a warrior of strength greater than any other human.  He battles often without weapons both monsters and men. No one could do what he did; and all honor or fear him. Many of the adventures he took, even when given bounty and prizes, was without expectation of reward. Despite this, he was mortal like all who lived. He was boastful while claiming he could still be defeated if by the will of God and fate. He might not have character flaws for his time, but he could be cruel in the name of justice and protection. Definitely not a man of peace. Eventually he grew old and was killed by a dragon much more powerful than him. If it wasn’t for Wiglaf the sidekick the dragon would have won. Perhaps its the weaknesses of body and character that keep him out of the list of super heroes in history. He has super human qualities, but in other respects he is all too human. Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne have met their literary match.

Questions to consider:
What are the attributes of a Superhero and how does Beowulf compare?

Why do you think Beowulf continues to be overlooked in popular culture?

How do you think the perception of Beowulf from weak to the strongest human changed?

Christianity in Beowulf : Study Guide and Analysis

The formation of Beowulf is one of the great mysteries of English literature. At the heart of the problem is the pagan and Christian intermixing of ideas. There is no denial that pagan’s story and Christian sentimentality makes up the narrative. However, it is uncertain how they got to be placed together in such a coherent fashion. Some believe that a later Christian writer found the story important and added editorials. Others have concluded that a Christian convert also conversant with paganism wrote the epic using local mythology. Despite these differences, it is interesting to see how two opposing ideologies co-exist in such an intelligent epic.

When we look at the criticism of the two elements it becomes possible to understand the impact the interaction has had with readers. A select few have rejected all of the Christian elements as irrelevant to the story. “The earliest nineteenth-century readers of Beowulf, most of them northern Europeans, were involved in the Romantic search for national origins,” and accepted the Germanic pagan elements and considered the rest improvisations. King Alfred is usually accused of adding the new material (Irving Jr., 181). Despite the reasonableness of this conclusion it is hard to reconcile with the fluidity of prose. Sometimes the fusion is so evident in the duplicity of a sentence that both a pagan and Christian meaning can be invoked. This will be explored in more depth later.

With so many examples of a Christian intellect at work it is tempting to assimilate the whole as an apologists metaphor for the passing of an era. “The assertion that Beowulf is a seriously didactic Christian poem was now being restated by many scholars (see, e.g., Kaske 1968) and took several forms. An early interpretation was to identify the hero with Christ and to read the poem as an allegory,” much like St. George who slays the dragon (Irving Jr., 183). With so many obvious Christian parallels it seems possible to reconstruct the format. However, the more it is tried the less the major portions will fit neatly into an allegory. By ripping either the Christian or the pagan elements from the story to elicit specific world-views only makes a disaster out of the text.

What those divergent elements are can be just as interesting as how and why they are there in the first place. There are at least three categories to be found in the poem that can be recognized. There are the pagan elements that look mostly at the display of personal strengths and valor, and the pleasure and social status of wealth. The Christian elements have to do with the veneration of a just God and the destruction of evil in the world. The final category can’t easily be split into the other two ideals. These have pagan and Christian meanings possibly at the same time. The hero Beowulf is included in this conundrum.

Christian Parts

The most obvious Christian elements are those that have a direct relationship to Biblical events and personalities. Some things are as directly Christian as most everything else is pagan. Part of the reason some critics have argued that there were additions to the original poem is because of the seemingly few instances where non-paganism is mentioned. What is interesting is that most of the Biblical references don’t come from the New Testament, but to the earlier Jewish traditions.
Grendel is the only character who is mentioned as a Biblical prototype. Like his ancestors that form this connection, he has been banished in the earth to roam. He was one of many evil creatures who sprung up from Cain.

In misery among the banished monsters, Cain’s clan, whom the Creator had outlawed and condemned as outcast. For the killing of Abel the Eternal Lord had exacted a price . . . out of the curse of his exile there sprang ogres and elves and evil phantoms and the giants too, who strove with God time and again until He gave them their reward. (105-114)

It almost goes without saying that his mother is a direct descendant of Cain as well. This is important because she has an important part in the development of the story as a Christian metaphor.

At one point in the battle against Grendel’s mother, Beowulf discovers a large sword. On the sword are curious pictures of a Biblical nature on the hilt. It is obviously the story of the flood during Noah’s time. It was engraved all over and showed how war first came into the world and the flood destroyed the tribe of violence. They suffered a terrible severance from the Lord; the Almighty made the waters rise and drown them in the deluge for retribution. (1688-1693). This is the sword that will eventually be used to slay Grendel’s mother. It seems to be the only weapon able to handle such evil. Perhaps the poet used the idea of the flood as an ultimate weapon against the evils of the world. According to the Biblical account the only people left were the righteous. It is in this context that the sword might become both judge and jury in distributing eternal penalties. Beowulf became only the earthly form of this heavenly retribution.

The hero plays an important role in the salvation of many of his comrades, both within his own clan and outside of it. It might even be in consequence of the sins of the Geates that the terrible monster appears and devours them. It was only in time that, “the killer instinct unleashed among in-laws, the blood-lust rampant,” (84-85) would take over their doings. This blood lust could have triggered both the justice of heaven and the notice of hell. The punishment was greatest when, in the pride of their comfort, they sat at the table and celebrated with abundance.

Even though Beowulf is a symbol of Christ in many places, he is at best a “flawed” representation. The poem’s writer doesn’t intend to connect everything to Christianity, and most likely uses it as a stylistic approach. What happens with this pick and choose cultural approach is a “secular” hero of extraordinary abilities. He could be described as a Christian Hercules.

There are three monsters that Beowulf faces in order to become the valiant hero and king. The first is Grendel and his mother, who together form what might be considered the pre-resurrection enemies of Christ. It is with awesome and unrelenting horror that Grendel brings death into the world. His mother is in the bottom of a fiery lake, and Beowulf must go there in order to purge the world of her dreadful presence waiting to take revenge on any whom escaped death. When Beowulf went into the deep to overcome “hell” his followers, like Christ’s, believed he was gone forever before his return proved the final victory.

. . . watching the lake water, [seeing] a  heave-up and surge of waves and blood in the backwash. They bowed gray heads, spoke in their sage, experienced way about the good warrior, how they never again expected to see the prince returning in triumph to their king. It was clear to many that the wolf of the deep had destroyed him forever. (1592-1599).

The dragon is his last great opponent, but must be defeated differently than the other monsters. Critics often believe that the dragon represents the “serpent” Satan who is important to the book of Revelations in the Bible. The name “the evil one” given to it by Beowulf who asks it to leave its cave seems to indicate this (2514). If this is the case then it makes sense that a new approach to defeating it makes sense.

. . . now the day has come when this lord we serve needs sound men to give him their support. Let us go to him, help the leader through the hot flame and dread of the fire. As God is my witness, I would rather my body were robed in the same burning blaze as my gold-givers body than go back home bearing arms. That is unthinkable, unless we have first slain the foe and defended the life of the prince of the Weather-Geats. (2646-2656).

In the Christian theological view this is consistent with the personal nature of the battle with Satan. Christ saved all humanity from death and hell, but to defeat Satan believers must struggle together with their savior to not be overcome by the great serpent. It is during this time of struggle that “every man should act, be at hand when needed; but now, for the king, this would be the last of his many labors and triumphs in the world” (2708-2711). Unbelievers who lose faith and don’t fight are doomed to be cast away as cowards, or destroyed by the serpent they didn’t stand against.

Another role for the kingdom of Christ, and Beowulf performs this as king, is to be a peacemaker. It is during his administration that kingdoms and clans live together without trying to destroy each other. They are united under one leadership and any battles that occur are only minor and quickly put down. But, with the passing of the “good king” Beowulf the situation changes. There is a pessimism that the Swedes, “will cross our borders and attack in force when they find out that our lord is dead” (3001-3003). Each king mentioned in the poem is granted the label good or evil. Those kings who could get other nations “to yield to him and give tribute. That was one good king” (10-11). It was when kingdoms fought both friend and foe that the label of good wasn’t mentioned.

Many critics point to the disturbing ending as evidence that the poet was lamenting the pagan past from a short distance. It could be argued that the poet was lamenting the passing of both a Christian and pagan era. For the writer there seems no hope in the pagan heroic virtues that Beowulf represents. With the same idea “twelve warriors [riding] around the tomb” (3169), who could represent Christ’s apostles, mourn for his loss at the same time as extol his unmatched valor. Whatever bleak future was in the poet’s mind, it wasn’t going to be a triumph for either world-view.

works cited:

Heaney, Seamus, translator. Beowulf. By unknown, W.W. Norton & Company, 2000.

Irving Jr., Edward B. “Christian and Pagan Elements.” A Beowulf Handbook.  Ed.
Robert E. Bjork and John D. Niles. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. 1997. Pg. 175-192.

Beowulf Study Guide Analysis : History and Myth

Lets examine the history of Beowulf as it relates to the myth.

A good way to approach a reading of Beowulf is to recognize the two layers in its story telling. The first recognizable layer is the myth. This is where the monsters, magic, and heroic elements are put together in order to make a very exciting, if somewhat horrific, adventure. These outstanding elements cannot be more than legendary and imaginative. No creatures like Grendel and his mother existed in any possible way, and dragons at best were a strange interpretation of ancient giant fossil bones. The novelist Micheal Crichton re-imagined the story for his book “Eaters of the Dead,” that became the movie “The 13th Warrior,” as the last surviving tribe of Neanderthals attacking an early dark age fort. Another popular movie was made called “Beowulf” done in a mixture of live and animation that told the story rather faithfully. It is a classic in literature that continues to inspire since the day of the textual discovery.

The second layer is the actual history it writes about which can be very complicated because there is not a lot of sources of information to flesh out. There is enough corroborating evidence to know for certain that most of the people, places, and less magic events really did happen. When that history is studied, it becomes easier to get into the story and imagine what kind of lives the characters might have. Of course, like almost all ancient stories, it is focused on the elites and royalty of their society. Considering how mundane life can be for peasant classes, working the land unless called to fight by the Lords, it should not be surprising that has always been the focus of writers. Not to mention, the nobility and families were probably the only ones who could read and write to create an audience.

Beowulf the text was written at about 1000 AD, although the exact time of composition is in dispute. The author, like so many Old English writings, is an anonymous Anglo-Saxon poet who didn’t even give the story a name. It was given the name of Beowulf by others because of his heroic position through the manuscript. The lengthy poem is part of the Nowell Codex that contains at least four other different literary works. Sadly as the one and only original copy, in 1731 the Nowell Codex was almost lost to history, but still damaged. The aptly named Ashburnham House next to the Cotten Library in England set fire and the manuscript saved by someone throwing it out the window. Edges of the manuscript, including some words, were burned to the point they can only be read with technological advancements. Currently it is located at the British Library.

The story takes place in Scandinavia between 500 and 600 AD mainly in what is now modern day Sweden and Denmark, with major events mentioned happening in France. Of course, the story is set before any of those modern countries as currently existing. The groups mentioned include the northern Swedes with the Geates below them, The Danes south across the waters and another enemy the Frisians or Franks southernmost. To the east is the Jutes and west the Wulfings. Not mentioned, despite how it has become a literary part of the cultural history, is the island nation of Britain. This has led to speculation, if not outright fact, that Germanic Anglo-Saxon transplants from those areas were trying to keep their heritage in memoriam.

How the Anglo-Saxons arrived in England is tied to the history of Rome and its downfall.  During the time of Julias Caesar in around 55 BC the future Roman ruler fought the Gauls and any other group beyond Roman territory. He extended Roman boundaries to parts of Germany, France, and other areas considered filled with wild barbarians. He also tried to cross into Britain and make that another Roman territory, but was never successful. By the time he became ruler, and ultimately was famously assassinated, Britain for the great empire was mostly a place of exploration.

As can be imagined, part of the reason it took so long for Romans to inhabit the island is how fiercely protective the native population was to keeping the land. The groups known as Pics and Celts, along with many other tribes constantly fought and raided the Roman interlopers.  They were not completely successful in pushing them back because by 43 AD permanent Roman settlements were founded. Several years later in 122 AD Emperor Hadrian ordered the start of the famous wall built by him. To this day it stands as a reminder of a chaotic and influential time in history when less advanced civilizations held back a more advanced one. Now by the time of the wall, things weren’t going smoothly for the Roman Empire. It started to lose territory to Gauls and other northern boundary enemies. Rome had slowly lost its power and riches to finance wars of expansion in the hopes of gaining more power and riches. The military filled with those they conquered, had more mercenaries, and the generals took more chances in the hopes of gaining notoriety.

What ended up happening became known as the Gothic invasion. There were at least three important invasions, with the last one finishing off the Roman Empire for good. Alaric was a Gothic king who at first simply wanted to become a Roman citizen with some importance. He was rejected and this enraged him. Instead of a peaceful relationship, it became all out war.  Waves of Goths under his direction ruined the Italian towns and cities, before arriving at the front door of Rome in 410 AD and entering. Warrior attacked, sacked, and nearly left the city for dead. By this time Christianity was well entrenched in Roman society and it might have saved Rome from complete annihilation because the churches were spared. Not so the rich or the pagan buildings. The second invasion could very much have been worse when Attila the Hun in 440 AD took power and tried to plunder the known world. He was enemies to Rome and the Goths together. In some ways he was more merciful than the Romans toward allies, but in anger he was a destroying terror. They didn’t want to be accepted by the Romans, but to claim land and take over. With a sigh of relief the Huns ended up at the doors of Rome and didn’t knock immediately. The Christian Pope Leo I negotiated a truce for a very short time, although other factors such as plague and a reduced military presence probably contributed more. He wasn’t done, however, and promised to return. That never happened and he died of a burst blood vessel in his neck. The final nail in the Western Roman Empire came when Orestes, the son of a secretary to Attila, deposed Julius Nepos and replaced him with the teenage boy Augustulus. Soon another German named Odoacer deposed the young Emperor and declared himself Ruler or King. He sent the traditional royal regalia of Western Rome to Eastern Rome (Byzantium) effectively opening up a new history.

Beowulf is part of the new history, taking place a mere 100 years after the official fall of Rome. It represents the start of what has been termed “the dark ages,” when much knowledge was lost for a time. The story can be read from the viewpoint of Europe’s transformation from pagan to Christian. The manuscript writers were Christian much like Rome had become. Missionaries and politics converted the Britons.  The Geates in the story were a powerful tribe on the southern part of Sweden. They might have been referenced by Old Norse literature as Gautor or “the people of the Goitaland,” and were described as a strong although warmongering nation. By the 10th century the Geats no longer existed and no one knows what happened. Most likely they were probably defeated and then absorbed by the northern Swedish neighbors. Both the Geats and the Anglo-Saxon writers should not be confused with the vikings, although they have some similarities. The Geats came before them and the Anglo-Saxons broke off from Scandinavia when immigrating to Briton. The vikings were doing more than plundering the neighbors. They were attacking former related tribes before they themselves became Christian and settled down.

Rothgar the Danish king might be the most prominent name in the poem, but the Geats king Hygalec is the most well known in historical records. An historian Gregory of Tours mentions a king by the name of ko-chi-lay-cus, who is most likely Hygalec, who tried in 516 AD to raid Freshia. It was very unsuccessful and Hygalec ended up killed. The Geats raiders were discovered and lost the ensuing battle. In the confusion of defeat, Geats rushed back to shore to make it home. King Hygelic’s body was found and exhibited by the Franks. Other names and events in Beowulf are attested to with independent poems, annals, and manuscripts.

Archaeological discoveries have shed light on the Beowulf history and culture. In 1939 at Sutten Hoo England, an earth mound was dug into and the imprint of a large ship was found. Nails were lined up in rows where ship planks would have been, although long since decayed. Besides finding a ship underneath the soil, it was filled with over 250 Anglo-Saxon artifacts of priceless value. Among the plunder were coins, weapons, and silver eating utensils. The most distinguished object was a decorated mask that has since become symbolic of the Beowulf character and England. Warring masks are described in the poem like what was found in the discovery.

The second archaeological discovery is of what is considered Dane King Rothgars mead-hall.  Post holes of very large buildings were uncovered in the small Danish town of Lejre of mostly Viking settlements. At least one of the buildings is of the time period that Beowulf takes place. It has also been associated both by history and legend as the home of the Scylding family dynasty.

The story of Beowulf is more than a fanciful legend. It allows the reader a look into an historical period that is not well known and nearly forgotten. At the same time history illuminates the place of Beowulf in both English and European culture.

Consider:

How can legends and myth help us understand the past, or how does it conceal it?

What can Beowulf mean to a modern reader?

Does understanding the history behind the story make it more interesting or understandable?

The Seafarer and The Wanderer : The Cold Waters of Life's Journey - Commentary and Analysis

Imagining another time and place far distant from where a person currently lives can be difficult. Popular culture and stories often confuse what the reality might be for those from long ago and far away. Anachronisms of people, events, clothing, and how one lived are easy to add into any perceptions. England during the period of Old English is one time period when those who are not familiar with it might be mistaken about what life was like for those who lived then. Mention Old English and what comes to mind is often what existed of the island nation many generations later. There were no knights in shining armor or damsels in distress wearing fancy dresses. Kings that ruled vast territories and commanded large armies on horseback wouldn’t exist for a few hundred years. Such romantic scenes are much later during the middle ages, if they ever really existed outside of imaginative works of art and letters.

The real Old English time period was more humble and rather dangerous. It is placed between the time that Rome left the island because of internal and external threats to its own empire, and Alfred the Great’s son becomes the ruler of England. The poems were written when tribes led by chieftains fought for land and survival. Often foreign invaders (and a bit later the Vikings) sought to conquer the locals. Factions rose and fell with deadly skirmishes to take control or revenge. The common folk mostly either lived off the land when there was a good season of crop growth, or fought in wars commanded by the local Lords. Disease was rampant and death a basic part of life. Fortifications were often nothing more than the local church house or manor. There was no reliable safety from raiders or soldiers. It was an untamed frontier filled with immigrants.

Dates for when The Seafarer and The Wanderer were written is not exactly known.  As with most Old English poems, they were preserved in the Anglo-Saxon Exeter Book as part of its collection. They came from the time described above when living was hard and Christianity the newly dominant cultural religion. Both have clear similarities in descriptions, moods, and themes in the text.  No doubt they were written by different authors,  but came from the the same kind of life experiences voyaging away from their original home. The commonalities are very intriguing and give some insight into what it was like during a chaotic period of history.

What stands out before anything else is the cold. The poems start out describing a chilling season in the dead of winter. Alone on a ship they feel sorrow and fear among the ice filled waves crashing against their ships. In The Seafarer he is brought by a “night watch” to the prow or above deck to witness the dangerous sea thrashing its waves. The night watch is just as scared, as they move precariously next to the cliffs that could dash the ship into pieces. In The Wanderer, the poet says they are controlling the direction of the ship in the harsh winter ice waters. Both of them fear for their lives, but they also have much more personal concerns.

The reasons why The Seafarer is traveling is not spelled out in the poem. He is much more concerned with the voyage itself. The Wanderer on the other hand is much more clear on what brought him across these cold winter waters to travel in exile. At first it seemed that he might have killed his Lord, since “I hid my Lord in the darkness of the Earth,” and refuses to tell anyone. Later on in the poem there is more hints of what happened. He sleeps and remembers all the good times had before forced to leave the home he once knew.  But, he wakes up to remember the terrible condition he finds himself in traveling alone on the sea as a stranger to all. He describes how “war took off some” and destroyed a city. Bodies were ravaged by birds and wolves, if they weren’t buried first like the Lord he put in the dark of the Earth. Most likely the wanderer escaped death during a violent invasion of his homeland. The poem might have been written as a declaration of survivors guilt.

Hints are dropped in both poems that the writers are old and nearing the end of their lives. For The Wanderer all his friends and kinsmen are long gone, indicating years have past since he left home. He states that “a man cannot call himself wise” unless he has years behind them. They need to learn how not to be too eager or too greedy in his behavior. They must think before they make promises and act, having gotten rid of boastful pride. After all, the Wanderer most likely saw the results of a less wise life with the destruction of his homeland. The destruction left by a North Hailstorm was mostly likely a metaphor suggesting the invaders who sacked his old place. The Seafarer is no less thoughtful about the past, although in less specific terms. He looks at the world around him and questions where all the great kings and rulers have gone. He longs for the days when kings were doers of good and giver of treasure to the deserving. Those who remain are weak and live off the past actions of others. He then describes the physical condition of a dying (if not already dead) man with pale face, failing body, graying beard, and eventually losing all senses. Giving the dead gold buried with them does not improve their lost condition. The release of death is the end of exile.

Exile in life for the Seafarer is self-determined, not based on any force of evacuation by violence. Despite all the cold and sorrowful outlook on life, something internal draws him to take to the waters. The poem’s perspective is from the winter months, but other seasons are mentioned. He talks about the Groves that blossom, indicating the springtime and new beginnings. The crops in the fields grow along with the size of cities. There is a feeling of renewal that strengthens the resolve to once again leave the sedentary life and become an exile on a voyage again. Not that all is well with the spring starting a new season of travel. The sound of the cuckoo bird in the summer is a sign of the hardships that lucky rich warriors cannot understand. But, he doesn’t want that kind of life. Staying secure on the land is a kind of death, when he really wants to follow the whale’s path wherever fate might take him. He trusts in the Lord of Heaven more than the insecurities of mortal life.

Underneath the hardships, declared sorrows, ice cold waters, and hail storms, the poems are not about the physical journeys of exiled sailors. There is a religious and moral message that both of them want to pass on to the readers. Once again, what they have to say is very similar to each other with only slight disagreements or differences. The Seafarer is much more direct in his approach to what he is wanting the reader to spiritually understand. As a traveler who seeks to find a home in a foreign land, the least he has to worry about is his Lord. No earthly pleasures of music, women, glory, or any such mortal experiences exist for him. The treasures of the world don’t last very long. All people’s lives end either with disease, old age, or at the end of a sword in a violent struggle. Living a life full of good deeds is all that remains. Those who do good in the world will be remembered by those who come after, while the angels in heaven share in the joy of an eternal reward. The wanderer agrees that life is harsh and hardly worth the trouble. He councils to not talk about the grief and sorrow they are feeling unless they “already know the remedy” - that most likely means religious instructions. The only one who can understand the inner turmoil and help sooth the raw emotions is the father in heaven, or God. In both poems, it is the next life for those who live good lives where true treasures and happiness can be found.

In the modern Western world communication allows people to instantaneous communicate to anyone far away from each other. The idea that we can be exiled or do so on our own is not easily geographically probable anymore. For most of human history it only took going a few miles away from a city or settlement to become lost. Yet, some studies have suggested that we humans are alone as individuals like never before. The Internet might be a place of infinite personal connections with those we know and people we will never meet, but we remain like The Wanderer hiding our true selves. We keep our experiences locked within our hearts and minds even when letting the whole world see our lives. It is a psychological exile where the search for new information and experiences masks the loss or lack of real relationships. Considering the poems views, the world has changed only cosmetically. We break up into factions while wars continue to destroy towns and cities. People seek self-made exile in video games and other quasi reality entertainment, while not paying attention to other people. It can be a lonely and sad existence equal to the Seafarer and Wanderer.

Consider the questions:

Why do you think the two poems are so similar in theme and viewpoint?

How can you compare the personalities of the two exiles by the differences?

What might the reasons be today for a person to take a very long or seasonal journey?

The Husband's Message and The Wife's Lament Analysis: Love and Separation

The Old English Poems The Husband's Message and The Wife's Lament have come from what is called the Exeter Book, a collection of Anglo Saxon poems collected around the first part of 100 AD by monks. There is an argument if the Riddle 60 is its own poem or related to The Husband’s message as they have similarities about writing on wood. The first part of The Husband’s message has been lost to time, and therefore the speculation that Riddle 60 is the true preamble. Both poems talk about a tree or wood conveying a message between two people. It most likely is a secret code, as only the two intended are supposed to understand the conversation. This theory of secrets might be contradicted by The Husband’s message where it has been delivered by a messenger, depending on how personified one interprets the wood in that poem. A person could have read to the wife or simply delivered the wood that holds the writing.

The Husband wants to know if the wife has been loyal to him, as he is to her. He continually reminds her of the many oaths they made to bind them in love. He insists that everything would be normal for them if he wasn’t exiled because of a feud with powerful people. He calls her “The bracelet-adorned one,” to bring to mind a physical representation of the love vows. This is probably similar to a wedding ring that is used for the same, although far more official, purpose. Those who wear a ring are promised exclusively to love one individual. Of course, that doesn’t mean the relationships remain strong or permanent. He goes further by setting up a kind of long term test, almost begging her to travel when the cuckoo bird signals the season to go by sea. He wants her to leave the safety of shore and find him on a trip in the open waters. It is the ultimate test to determine if the love of his life is still true to him.

After all he has done, there is no reason for her to doubt the love he holds for her after all these years. That is, if what the message says can be believed. There are a few hints that his own loyalty and love for her is in doubt. Nothing of personal property, other than the wood message, has been sent to her as a token of continued love. Perhaps he thought sending anything of value would get lost or stolen after a long voyage. He claims the reason to send for her after all this time is how rich he has become. They can now as a couple do anything together, including buy off friends and loyal supporters. He tells her that, even with all the wealth amassed after all these years by fighting his enemies and winning, that riches don’t matter, He says only her love and loyalty, matched by his own for her, are what matters. Perhaps it was not safe for him to send for her before, but he could have asked her to travel much sooner if the love was that strong. Even the message bearer hints at the questionable nature of his reason to send for her with the words “he instructs me to say,” how much he wants and loves her. Obviously the husband instructs the messenger to say a lot of things, but that moment of most emotional pleading is what stands out as needing instructed. He ends in an oath using a code of letters to once again provide evidence his love was never broken. Yet, the husband left his wife behind and didn’t seek her for long enough that he created a new life. Perhaps his loneliness or a marriage requisite for greater power is what drives him to send for her over what has to be treacherous waters for uncertain love.

The place of The Wife’s Lament in the Exeter Book gives no hint any real relationship between the two poems exist, but many critics do see familiarity between them. They both talk about a husband that leaves a wife for distant lands, and the impact it has on the relationship. There are strong differences, but mostly because of the point of view. The husbands was him having left the wife alone. The wife is the one who was left behind to fend for herself. From the start of the wife’s poem, “Sorrowfully I sing the song of woe,” there is a different mood and set of emotions from the other one. She isn’t begging for his return, giving in to the fact he has left her for good. There is no hope of reuniting.

She too is in exile, the same as her husband. The difference is her exile is not just geographical, but social and emotional. His leaving was not an adventure and treasure seeking outcome for her, but isolation and perhaps doom. She is stuck in a land, by the husband’s command, where she has very few family and friends. Worse yet, his own family members are not happy about the union. They seek to split them apart as a couple, and more than likely succeeding.

Here is where the ambiguity of her condition really shows up, because her exile might be more than based on where she lives. She could even be a ghost, having been murdered. The love of the husband is more specifically, instead of hinted at like the other poem, pointed out to have been lost. At first the love was promised that it would never be broken “nothing less end our love,” than death. That didn’t turn out that way as “Alas all is changed.” Later on in the poem we learn that her relationship to the husband is as if it never existed. He is described as angry and filled with murderous thoughts. Did he kill her in the end and force her to wander the world? She is living in a cave to look out into the world of the living, only to ponder under a tree. Perhaps under a tree is where her body has been hastily buried, leaving her with no true home. Caves have also since ancient times been considered the entrance to the afterlife where the dead go for final rest. But the murdered cannot rest, and the wife states she wanders the world looking for her love, then always return to the tree and the cave.

Where the husband’s message ends with an oath to demonstrate loyalty, the wife’s lament ends in a curse. She wants him to remember her for his whole life. It doesn’t matter if his behavior is careless about her departure and separation. She wants him to wander the world alone and never be happy. He can remember when life was much better, but cannot have that same peace ever again. She wants him to wander the earth, feel sorrow, remember better times, and have loneliness the same as herself. Assuming she has been murdered and is dead, her cures could imply wanting him dead in the same manner.

Long distance relationships are hard to maintain even in the modern era. Imagine what it would be like when it took months or years to travel from one place to another.  For most people they lived and died within a few hundred miles distance, leaving for longer trips only as soldiers or by command of a Lordship. What these poems reflect is the burden of love, or the loss of it, when the couple cannot be together for any reasons. The saying “absence makes the heart grow fonder” is refuted by writers of these two poems. When two people are away from each other, and the longer they are gone, the harder it is to maintain emotional bonds. Modern technology helps bridge that gap to a degree.

Comment if you believe the wife was murdered, or is that too literal a reading?

Did the husband’s message have any truth that he still loved and was loyal to the woman he left behind?

Is it easier to have long distance relationships in the modern world?

Old English Poetry : Dream of the Rood and The Ruin Analysis

Dream of the Rood

Within the poem Dream of the Rood, there are several comparisons, juxtapositions, and dichotomies. These are where two opposing descriptions or ideas are used for the same object. It may not at first make much sense until put together to enhance the meaning of what the author is trying to express. In this case, how normal or unremarkable people and things can become far greater than outward appearances.

The poet starts by describing a tree like any other, but far greater than at first thought. The tree is not only an object of wonder, but the greatest tree that has ever existed. What makes the tree so great at first sight is how it is covered in brilliant light and precious gems of magnificent quality. Angels also watch over its existence. This hides the original ominous and horrible use of the tree. In fact, without that terrible history there would be no reason for the current veneration and glory.

The author himself is not the most worthy of people to witness the tree. He claims to be full of sin and unrighteousness. Despite that, like the unremarkable tree, he is chosen to have a holy dream explaining why the tree is so important. Most likely the poet is describing a reliquary that houses a relic or holy object. A simple piece of wood, fabric, or human remains is placed in a special highly decorated container for religious practitioners to gaze upon as they worship.

As with any dream, there are unrealistic elements that otherwise would be dismissed as nonsense. In this case the great tree starts to speak. The inanimate tree becomes personified with a human voice. There is no hesitation of acceptance or questioning how the tree is talking. Like any otherwise absurdity in a dream the talking is perfectly natural. What the tree talks about is how it transformed from a normal tree to the greatest in history so far as the poem is concerned.

Within the poem is the idea that despite its dream qualities, the objects and events depicted are very much real. The tree might as well be able to talk because of the grand story behind the vision. Although happening far in the past, the dream progresses as if the events were unfolding in real time. Raw emotions of the tree and visionary spill out for all readers to feel.

Strong men, Romans to specific, tore the tree down in a violent act in preparation for a violent purpose. The most retched criminals were, by Romans standards of punishment, to be crucified on the tree. This proposed act horrified the tree, but who was to be crucified on it changed the perspective. A hero in the form of Jesus, known as the Christ or Savior, was placed on the tree as a sacrifice. Even while wanting to either bow to the holy figure or falling on the Roman soldiers it did not move. The importance of who is about to die forces the tree to reconsider its own actions and play the part fate has given it.

The tree’s fate becomes so intertwined with the suffering and death of Jesus, that they become in the mind of the poet practically one and the same. Both of them have the marks of nails pounded into them. Blood covers Jesus and the tree that he hangs upon. It is a terrible vision with a victorious outcome when they suffer and are glorified together.

Before they are glorified, Jesus body is put into a tomb and the tree buried in the ground to be forgotten. Early followers mourn and cry at the loss and then quietly leave after the burials. As anyone who knows the Christian religion can explain, Jesus Christ rises out of the tomb and saves humanity from sin and permanent death. The Rood, another word for the cross, also is found and raised from the ground. Jesus Christ becomes the Salvation of the World and the remnants of the Rood, or cross, to be Venerated.

No matter how real life might be, it is seen by believers and this poet as nothing compared to the eternal rewards for those who worship Jesus as the Christ. The dreamer, having seen the cross decked in finery and glory, decides to search for his eternal reward of living forever with Jesus who returns to Heaven from whence he came. Theologically, Jesus Christ is considered both a man and a God similar to how the tree is both a piece of wood and a holy object. The instrument of death becomes the inspiration for living a holy life.

The Ruin

The other poem, The Ruin, is a look back at a glorious time in history when Rome was at its most splendid. The poet has visited the now gone physical remnants of the once powerful Empire and is awe inspired. The writer is amazed by the forms of buildings that once represented a rich nation filled with promise and delights.

He goes on to say that the marvels he sees are mostly in crumbles. A terrible event transpired to bring down the buildings and the people who lived among the sprawling metropolis. The men in the city had gold, silver, and many other kinds of wealth, but they too are gone. What remains are, presumably, piles and heaps of stone and tile as a testament to the grandness that once was. Interesting enough, the poem itself is fragmented. Part of the middle and what was the end have been lost. A few words can be pieced together in the missing sections, but nothing completely coherent. Despite that, the text mostly can be read and understood.

As for the city the poem describes, it lasted for a very long time. Houses were built, elaborate baths of luxury were used, and great walls constructed to keep it safe. Only after years of survival did the place become abandoned and fell apart. It is hard to say if the poet believed the end of the city happened all at once or over a long cycle of events. The poem could be interpreted to either use the word “fail” implying a quick loss and the word “days” a far longer period of time. They don’t have to necessarily have an opposite meaning. One can have a slow failure, but the abandonment seems all at once. Whatever the poet might have thought of the ruins now sitting dormant, it has a very tragic feeling to the dilapidated structures.

Both The Ruin and The Dream of the Rood take a look back at history that even at the time they were written was ancient. The former saw terrible events and consider them to have been leading up to a glorious future. The latter saw a glorious past and despaired at a tragic loss that can never return. Early English literature is filled with looking back in awe and wonder of what came before, with hope to return to such a condition either in the world or heaven. The world may have always been harsh, but war, poverty, and disease of their time seemed excruciating.  They sought to remember, rebuild, and repeat what they saw as a golden age lost in time.

What we can learn from these poems today is that no matter how far apart history might be, there is always a looking back at what came before and a hope for the future. The past may be glorious and it might be filled with destruction and horror. We can be both horrified and impressed by events and places from what seems like long ago. Think of it as the half filled and half empty glass of water. To someone who is thirsty it might not be very impressive and perhaps full of worry. On the other hand, they might be happy that there was any water to drink. Perspective is a very powerful source of human opinion and decision making. Where a door closes, another might be open. It is the oppositions in life that make it interesting. To be honest, the current era seems more like the pessimistic Ruin poem than the optimistic Dream of the Rood even if that poem deals with something far more horrible than crumbling buildings.

A final note on the poems as written. They are Old English Anglo Saxon, and do not read like the English we have today. For modern English speakers and readers it seems like a completely different language, but it is linguistically the same.